I'm slightly baffled as to how it is I'm finding it so difficult to place at Palace considering I'm fitter than two years ago. Oh well last week Warrick Spence told me he had one of his best seasons in terms of results when he wasn't very fit...
Right then the race - the following ACC boys answered the calling in the 3/4's: Hal, Kieran, Johnathan, Mark, Daniel and yours truly. Supporting roles were by Chrissy (I' think Senior ACC lady ) and Stephanie. In the E12's was Sylv. I tried to get away a number of times early doors with a Corridori guy and a Dulwich guy but nothing ever lasted. Less peeps racing in the 3/4s this week and no neutralised bit with E12's made things a lot smoother!...Kieran had a dig for a lap with a few chaps but again they never had more than a handful of secs...A great solo effort by a fella in black with 5/6 laps to go nearly came off but we got him back so it came down to the inevitable bunch sprint. A school boy error by yours truly not being near the front on the bell lap meant I struggled which wasn't helped by cramp in both calves and touching wheels on the climb . Oh well c'est la vie...
Friday, 27 June 2008
Monday, 23 June 2008
Pearson Cycles Jaunts 5 Day -Stage 3
More from ACC's main man
ok so this is the stage with the finish up leith hill, and it was the one I was really hoping to do well in.
I had made some extra preparations to stop me getting cramps, taking more food with me, drinking tonic water, and having one of my bottles filled with some tonic water also.So the race got under way and I felt OK, fairly well recovered- but I could feel something was not quite right with my body as a whole.
On the first lap the first bit of excitement got under way. We were going past a couple of horses when they went BONKERS! they reared up and started galloping into the peleton, splitting the back 1/3 off, which unfortunately I was in!
Understandably the peleton sped away, seeming as they had 2 great horses galloping after them right behind. Eventually after about half a mile they turned off, and now the chase was underway to get back on. Me and a guy from the Army cycling union did most of the work and we got back on after a couple of miles.
I rested up for a bit and stayed well hidden.On the next lap the next bit of action for me happened. as we were going up a slight hill i hit a bump as I was changing down into the small ring and my chain came off, and stuck between the chain ring and the frame....i whacked my arm up and watched the riders gushing passed from behind. once it was clear I jumped off and put the chain on as fast as i could, not loosing too much time. Luckily I managed to get it down as the last car in the convoy went passed. i sprinted after it and stayed behind for a few seconds to catch my breath and regain my composure...
OK stu, you have to get back on!....I pulled out from behind the car and hopped it over to the next one. unfortunately for me there must have been some attacks happening or something, as the pace was pretty hot from the pack. I had about 6 or 7 cars to get by. I started hopping from one car to the next, having to sprint pretty hard to get round them each time. eventually i reached the 2nd to last car and then readied myself for the last big push for the back of the group about 40-50m in front, i shot round and cruised nicely past the commissaire who kindly indicated (i think) that he would turn a blind eye to my drafting with a wave and a smile
So i was pretty tired from that and took shelter mid pack, where my mind turned to this funny feeling i mentioned earlier. i realised i was feeling a bit sick. I tried to convince myself it was from my effort to get back on the bunch, but over the next couple of laps it got worse and worse, until just before 2 laps to go i pulled over and threw up at the side of the road.
I was was (am) gutted, as this was the stage a REALLY was looking forward to. I was in no mood to hang about so grabbed my dad and drove off home where I was sick a couple more times, and now I have diarrhea. I think I know the cause- this morning i accidentally ate an out of date microwave meal, at the time i thought it would be fine...but the urge to run to the loo as im typing now, is letting me know how wrong i was!
for me, i think the tour is over
stuStu Merckx Man
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Pearson Cycles Jaunts 5 Day -Stage 2
2nd stage report from Stu Chamberlayne...
it was rather long and lumpy stage, at 63 miles and with 2 sharp climbs, and and long drag up the main A road through bletchingly. the finish was up a sharp climb that goes up to bletchingly...(the one where i always drop paul after the chaingang)
i was feeling fairly ok, and settled mid pack to see what was what. the first lap was pretty slow, and i had to restrain myself from making any futile attacks, which i would have done had it not been a 5 day race.
