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Flying start for Josh

Josh (Swords) is a first year junior embarking on his first season, here's his first race report:

"On saturday I finished second in what was my first ever cycling race after switching from triathlon last year. I was therefore obviously starting in the cat 4 race. I did not know what to expect, how fast the pace would be or if I would struggle. So far that week I had already had a decent amount of training in me and and my legs were not quite as spritely as I would have liked,but I am training for bigger goals in the summer and so just had to train through the week.
After a couple of laps of my warm up, just loosening the legs and observing all the corners, I moved to the start line with the cat 3 and 4's. I wanted to get near the front, as I was told that the first part of the race can be quite fast as people try to break away and the bunch pulls them back. The cat 3's went off 10 seconds in front, and then we set off.
I have been told by numerous people that Hillingdon can be a bit dodgy and there is normally a crash or two in the race, especially when like today it was a bit rainy and had a strong wind. So positioning was key, and keeping concentration on the others.
The first 10 minutes of the race were probaly the hardest, but were well within my comfort range. A few people tried to get away but were sharply pulled back in. For the next 20 minutes it was just rolling allong with no more attacks. I was just concentrating on the other riders, sitting about 15 back in the bunch.
There was a very strong wind, and this is what allowed for a small group of three to get a 100m gap. It was in the chicane section of the course that they pulled out a lead with a very strong cross wind aiding them. They were pushing on and no one was willing to pull them back, a few of the guys on the front just sat up and were clearly hurting. I decided to try to reel them back in, and down the back straight with a massive tail wind I closed in on them, finally pulling them in around half way up the finishing straight. Without even really noticing, the tailwind and the effect of the bunch, allowed me to take that bottom bend at 58kph.
The next 20 minutes was just a procession until the final 2 laps, where a few attacks were made.
I was really surprised at this stage of the race how comfortable I was feeling. I knew now that it would come down to a bunch sprint and was trying to place myself in the top 5 or so riders. The last lap there was a bit of pushing and some even got nudged off onto the grass. Down the back straight I put in quite an effort and overtook around 5 riders and got myself into about five back.
The finishing straight was up a slight slope and into a really strong headwind. Just sitting on a very large mans wheel the sprint began. About half way up the hill there is a slight kink in the road and as the front four spread across the road I saw a gap down the left. I hesitated for a split second and the gap had closed. I then made my move for the right hand side of the road. By now there was only me and four others in contention. As I put the power down I was quickly gaining on the leader, passed the other two riders, and just as I was about to pass him the finish line came to quickly and he won by a wheel. I got second.
Overall I am fairly happy with how the raced went. I did not know what to expect and found it a lot more comfortable than I thought it might be.
To be honest I find the last hour of the Sunday club runs, when I have run out of energy a lot harder.

Josh"

Riders wanted for La Cantonale

If you'd like to ride in Northern France on the 8th of May in what should be a well organised road race with actual prizes just a short hop over the channel, then Josh Swords and possibly Dan McCarthy are looking for team-mates to ride with. It's open to 1,2,3 cats and juniors. See separate January post "Try a race in the north of France" for more details. If you don't have Josh's contact details email us and we'll pass it on.

Mtbs, Aldershot and the army article.

From the Guardian:

Military land mountain bikers: stand and be counted

Continued reluctance to discuss the issue of biking on military land could leave responsible cyclists excluded from the debate

"Bike blog : Army land bikers come under fire from MoD The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced it could soon start using existing historic legislation to prosecute cyclists who stray into its training estates. Photograph: A. Walker

South-east England may not be blessed with the type of angular geography enjoyed by mountain bikers in Wales, Scotland and northern England, but with acres of army land as a substitute you'll rarely hear riders complaining.

All that may be about to change though, with the announcement by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) that it could soon start using existing historic legislation to prosecute cyclists who stray into the depths of its training estates.

Aldershot, known as the "home of the British army", is a prime example of south-eastern urban sprawl, where mountain biking might scarcely exist were it not for the miles of surrounding military land........continues..."

Full article: http://tinyurl.com/6be3srn

Cheam & Morden Hilly 50k

Subject: Cheam and Morden Hilly 50K March 5th 2011 1000 hours

I'm following in the tyre tracks of the illustrious Simon (he of Colnago, FNRttC, and knee bandage fame). As a change from the regular Saturday morning training rides, perhaps your members would like to try our Hilly 50K which starts in Ryka's car park at the foot of Box Hill - not many get round in under two hours! Some of your members may recall previous events and will tell you how much fun it was/wasn't.

Entries are now invited for the 2011 version. Please submit details (name, phone, CTC membership number if any) preferably via the website (www.cyclingswlondon.org.uk) or by email (ctc.cheammorden@virgin.net). We'll collect a whole £2 from you on the day in exchange for the route sheet or you could turn up on the day for £3. At these prices we can't afford marshals, signage, etc!

You might like to note:

1) thanks to Charlotte Barnes, last year's event can be seen at: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MvqRbARH0g&feature=player_embedded

2) the route is available in several formats via the website(C&M page) and features StreetView and something for savvy GPS users. So no excuses for going off course and falling down the worst potholes! If your Xmas stocking contained the recently published book "100 Greatest Cycling Climbs", you can tick off two or wonder why Sheephouse Lane isn't among them.

