In 2006 I rode the inaugural TransWales stage race. It was the first time the multi-day mountain bike event format had been brought to the UK, and this week, four years later, the 2010 edition is currently underway.

So today, as I sit in my living room surrounded by a pile of baggy shorts and jerseys and an assortment of energy bars, I’m make the journey to Wales to take part in the Exposure Lights night time trial and Friday’s stage of the race.

Why only two stages you ask? To be honest I would love to have taken part in the full event, but somebody has to man the Bikemagic HQ and so I couldn’t really justify taking the time off. Which is how I let organiser Michael Wilkens talk me into doing the two stages.

Still, I may only be doing a tiny portion of the total riding but it will still afford me the opportunity to experience how the event has grown and matured in the preceding four years. It will be interesting to see how UK riders have adopted the stage racing concept, a style of event that has gained much popularity around the world in the past few years.

I’ve no idea what the internet connectivity is going to be like in a (wet and muddy) field in the middle of Wales somewhere, but I’ll endeavour to bring you reports as often as possible. Oh and you can follow minute-by-minute (possibly) action on the Bikemagic Twitter account, head to www.twitter.com/bikemagic.