pretty soon however, the top guns started to fire up and the race got going... much better
i was fairly comfortable, settling in the front third of the pack. there were attacks occurring all the time, but nothing was getting away, so i decided to save my powder and not go with any, as i knew that there was a 90% chance it would come to nothing.
for me personally there was not that much action, i felt reasonably comfortable, and almost never in the red, accept having to bridge a spilt in the group a couple of times going up the long draggy bit, which is where the strong guys chose to attack each lap!
with 2 laps to go i could feel i was getting a bit more tired, and was having to get out the saddle on the climbs, but nothing to worry about- i downed the rest of my energy bars and took a big swig from my bottle. after about 10 minutes i could feel the benefits, and started my plan for the finish, which i thought might suit me somewhat.
however, with 1 lap to go, and with no drink left i started to notice the creeping of cramps
a few months back this would have been the end of my race, but ive learnt techniques on 'managing' it. firstly, dont get out the saddle, secondly spin the gears, especially up hill, and finally- if you need to respond quickely to a change in pace dont! gently increase the speed, and if it means loosing a few places so be it.
with my guru like knowledge acquired from un paralleled experience of cramps in a hard races i managed to hold off a full , crippling cramp of my legs, instead only getting the preliminary twangs and bubble sensations in my legs.
i knew my chance of a good finish was out the question, so i knew i just had to make sure i didnt loose too much time.
as we hit the finising hill i was mid pack, where i wanted to be to get as much shelter as i could . i got out the saddle round one of the steeper sections, but promptly whacked my a*rse back down as i felt my leg nearly go. so as can be seen in the results i finished with the main bunch, not coneeding any time to my nearest GC competitors.
so after 2 hour 40 minutes it was over, pleased to hold off the cramp but disappointed also, as i felt it was a perfect finish for me (a lap early! )
todays write up to follow later.....
stu
1 Richard Hoult London Dynamo 2 42 2:36:51 @ 0:00:00
2 Roger Smith VC Etoile 3 57 2:37:41 @ 0:00:50
3 Lee Tunnicliffe DHCyclesport.co.uk 2 16 2:37:51 @ 0:01:00
4 Richard Mason London Dynamo 2 43 2:37:54 @ 0:01:03
5 Daniel Felstead Dulwich Paragon CC 3 19 2:37:54 @ 0:01:03
6 Stephen Dring Team Echelon 2 52 2:37:56 @ 0:01:05
7 Jaco Ehlers Wildside RT 2 62 2:37:56 @ 0:01:05
8 David Kennett Norwood Paragon CC 2V 46 2:38:05 @ 0:01:14
9 Mark Jones GS Stella 3V 27 2:38:11 @ 0:01:20
10 Steve Home Twickenham CC 2 55 2:38:43 @ 0:01:52
11 Steven Saunders Kingston Wheelers 2 38 2:38:46 @ 0:01:55
12 Joshua Cunningham Bayeux Landscapes 3J 9 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
13 Adam Cotterell TriSportNews.com 2 53 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
14 Mark Sussex Wildside RT 2 63 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
15 Geoffrey Lulham Evans Cycles RT 3 23 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
16 Tom Spreckley In Gear Development Squad 3 36 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
17 Guy Powdrill London Dynamo 2 40 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
18 Allan Ridler Army CU 2 3 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
19 Andrew Davies Fit-For 2 24 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
20 Cameron Carthen In Gear Development Squad 3J 31 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
21 Ben Wilson Private Member 2 49 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
22 Daniel Clark Brighton Mitre 2 11 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
23 Philip Watkins Old Portlians CC 2V 47 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
24 John Heaton-Armstrong Fit-For 2 25 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
25 Simon Bird Dulwich Paragon CC 3 22 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
26 Mike Cripps Army CU 3 6 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
27 Robert Bordi Beyond Mountain Bikes 3J 10 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
28 Mark Gibbs VC Meudon 3V 61 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
29 Stuart Chamberlayne Addiscombe CC 2J 1 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
30 Jason Green London Dynamo 3 41 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
31 David Wilson Charlotteville CC 3 13 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
32 John Saddler TriSportNews.com 2 54 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
33 Jason Salter Bayeux Landscapes 3V 8 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
34 Oscar Challis Dulwich Paragon CC 3 21 2:39:07 @ 0:02:16
35 Dan Guest Army CU 3 4 2:39:07 @ 0:02:16
36 Kevin Knox Dulwich Paragon CC 2 20 2:39:10 @ 0:02:19
37 Duncan Hards VC Meudon 2 60 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
38 Justin Callaway DHCyclesport.co.uk 3 15 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
39 Craig Northam Dulwich Paragon CC 2 18 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
40 Niall Digby Sigma Sport RT 2 51 2:39:20 @ 0:02:29
it was rather long and lumpy stage, at 63 miles and with 2 sharp climbs, and and long drag up the main A road through bletchingly. the finish was up a sharp climb that goes up to bletchingly...(the one where i always drop paul after the chaingang)
i was feeling fairly ok, and settled mid pack to see what was what. the first lap was pretty slow, and i had to restrain myself from making any futile attacks, which i would have done had it not been a 5 day race.