Hope to see you in March

Graham Hill

Spring Cycle Kingdon Circuit Series - Eelmore

The Spring Cycle Kingdom Circuit Series is a run of 4 Sunday race sets starting on 20th Feb at Eelmore.
Other dates are 27th Feb, 6th March and 13th March

There will be various races organised. Entry fee £10 in advance - £15 EOL (Youths £3 EOL or in advance)

Start times:
10:00 3rds
10:00 E/1/2
11:30 Youth
12:00 4ths Only
12:00 Women only (all cats)

Full details on the British Cycling website - Calendar page

'I Love My Bike' Night - 14th February

A post to let you all know about an event Four4th are putting on at Farnham Maltings next month, with help from Bm7Displays, Scott and On-One.

‘I Love My Bike’ Night is a celebration of all things bike, with a screening of the ‘Life Cycles’ movie and an exhibition of bike-related products including offerings from Scott & On-One. If you’ve seen the film you’ll know it’s awe-inspiring.

Film tickets are £7.50 or there’s a Meal Deal offer for £17.50 which includes the film ticket and a meal & drink in the Maltings’ Riverside CafĂ© Bar (it is Valentine’s night, after all – can you lure Mrs Addison away from Pilates?).

More details on the attached e-flyer, and we have some printed flyers doing the rounds too. Please spread the word if you’re able.

Cheers
Ali - Four4th LED Sports Lights

Book via Farnham Maltings website - click here

Try a Cycle Race in the North of France

CC BRIMEUX are a cycling club in the North of France
(Nord Pas de Calais - 1:10 from Calais).
They are organising races in 2011 for young, junior and senior riders.

You will find below the dates of their races for 2011:

* Sunday April 3rd: Montreuil sur Mer
- Cat 3/4 and Juniors
- Riders born in 1997-1998
- Riders born in 1999-2000
- Riders born in 2001-2002

* Sunday May 8th: La Cantonale
- Cat 1 to 3 and Juniors
- Lap of 30 Km + lap of 90 Km
- Mountain prices with 8 peaks
- Sprint prices
- Neutral assistance with "Assistance Sports Medias"
- Radio system with "Motocomm"
- In 2010, 200 riders from France, Belgium and UK participated!

* Sunday July 17th: Brimeux
- Cat 3/4 and Juniors
- Riders born in 1997-1998
- Riders born in 1999-2000
- Riders born in 2001-2002

* Saturday July 30th: Merlimont
- Cat 3/4 and Juniors
- Riders born in 1997-1998
- Riders born in 1999-2000
- Riders born in 2001-2002

* Sunday September 12th: Le Tour des 5 communes
- Cat 1 to 4 and Juniors
- 5 laps of 25 Km
- Mountain prices with 5 peaks
- Sprint prices
- Neutral assistance with "Assistance Sports Medias"

For each race:
- No car in front (safety motorbikes and cars, marshalls...)
- First rescue with "Opale Secourisme"
- Prizes grid (money...)
- Flowers and trophies for the 3 first of each cat.
- Entry fee for seniors and juniors: 6 euros
- Entry fee for young: 4 euros
- Photos report


message from CC BRIMEUX ....
We would be very happy to receive you in our races!

Do you think you could be interested by our races?

Don't hesitate to contact us!

Thanks a lot.

Have a nice day and happy new year!

Alexandre LEROUX
CC BRIMEUX
Vice-President
http://www.ccbrimeux.com

More from "Our 50 (something) pro in spain" !

Happy New Year to you all and hope you had a great xmas.

My dad came over for the festive season and it’s the first time he’s been out here for 4 years. He only ever used to come in the summer but he had a great time, especially going to the beach on xmas day for a barbeque and then 2 days later eating a traditional xmas lunch in the back garden by the pool. The weather has been exceptionally warm for the past 3 weeks – today it’s 23 degrees and clear blue sky!

Reflecting on the past season, things have been mixed – one good race and two bad. I’ve put this down to the chest complaint (like asthma symptoms), but the last 3 months of 2010 I started to feel a lot better and surprise, surprise, managed to win the over 50s Murcia League Championship, so not a totally wasted year.

I was riding in Lorca at the end of November – 158 rders, 20 degrees, 80k. Not a chance to make a move in the early stages as it was so fast (average at the end was 46kph). This mainly due to the inclusion of elite riders. This is normal over here between October and February, before the elite/pro continental races start. After covering one big lap (40k) we moved on to the first of 4 x 10k laps. I was on my limit after 2 of these laps and was just hanging on when there was a crash in the middle of the bunch and at over 50k no chance for any riders near to move out of the way. Lucky for me near the back, I was able to move away from any fallen riders (the crash took down 30 riders of which 9 ended up going to hospital). The group I was in chased for another lap and made contact with the front group. At this point I had the feeling of going to be sick due to the effort. The race had to be cut one lap short as this big pile of riders had to be sorted out and they were on the circuit !! Juan Antonio managed to clip off in a small group of 5 and came in 3rd. I managed to stay in the chasing group and came 38th, so the two of us were in the prizes.







Well, Valverde still has another year to run with his ban but he’s been racing since he was banned. In 2010 he was riding all the sporting events in the region and he’s also in the races that I ride. In fact, I’ve raced 5 times with him since November.


My next race will be this Sunday 9th Jan – might not finish this one as it’s on a small circuit with a little climb and always fast.

If any of you want to get information on the racing results in this area, as well as reports and possibly the odd photo of me, you can check out www.ciclomaster.es. One of the photos I’ve sent to you all is of me and my good friend Guillermo Molleno, who’s over 60 but a past world RR champion.


Looking forward to our visit to UK in 2 weeks – we’re coming over for a few days to spend time with family and catch up with friends and then a 5 day “mini holiday” at Centre Parks in Longleat.

Bye for now and good luck with your racing in 2011.