Scunthorpe Cyclocross

An afternoon of racing at the Common Plantation, Scunthorpe. Still had the arse end of a cold and it was derby day so needed a good race as a little pick me up.

After the heavy rain yesterday, I thought the course would be wet and muddy, but surprisingly it was near bone dry - a mixture of woodland fire paths, some well drained grass, and trails, with some sandy parts.

The technical features of the course were a large drop into a bomb hole (which I ran), a climb back out (which I ran), a sandy turn in some tress (which I ran) and a large log to jump over (obviously I ran that one !! ). There was some single track in the woods, and just a couple of sections that I could open up on. My race went like this...

Lap 1... Sprint off, but sprinting is not my bag baby, so dropped back a lot of places. Get to the single track section and its a biiiiiig long queue of single file riders, and its hard to overtake anywhere.
Get to the drop down and get off and run it, knackered by the bottom, and then have to run slowly up the other side, get into the clearing and its off again for the sand, and then on again, and before I knew it off again from the log - I was knackered already !!

Rest of the laps...... slowly going backwards and feeling more tired with each lap. I really think that getting on and off so many times is no good for me and takes too much out of me. I finished down the order and didn't think the course suited me. It was a great event though and on reflection there were a couple of parts that I should have been braver on.

Next week it's Hubbard Hills.....

Stroxton Cyclocross

Today's event (the third of the Lincolnshire Cyclocross League), was an affair laid on by Witham Wheelers and took place in a field just South of Stroxton. I had ridden the same course last year so knew that it was pasture based, with a few ups and downs and a lumpy surface - apparently a testers course but with enough elevation to slow me down.

After a big night on the beer Friday night, and a lazy hangover day yesterday, I was itching for a spot of exercise and an hour at maximum heart rate was to be the cure ! I was so early to the venue, that I had chatted for ages, collected my number and still had an hour to wait until the start of the race. I wasn't sure how I'd go cos the warm up seemed very slow, but when the race started, most people seemed to be going slow on what is a slow course. There were very few fast parts, but not difficult technically, which meant just powering through the grind. Mostly the ground behaved itself, but started getting churned quickly and there were parts that were slippy and to be looked out for carefully.

The race itself lasts only 40 or so minutes, where the first race seemed to go on for ever, this one flew by, and I soon had the bell to signal the last lap. I was in my customary lower mid table position with neither anyone to chase or anyone close behind me, which meant that I was able to dial off for the last lap and take things a little easier whilst I negotiated the twists and turns and the jumping off over the planks.

3rd race done, a bit of improvement seen in my battle of the Wheelers, and I think I was a few places better than usual - we will see when the results come out mid-week.

Lincoln Wheelers Tandem & Trike Weekend

Saturday - 10m TT - 26.29

Last weekend of racing of the time trialling season and it's a home event and one I am helping to organise - a gentle entry into putting on open events.

Once I had sorted my organiser duties, it was time to get on with the real work of the day - a 10m trike TT on the Wheelers Thorney 10 course with an unhelpful NNE wind, but a dry and not too cold afternoon. I was off at no.10, and had my own brother to chase down at no.9 !

I don't think he fully appreciated the rider order, but I made sure I used the bro-down as a massive carrot for the first 2 miles of the TT where I had a backwind, but some awful road surfaces and cambers to negotiate.

Onto the main road, and managed to get some good speed with the better road surfaces to ride on. All too soon I was at the Besthorpe turn though (which I took much better than last year ! ) and onto the last 4.4 miles.


Draggy headwing and a real battle to keep ontop of the cadence. Grateful for the end of the race and an event win with a time of 26.29. Just the little matter of a '25' to do in the morning !

Sunday - 25m TT - 1.07.52

Using the LRRA 25m Middlemarkers course - alternatively known as the coded C25/3 course, I woke this morning to find lovely Autumn conditions, if a bit cold, and with that same unhelpgul wind as the previous day.

My start time was 10.15 and I was soon chasing down the first of a few minutemen, with the help of a nice backwind over the first 4 miles or so of the course. Initially I was holding 23.3mph, but as the course started dragging and the headwind Sand lane section kicked in this crumbled into the 22's.

End of the first lap, and still felt OK, and in good condition to work really hard into the headwind, trying to catch those riders I could see on the horizon. 2nd lap seemed far windier, but the further into it I went, the more I realised I just didn't have the legs for a sustained push.

1.07.52 - enough for the win, and retention of the Fulwood Trophy. Season over !

Spalding Cyclocross

Legs shot from yesterdays Trike efforts, I made the daft decision to drive over to Neville avenue in Spalding this morning to take part in the second round of the Lincolnshire Cross League.

Last weeks 2nd to last placing after a puncture, had left me looking for a bit of luck and a better ride. I also looked to fall off less and be better at dismounts - these were the little improvements that I was looking for.

12.00 and we were set away ( I found myself gridded for some reason !), and soon fell back in the opening sprint. I tried to keep my heart rate down and power through the longer grassy straights that were as fast as a tester likes 'em. Half the course was like this, but the other half, more technical so plenty of practice with the dismounts, which I found I got better at as the race progressed.

No punctures and I was getting a real work out ! Rookie errors included running with the bike grounded which spat out the chain, and dismounting and getting caught by brambles , causing a fall, but nothing catastrophic.

I ended up racing for nearly an hour and finished 5th out of a fab 9 wheelers in the vets race. A much better outcome on a day when I wasn't expecting much !

Leo 30

This was all about going for the 30 mile club trike record. It is the twilight of the season and all I've got left to race TT-wise was this 30 miler down on the ECCA 30 course and then Pete's trike weekend.