pretty soon however, the top guns started to fire up and the race got going... much better
i was fairly comfortable, settling in the front third of the pack. there were attacks occurring all the time, but nothing was getting away, so i decided to save my powder and not go with any, as i knew that there was a 90% chance it would come to nothing.
for me personally there was not that much action, i felt reasonably comfortable, and almost never in the red, accept having to bridge a spilt in the group a couple of times going up the long draggy bit, which is where the strong guys chose to attack each lap!
with 2 laps to go i could feel i was getting a bit more tired, and was having to get out the saddle on the climbs, but nothing to worry about- i downed the rest of my energy bars and took a big swig from my bottle. after about 10 minutes i could feel the benefits, and started my plan for the finish, which i thought might suit me somewhat.
however, with 1 lap to go, and with no drink left i started to notice the creeping of cramps
a few months back this would have been the end of my race, but ive learnt techniques on 'managing' it. firstly, dont get out the saddle, secondly spin the gears, especially up hill, and finally- if you need to respond quickely to a change in pace dont! gently increase the speed, and if it means loosing a few places so be it.
with my guru like knowledge acquired from un paralleled experience of cramps in a hard races i managed to hold off a full , crippling cramp of my legs, instead only getting the preliminary twangs and bubble sensations in my legs.
i knew my chance of a good finish was out the question, so i knew i just had to make sure i didnt loose too much time.
as we hit the finising hill i was mid pack, where i wanted to be to get as much shelter as i could . i got out the saddle round one of the steeper sections, but promptly whacked my a*rse back down as i felt my leg nearly go. so as can be seen in the results i finished with the main bunch, not coneeding any time to my nearest GC competitors.
so after 2 hour 40 minutes it was over, pleased to hold off the cramp but disappointed also, as i felt it was a perfect finish for me (a lap early! )
todays write up to follow later.....
stu
1 Richard Hoult London Dynamo 2 42 2:36:51 @ 0:00:00
2 Roger Smith VC Etoile 3 57 2:37:41 @ 0:00:50
3 Lee Tunnicliffe DHCyclesport.co.uk 2 16 2:37:51 @ 0:01:00
4 Richard Mason London Dynamo 2 43 2:37:54 @ 0:01:03
5 Daniel Felstead Dulwich Paragon CC 3 19 2:37:54 @ 0:01:03
6 Stephen Dring Team Echelon 2 52 2:37:56 @ 0:01:05
7 Jaco Ehlers Wildside RT 2 62 2:37:56 @ 0:01:05
8 David Kennett Norwood Paragon CC 2V 46 2:38:05 @ 0:01:14
9 Mark Jones GS Stella 3V 27 2:38:11 @ 0:01:20
10 Steve Home Twickenham CC 2 55 2:38:43 @ 0:01:52
11 Steven Saunders Kingston Wheelers 2 38 2:38:46 @ 0:01:55
12 Joshua Cunningham Bayeux Landscapes 3J 9 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
13 Adam Cotterell TriSportNews.com 2 53 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
14 Mark Sussex Wildside RT 2 63 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
15 Geoffrey Lulham Evans Cycles RT 3 23 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
16 Tom Spreckley In Gear Development Squad 3 36 2:38:51 @ 0:02:00
17 Guy Powdrill London Dynamo 2 40 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
18 Allan Ridler Army CU 2 3 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
19 Andrew Davies Fit-For 2 24 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
20 Cameron Carthen In Gear Development Squad 3J 31 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
21 Ben Wilson Private Member 2 49 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
22 Daniel Clark Brighton Mitre 2 11 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
23 Philip Watkins Old Portlians CC 2V 47 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
24 John Heaton-Armstrong Fit-For 2 25 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
25 Simon Bird Dulwich Paragon CC 3 22 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
