Britain’s Josh Caygill says he’s better prepared than ever ahead of his maiden season of European racing in this year’s Volkswagen Scirocco R Cup, after recently returning from an “unforgettable” Volkswagen Motorsport Training Camp in the Bavarian mountains.One of 20 competitors from the prestigious one-make championship taking part in the specially organised five-day training experience, the 24-year-old from Netherton had his physical endurance and core strength seriously put to the test with a wide variety of exercises.The highlight for Caygill, who is passionate about attaining peak physical condition for the demands of his motor racing career, was a lengthy 4.5-kilometre run across the snow-covered mountains and cross-country skiing with sporting stars from the German national team – a far cry from his regular training programme in West Yorkshire!“The Volkswagen Motorsport Fitness Camp was an experience I will never forget”, said the former motorcycle racer, “I am passionate about my training at home and have been for years, it was great to get the opportunity to have a go at things way outside of my usual reach. In particular, running up a mountain over snow and through the forest following rivers was mind blowing…not to mention the cross-country skiing with members of the German National squad.“Volkswagen really did push the boat out and I loved every moment, thanks to everyone at VW for such an amazing opportunity. There were 20 drivers in the camp and it was a great way of bringing us all together to form a team. The motto ‘friends off the track and competitors on track’ was apparent through and through, in every aspect and challenge given to us.”Beginning with the 4.5-kilometre snow shoe run in the Bavarian Alps last Wednesday, 12th March, the Scirocco R Cup racers embarked on cross-country skiing on the Thursday morning, before then taking part in a 6.5-kilometre snow show hike in the dark during the evening.On Friday, 14th March, a mountain run taking in 500 metre elevation changes over a distance of six kilometres took place and Caygill was delighted to achieve a time of 54 minutes – only five minutes shy of the quickest time of all, and all while carrying a groin strain from earlier training. Following high intensity circuit training, a game of five-a-side football rounded off a unique day’s exertion.More cross-country skiing took place on Saturday, over a distance of 10 kilometres, before a one hour Pilates class with weights followed immediately by a 60-minute spin class. Finally, on Sunday, three repetitions of high intensity circuits were scheduled which incorporated target shooting similar to the challenge of a winter sports biathlon.Caygill’s next VW Scirocco R Cup commitment will come in three weeks when he gets behind the wheel of his 2.0-litre natural gas powered car during pre-season testing at Oschersleben in Germany. The opening round of the 2014 championship will then take place on 3rd/4th May at Hockenheim.“I can’t wait to get started with the test at Oschersleben, training camp merely made it even more real and showed just what a great team of people are involved with the championship and what a fantastic series I will be part of this year”, he added, “Huge thanks to all my sponsors for making this possible.”