In order to maintain perhaps not peak, but a satisfactory level of physical fitness all year round, training rides become the staple of every cyclist’s weekly routine, even for those who live and work within the capital city.

There comes a time of year, however, when training must be undertaken in the cold, dark, damp mornings of the long British winter. It's during these months that London becomes a much more solitary existence for any road cyclist, whether training or commuting.

In preparation for any ride, the small procedures, mental checklist and pattern of repetition become almost ritualistic in behaviour. It's these unnoticed and overlooked moments, as fleeting and banal as they may seem, that become ever-more normal, the further we go to pursue our chosen passions.