26 Mike Cripps Army CU 3 6 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
27 Robert Bordi Beyond Mountain Bikes 3J 10 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
28 Mark Gibbs VC Meudon 3V 61 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
29 Stuart Chamberlayne Addiscombe CC 2J 1 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
30 Jason Green London Dynamo 3 41 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
31 David Wilson Charlotteville CC 3 13 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
32 John Saddler TriSportNews.com 2 54 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
33 Jason Salter Bayeux Landscapes 3V 8 2:38:56 @ 0:02:05
34 Oscar Challis Dulwich Paragon CC 3 21 2:39:07 @ 0:02:16
35 Dan Guest Army CU 3 4 2:39:07 @ 0:02:16
36 Kevin Knox Dulwich Paragon CC 2 20 2:39:10 @ 0:02:19
37 Duncan Hards VC Meudon 2 60 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
38 Justin Callaway DHCyclesport.co.uk 3 15 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
39 Craig Northam Dulwich Paragon CC 2 18 2:39:13 @ 0:02:22
40 Niall Digby Sigma Sport RT 2 51 2:39:20 @ 0:02:29
Saturday, 21 June 2008
Pearson Cycles Jaunts 5 Day -Stage 1
In only his second season of racing Addiscombe CC Junior rider, Stu "Merckx Man" Chanberlayne reports on his first five day stage race - Pearson Cycles Jaunts 5 Day
...so i got a lift with Dave Kennett down to the prologue and he gave me some useful information about the time trial - it was pretty lumpy, with a long down hill section near the start, and then up hill most of the way to the finish.
I was the first to set off; i felt well rested, but a little sluggish for the first couple of minutes.The hardest part of the time trial was the down hill sections, as I was spinning out at about 36-7 mph, when I new if I had adult gears I could be pedaling to about 45 or so. so for much of the down hill sections i was just in the tuck position, and acutely aware i was loosing time.
However, at least it meant i was fresh for the hills, and there were a fair few, and some pretty long ones. i gave these my absolute all, and looking at my HRM i was having to hold myself back sometimes as i was at around 97-98%.
in the end, as the results show i finished in 19.35, which i was satisfied with, and perched just outside the top 20.
cheers
stu
Pos. Name Club Cat Race # Time
1 Guy Powdrill London Dynamo 2 40 0:18:08
2 Craig Northam Dulwich Paragon CC 2 18 0:18:21
3 Jaco Ehlers Wildside RT 2 62 0:18:37
4 Kevin Knox Dulwich Paragon CC 2 20 0:18:41
5 Lee Tunnicliffe DHCyclesport.co.uk 2 16 0:18:45
6 Adam Page Kingston Wheelers 2 37 0:18:47
7 Niall Digby Sigma Sport RT 2 51 0:18:48
8 David Kennett Norwood Paragon CC 2V 46 0:18:52
8 Steven Saunders Kingston Wheelers 2 38 0:18:52
10 Richard Hoult London Dynamo 2 42 0:18:55
11 Ben Wilson Private Member 2 49 0:18:56
12 Allan Ridler Army CU 2 3 0:18:59
13 Oscar Challis Dulwich Paragon CC 3 21 0:19:13
14 Dan Guest Army CU 3 4 0:19:14
15 Daniel Felstead Dulwich Paragon CC 3 19 0:19:15
16 Richard Mason London Dynamo 2 43 0:19:19
17 Joshua Cunningham Bayeux Landscapes 3J 9 0:19:20
18 Adam Cotterell TriSportNews.com 2 53 0:19:22
19 Stephen Dring Team Echelon 2 52 0:19:23
20 Mark Matthews awcycles.co.uk 2 7 0:19:28
21 Duncan Hards VC Meudon 2 60 0:19:30
22 John Saddler TriSportNews.com 2 54 0:19:32
23 Stuart Chamberlayne Addiscombe CC 2J 1 0:19:35
24 Mark Jones GS Stella 3V 27 0:19:41
25 John Heaton-Armstrong Fit-For 2 25 0:19:43
27 Jason Green London Dynamo 3 41 0:19:44
28 Roger Smith VC Etoile 3 57 0:19:44
28 Mike Cripps Army CU 3 6 0:19:45
29 Steve Home Twickenham CC 2 55 0:19:46
30 Jake Butler In Gear Development Squad 2J 32 0:19:48
58 Mark Gibbs VC Meudon 3V 61 0:21:47
59 Geoffrey Lulham Evans Cycles RT 3 23 0:22:38
60 Scott Taylor In Gear Development Squad 2J 35 0:23:00
...so i got a lift with Dave Kennett down to the prologue and he gave me some useful information about the time trial - it was pretty lumpy, with a long down hill section near the start, and then up hill most of the way to the finish.
