The long ride to success

The thing about Not by the Playbook is you never quite know where we'll end up. What you might not realise is that we have no idea either! So, we present four guests who took us to completely unexpected places and even surprised themselves!

Cyclist Pete Mitchell, who recently competed at the Commonwealth Games and is riding faster than he ever has all at the ripe old age of thirty-six. Pete's been on a long ride to success which has taken many unusual turns, including giving up his Olympic dream to pilot blind riders to achieve their paralympic dreams. Now back in able bodied sport Pete has been reflecting on his lifelong relationship with the sport of cycling, one that has given him so much, and at times taken its toll.

Emma Wiggs, the most decorated athlete in paracanoeing history. Last month she won her 13th world Paracanoe World Championships to go alongside her gold medals from the Paralympics in Rio, Tokyo and Paris. As such, you might think that Emma's confidence is pretty impenetrable, but it isn't. At forty-six Emma's body is beginning to show the signs of wear a long pro sport career will provide, the most recent a serious shoulder injury has forced her to reevaluate everything, and yet Emma just keeps on going!

Connie Henry had a decent athletics career. She won bronze representing England at the Commonwealth Games in 1998, but it's perhaps what she did once she stepped off the track that has left the most significant legacy. For the last 20 years or so Connie has been the silent figure quietly enabling others to achieve their sporting goals whatever they might be. Having seen the influence a positive role model can have, she leaned on some of her friends, who also happen to be some of the most successful sports stars of recent years, from Daly Thompson to Lord Sebastian Coe, and Denise Lewis to write a book "Behind the Brilliance"

In 1977 Englishman Michael Jay became the first foreigner to take part in Japan's "Soma Nomaoi" which celebrates classical martial arts and military horsemanship, and dates back to the 10th Century.

PHOTO: Matt Crampton and Peter Mitchell of Great Britain in the Open Sprint during day four of the British National Cycling Track Championships at Manchester Velodrome on October 1, 2011 (CREDIT: by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)