PARALYMPIC legend Dame Sarah Storey has taken a look at the 2014 British Cycling National Time Trial and Road Championships courses and declared it is 'going to be very exciting racing'. During a trip to Wales by Dame Sarah, her husband Barney, baby daughter Louisa, she and her Team Storey Sport colleagues rode the 19.47km Time Trial course before trying out the 71.34km Elite Women's Road Race route..

And the Cheshire star, who has won 22 Paralympic medals in a glittering career that included four golds at the 2012 London Paralympics, says she is looking forward to tackling the courses in earnest when she returns for the Championships in June. The Time Trial course starts and finishes at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport and takes in villages around Monmouthshire with some tremendous viewing sections of the riders along a closed road route for both the men's and women's elite and Under-23 events.

Dame Sarah said: "The Time Trial course is lumpy and up and down. It has got some technical aspects to it, some really fast sections as well and there is a really nasty climb before the final kilometre to the finish. "But you can really empty the tank on that climb because it is pretty much downhill to the finish line from there. It is tough and is going to be really exciting racing."

Dame Sarah then joined team-mate Gaby Shaw to ride the Elite Women's Road Race circuit that starts from Abergavenny and continues over a challenging route through Monmouthshire and into Herefordshire before returning to Abergavenny. Dame Sarah, who won both the Time Trial and Road Race at the 2012 London Paralympics, added: "The Road Race course is a fast start down to Usk and to Monmouth via Raglan. And, out of Monmouth,, there is a really great climb that takes you right out of the town towards Hereford before you turn left on a really lumpy section all the way back to Abergavenny. "Then it is the finishing circuits that will be familiar to us who rode in 2009 (the last time the Nationals were held in Monmouthshire). It will be very exciting racing and I can't imagine there will be many riders left in a big group by the time we get back into Abergavenny." T

he Road Race course will, believes Dame Sarah, be a great test for the women athletes. She said: "The circuit could suit a mixture of riders. (Maybe) the likes of Emma Pooley, who likes climbing. There are plenty of drags and sharp climbs for her to test her legs and push away from people. "But (also) people who like a war of attrition, some of the Time Trial riders, and then Lizzie Armitstead who is good on every course, one of the best riders in the world this year and leading the World Cup at the moment. "So it is going to be very exciting as well as seeing (subject to entry) Sharon Laws and Hannah Barnes coming back from the States with United Health Care. You can never discount any of the pros. So it is going to be fantastic to see them, hopefully. "And it will be good for teams like ours to get in the mix and see if we can upset the party and get riders up the road to mix it in with those pros."

Dame Sarah confirmed she will be entering both the races - the Women's Time Trial on Thursday June 26 and the Elite Women's Road Race on Sunday June 29 - and has already ridden to a high finish in the National Championships Road Race debut two years ago. Now she has examined the courses, she hopes to put together good performances herself.

"The Time Trial course will be really hard and suit a rider who can go through the pain threshold for a long time, so that will be fantastic. Now that I have seen the course, I can tailor my training to make sure I am as strong as possible on the circuit. "In the Road Race, my best ever result as 2012 when I came fifth so it would be amazing to think I can improve on that but I will just be looking to produce my best performances on the day alongside my team-mates."

Shaw rode alongside Dame Sarah on both courses and is expected to enter both as well. She said of the Road Race circuit: "It is a great course and it is going to be really challenging for all the riders. It will whittle the bunch down and make a fantastic race."

The 2014 British Cycling National Road and Time Trial Championships take place between Thursday June 26 to Sunday June 29. And riders of all abilities, from beginners to club riders, can experience part of the National Road Race Championships course the day before the riders take to the roads by entering the Championship Sportive via www.nationalroadchamps.co.uk