I was the first to set off; i felt well rested, but a little sluggish for the first couple of minutes.The hardest part of the time trial was the down hill sections, as I was spinning out at about 36-7 mph, when I new if I had adult gears I could be pedaling to about 45 or so. so for much of the down hill sections i was just in the tuck position, and acutely aware i was loosing time.
However, at least it meant i was fresh for the hills, and there were a fair few, and some pretty long ones. i gave these my absolute all, and looking at my HRM i was having to hold myself back sometimes as i was at around 97-98%.
in the end, as the results show i finished in 19.35, which i was satisfied with, and perched just outside the top 20.
cheers
stu
Pos. Name Club Cat Race # Time
1 Guy Powdrill London Dynamo 2 40 0:18:08
2 Craig Northam Dulwich Paragon CC 2 18 0:18:21
3 Jaco Ehlers Wildside RT 2 62 0:18:37
4 Kevin Knox Dulwich Paragon CC 2 20 0:18:41
5 Lee Tunnicliffe DHCyclesport.co.uk 2 16 0:18:45
6 Adam Page Kingston Wheelers 2 37 0:18:47
7 Niall Digby Sigma Sport RT 2 51 0:18:48
8 David Kennett Norwood Paragon CC 2V 46 0:18:52
8 Steven Saunders Kingston Wheelers 2 38 0:18:52
10 Richard Hoult London Dynamo 2 42 0:18:55
11 Ben Wilson Private Member 2 49 0:18:56
12 Allan Ridler Army CU 2 3 0:18:59
13 Oscar Challis Dulwich Paragon CC 3 21 0:19:13
14 Dan Guest Army CU 3 4 0:19:14
15 Daniel Felstead Dulwich Paragon CC 3 19 0:19:15
16 Richard Mason London Dynamo 2 43 0:19:19
17 Joshua Cunningham Bayeux Landscapes 3J 9 0:19:20
18 Adam Cotterell TriSportNews.com 2 53 0:19:22
19 Stephen Dring Team Echelon 2 52 0:19:23
20 Mark Matthews awcycles.co.uk 2 7 0:19:28
21 Duncan Hards VC Meudon 2 60 0:19:30
22 John Saddler TriSportNews.com 2 54 0:19:32
23 Stuart Chamberlayne Addiscombe CC 2J 1 0:19:35
24 Mark Jones GS Stella 3V 27 0:19:41
25 John Heaton-Armstrong Fit-For 2 25 0:19:43
27 Jason Green London Dynamo 3 41 0:19:44
28 Roger Smith VC Etoile 3 57 0:19:44
28 Mike Cripps Army CU 3 6 0:19:45
29 Steve Home Twickenham CC 2 55 0:19:46
30 Jake Butler In Gear Development Squad 2J 32 0:19:48
58 Mark Gibbs VC Meudon 3V 61 0:21:47
59 Geoffrey Lulham Evans Cycles RT 3 23 0:22:38
60 Scott Taylor In Gear Development Squad 2J 35 0:23:00
Thursday, 19 June 2008
Hillingdon: Back wiv da oldies
After Tuesday's excitement at Palace, this Wednesday's LVRC crit race at Hillingdon surprisingly felt much harder than usual. Des Gayler (Kenton RC) got things going right from the gun by stringing things out immediately. In a crazy case of 'anything you can do...' I blasted past him up the drag. 30mph? yeah baby! and a massive gap on the field. Doh! er now what? With the headwind on the back straight this kind of intensity was not going to be sustainable. I soft pedalled for a while and a lap later had sixty old blokes for company.
