A lot of people were wondering why Conor Glass was wearing a yellow jersey from the Tour de France for Glen’s homecoming parade.

Given that I know Conor has absolutely zero interest in bike racing, I was a bit curious myself.

Team captain Conor Carville also made a reference to the Tour de France during his acceptance speech so it was all very, very interesting.

I wasn’t the only one who was curious.

Multiple acquaintances sent me messages enquiring why Conor Glass was wearing the Maillot Jaune.

Given the general interest, I thought you might like to know the answer.

Apart from solving the riddle, it’s also totally relevant to anyone doing The Shred.

For every Championship campaign, Glen manager Malachy O’Rourke sets a theme.

The theme for 2023/24 was The Tour de France.

It was entirely appropriate.

While Glen might have wanted to avenge last year’s All-Ireland final defeat to Kimacud Crokes, it would have been extremely misguided if they got ahead of themselves.

Before they could even think of getting back to Croke Park, they had to negotiate their way through Derry, Ulster, then the All-Ireland series.

Malachy O’Rourke compared the journey facing his players to The Tour De France, which comprises 21 stages over a total distance of approximately 3,000kms.

But here’s the kicker. Despite the vast distance and multiple stages involved in the Tour de France, the winning margin is often decided by seconds.

And that was precisely Malachy’s message to his players.

Even if they prepared as diligently as they could, they would still have to fight to the death, because when it comes to the big prizes, the gap between first and second is usually extremely narrow.

That’s exactly how it proved to be.

And it’s the same with getting leaner, fitter and stronger. Forget about quick fixes.

Forget about magic bullets.

There is no easy way.

You, too, are facing your own Tour de France.

This is an endurance test, both physical and mental.

There will be times you’ll want to quit. There will be times you’ll be incapable of seeing a successful outcome. But at least if you appreciate the magnitude of the journey ahead, you will know what to expect.

Many of you will have already experienced your first setback.

Week 3 has a habit of biting people in the backside.

If you were one of the Shredders who hit a pothole last week, that’s okay.

Don’t dwell on what went wrong. Park it. Move on.

Double down on what gets results. Focus on your diet, steps and sessions.

Never stop.

Get on yer bike!

Bon voyage. PH