First things first then - a trip down to Cambridge for the Leo 30 event, held on familiar roads where just six or seven weeks ago, I was on the same track for the 12 hour.

This day saw probably the best time trialling conditions of the year with blue skies and a reported 2mph northerly wind. the first part of the course was on a stretch of single carriageway of a mile or so which was semi-trike friendly but I had to have me wits about me. Looked downhill to the DC, whereby I let rip and enjoyed the seemingly still conditions. I rode the trike quickly but reserved where the road went upward, I couldn't beleive how well I was travelling, and managed to fly along the A11 & A14 at a very fast pace - when I got to the turn at Red Lodge, I was averaging 25.2mph - and honestly I was thinking of how near to the Comp record I could get with the backwind on the return.

Had I been giddy ? Of course !

It was a headwind, which went against the weather forecast, however, made perfect sense as I had been going full beans on the way out. That 25.2mph was the peak of my efforts of the day as I battled the headwind on the way back trying not to let the wind erode away at it too much.

Damage limitation meant that when I finished what was a 30.1 mile couse in the end, I had maintained an ave of 24.4mph for a 1.13.55 finish - 6 mins of the club record !  I had also picked up a puncture along the way as well, as by the time I got back to HQ, there was just 20
psi left in the front tyre.

Sleaford Cyclocross

Nearing the end of the TT season now, so that means only one thing to me - it's Cross season starting, and time to switch from a discipline that I'm OK at, to one that I'm a disaster at !!

This time last year was my first race, where I came dead last, and fell off loads. As my season progressed last year I got a little better and didn't fall off as much. This year I was determined to do even better......

It started well enough, weather gorgeous, and a change of venue from last years stupidly difficult Ancaster course, to a flatter, more sensible Sleaford Rugby Club venue. Everything shaping up for a good day, and then on the warm up lap I had two mishaps - the first banging my funny bone in my knee cocking up a dismount, and the second, also via a dismount, really damaging my backside !!

Beaten up already, I started the race, and was toward the rear for the early stages. The start had been very fast and I found myself being fast on the main straights, but in the more windy technical sections, I was slower. The course was mainly grass track, with some twisty sections cordoned off, and some tougher sections where hardcore had been put down to level the course. A couple of double board sections gave some respite, with both of these having to be dismounted for, unless you were able to bunny hop them - which I clearly couldn't !!

Laps 1-3, made my usual progress through the field, picking off riders eventually, and starting to get into the swing off things, when on lap 4, I managed to pick up a front wheel puncture in the hardcore section which prematurely ended my race.

so, not the start to the season that I wanted, but good to be back having some non-pressure fun again...

The ongoing quest to beat the hour !

VTTA Nottingham & East Mids 25 on the A25/34

How long have I been time trialling ? Well, to be honest, just since the very start of 2013. I'd done a couple of club events the previous year, but 2013 was the start of trying to take it seriously. This was my third full season and I'd seen winter training really pay off with better times than I'd expected.

I still, had not gone under the hour for a 25 miler and I was determined to put that monkey to bed by the end of the season. My only chance then, turned out to be the VTTA Nottm & E Mids event on the A25/34 course which is basically up and down the A46 between Newark and Bingham. I had gone 1.05 back in April on the trike, and liked the course despite the horrible draggy climb on the way out.

The event was almost cancelled, as the A1 at Newark was shut both ways and there were diversions in place, but we were lucky enough to catch a break and the event went ahead as the traffic didn't increase that much and there wasn't any queuing traffic on the course.

I chose a long sleeved black skinsuit for the day complete with bright pink overshoes - anything that would get me seen !  The wind was supposed to be 3-4 mph and north westerly - ideal conditions for the A25/34. My start time of 2.18 would see me off sandwiched inbetween two clubmates. I liked my chances which had been enhanced by a move to a larger chainring ready for next season - 53T gone, and replaced by a 55T - I was eager to see how I would fare with it.

I soon found out as I was set away, and began to find my was up and over the A46, ready to join the main carriageway going south towards Bingham. I've got to say, I much preferred the 55 as I tried to get a hold of a good solid 100 rpm cadence. a bit of gear twiddling (technical term TT fans) was going on, but I was happy with the speeds I was seeing. I did wonder if I had a cross backwind as I was making decent progress. I could feel wind on my face, but it played on my mind that I would have a headwind back - this made me push maybe a little harder on the way out.

There were a couple of drags, but I seemed to be in good order at the top of these brows and soon found myself at the bottom of the Bingham Mountain (tm). My plan had been to stick it in the bottom ring here, but I managed to get to the top in a 55 x 23 gear, albeit, really struggling at the top, and it was a good 30 seconds before I was able to get back up to speed again. 1 mile later and I was at the turn and it was time to find out about the wind !

Two roundabours and I had a backwind push up the ramp (pictured above sitting up as I pushed it) and I saw my average speed was already 25.3mph, which meant that I had the entire second half of the course along with back wind to push on and get a good way under the hour if possible, and thats what I did. Coming down the Bingham Mountain I couldn't spin enough in 55 x 11 and even thought about getting a 56 on, but that can be next year can't it !! Over 40mph and slowly catching my minute man - I couldn't beleive how well things were going. 10 miles later and I came to Farndon roundabout with a 27.3mph average.

One turn left and two miles of single carriageway to give it all I had. I wasn't as fast s it was a headwind, but buried myself to record a finish of 55.21 and a new PB of 7 minutes !!

Job done !