Shit let me tell ya peeps were jumping away all over the circuit so it was quite difficult to know which breaks to go with. After a few tentative attempts I finally got away.
"Come on we need to go faster, they're gaining on us" words of Mick Hill (Team Quest). And with that he put in a little dig that sent three of us sprawling after his back wheel. We'd been away for around eight laps and had been working fairly efficiently. However the pace got a bit too hot for one guy so we were down to four and the breakaway was looking less sustainable... Almost a year to the day I was dropped from a similar group and on that occasion Colin Roshier asked me to sit on the back and not to contest the sprint. Well a year on I'm a bit stronger and if I say so myself definitely a help and not a hindrance... suddenly David Walls appeared on my back wheel; David took a turn on the front of the break and the speed up the drag dropped from 27mph to 24mph. Not good! this all round bunch entertainer was gonna need a telescope just to see our race numbers if he fancied taking another turn. One lap later Mick bailed to save energy for another attempt and the bunch did what bunches do - gobbled us up
After that no other significant breaks was formed - indeed from then on it was just a case of 'burning the matches' with lots of desperate attempts to sod off up the road. I don't remember ever working so hard to try to get away. And good or bad there would be a price to pay for my efforts. So with around 15 laps to go, having just been reeled in for what felt like the 10th time I was sat near the back recovering. Now during the race the headwind would occasionally let rip and slow things down to club run pace. It happened a couple of times but on the third occasion I was not prepared. So damn, in one almost surreal moment half the bunch had magically transported themselves 50 metres in front of the rest of us. WTF! Aarrgghhh...how did that happen?
Phil Sheehan (Finchely RT) had told me to watch out for splits in heavy wind at Hillingdon. Shit too late!?... Along with another guy I started to grind out the watts just to get across the gap but all I could see each lap was the front group disappearing around the corner and me and this other fella stuck in the proverbial no mans land. Out of the corner of my eye I could see this elderly Sikh gentleman watching from the grassy bank with slight amusement as this skinny black guy in a yellow top tried ride to his bike fast. Was he laughing at me? Did he think I was a looser? Maybe I'm not sure
Finally I... how do you say it "I put it all out there and made contact" Jesus that was hard. Two laps later I'd partially recovered and was relieved to see the lap board say six. With 4 laps to go I was suddenly overwhelmed with a "fcuk this for a bag of soldiers" moment and swung off the front and got ready to quit. As the tail end of the bunch squeezed past me I stopped gave myself a mental slap and some how jumped back on. On the penultimate lap I was 3rd wheel from the front. Someone had jumped clear but my tank was empty so I couldn't respond. On the final time up the drag the sit in sprinter types blasted clear and I ended up just outside the top ten. That was the hardest 1hr and fifteen minutes on the bike this year. Jesus!
Shit let me tell ya peeps were jumping away all over the circuit so it was quite difficult to know which breaks to go with. After a few tentative attempts I finally got away.
"Come on we need to go faster, they're gaining on us" words of Mick Hill (Team Quest). And with that he put in a little dig that sent three of us sprawling after his back wheel. We'd been away for around eight laps and had been working fairly efficiently. However the pace got a bit too hot for one guy so we were down to four and the breakaway was looking less sustainable... Almost a year to the day I was dropped from a similar group and on that occasion Colin Roshier asked me to sit on the back and not to contest the sprint. Well a year on I'm a bit stronger and if I say so myself definitely a help and not a hindrance... suddenly David Walls appeared on my back wheel; David took a turn on the front of the break and the speed up the drag dropped from 27mph to 24mph. Not good! this all round bunch entertainer was gonna need a telescope just to see our race numbers if he fancied taking another turn. One lap later Mick bailed to save energy for another attempt and the bunch did what bunches do - gobbled us up
After that no other significant breaks was formed - indeed from then on it was just a case of 'burning the matches' with lots of desperate attempts to sod off up the road. I don't remember ever working so hard to try to get away. And good or bad there would be a price to pay for my efforts. So with around 15 laps to go, having just been reeled in for what felt like the 10th time I was sat near the back recovering. Now during the race the headwind would occasionally let rip and slow things down to club run pace. It happened a couple of times but on the third occasion I was not prepared. So damn, in one almost surreal moment half the bunch had magically transported themselves 50 metres in front of the rest of us. WTF! Aarrgghhh...how did that happen?
