SOMERSET’S Mark Turner flew out to Florida on Sunday as part of the ECB Fast Bowler Development Programme to spend a month working on his fitness with England’s most promising young pacemen.

“I am really looking forward to it and excited at the prospect of spending four weeks in Florida, where it will certainly be a bit warmer than in Taunton,” the bowler said.

“We all went to Loughborough to be fully briefed and it looks like it will be a pretty tough time with fitness training scheduled three to four times every day. No cricket – just training.”

Hugh Bevan, who has a rugby background, will be in charge of the group out in Florida.

Turner said: “He seems pretty strict, which is exactly what we want.

“We will also be working with other people on the IMG Academy, about 20 minutes from Tampa, and learning how other people train.”

Turner will be joined by Chris Woakes from Warwickshire, Maurice Chambers from Essex, Jade Dernbach and Chris Jordan from Surrey and Johnathan Clare from Derby.

“They all seem a good bunch of lads so I think we will all help to pull each other through the hard work we have got coming up,” revealed Turner.

Looking ahead to 2009, Turner added: “Next season has got to be a big one for me.

“I am 24 now so I am not a youngster anymore so I have really got to become a first-team regular and show what I can do regularly – and fitness is going to be a key to that for me.

“This is a real opportunity for me and I am going to take it with both hands.”

Turner returns to England on December 22 and early in the new year will get back to bowling with the same group at the National Academy at Loughborough.

He will then spend 12 days out in Chennai working with fast bowling legend Dennis Lillee.