Phil Sheehan (Finchely RT) had told me to watch out for splits in heavy wind at Hillingdon. Shit too late!?... Along with another guy I started to grind out the watts just to get across the gap but all I could see each lap was the front group disappearing around the corner and me and this other fella stuck in the proverbial no mans land. Out of the corner of my eye I could see this elderly Sikh gentleman watching from the grassy bank with slight amusement as this skinny black guy in a yellow top tried ride to his bike fast. Was he laughing at me? Did he think I was a looser? Maybe I'm not sure
Finally I... how do you say it "I put it all out there and made contact" Jesus that was hard. Two laps later I'd partially recovered and was relieved to see the lap board say six. With 4 laps to go I was suddenly overwhelmed with a "fcuk this for a bag of soldiers" moment and swung off the front and got ready to quit. As the tail end of the bunch squeezed past me I stopped gave myself a mental slap and some how jumped back on. On the penultimate lap I was 3rd wheel from the front. Someone had jumped clear but my tank was empty so I couldn't respond. On the final time up the drag the sit in sprinter types blasted clear and I ended up just outside the top ten. That was the hardest 1hr and fifteen minutes on the bike this year. Jesus!
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
The Palace Files (17.06.08): the breakaway attempt
Work commitments meant I missed out on Palace last week so it was good to be back on my favourite crit... well I must say it was a funny old race: fast in bits, pretty slow in bits, crashes, some halfway house breakaways attempts and a bunch sprint.
Another big field - 60/70 perhaps (its getting quite popular now!). A good group of team mates (Addiscombe racers) on show in the 3/4's: Brian, Kieran, Hal, Steve B, Daniel and Mark . Once again I suffered from clip in failure so despite being on the front row I hit the hair pin bend in about 25th place. Clipping seems to works fine at traffic lights perhaps I need to relax a bit. It was a fairly steady pace early on but Kieran (in that distinctive blue helmet) and another guy were given some rope at the beginning and they both dangled ahead of the pack for 2 or 3 laps.
A little after this, the whole bunch was put on a collective 'go slow' as we tried to let some dropped E12 riders pull away. This seemed to take forever and in fact even after 4 laps they couldn't manage it so we cruised past and kept racing. Soon enough two guys attacked and quickly gained around twenty secs on the rest of us. On the flattish section near the start line I powered clear and the chase was on. Could I catch them without being dragged back by the bunch? Hey perhaps we/I could stay clear of the bunch for the whole race race mmm...with around 20 laps to go it wasn't going to be easy.
With my tongue out 'trying to catch flies' according to my main supporter Stephanie (Addiscombe CC), I finally managed to get over to them on the climb. It took two and a half laps and my heart nearly jumped out of my chest from the effort. Sadly one guy died just as I approached and was actually pedalling in reverse gear by the time I latched on; I went straight to the front to started working with his breakaway buddy but alas we were back in the clutches of the bunch a lap and and half later.
During this time I later discovered Hal (Addiscombe CC) had crashed out (he's ok). In the end it came down to a bunch sprint. I still make silly mistakes after 3 years at Palace. For the sprint you really need to be no less than 3rd or 4th position as you begin to crest the climb. Sadly I wasn't so only grabbed 10th spot I think. Oh well there's always next week. As I said to Kieran this 3/4 stuff at Palace is definitely getting harder.
Another big field - 60/70 perhaps (its getting quite popular now!). A good group of team mates (Addiscombe racers) on show in the 3/4's: Brian, Kieran, Hal, Steve B, Daniel and Mark . Once again I suffered from clip in failure so despite being on the front row I hit the hair pin bend in about 25th place. Clipping seems to works fine at traffic lights perhaps I need to relax a bit. It was a fairly steady pace early on but Kieran (in that distinctive blue helmet) and another guy were given some rope at the beginning and they both dangled ahead of the pack for 2 or 3 laps.
A little after this, the whole bunch was put on a collective 'go slow' as we tried to let some dropped E12 riders pull away. This seemed to take forever and in fact even after 4 laps they couldn't manage it so we cruised past and kept racing. Soon enough two guys attacked and quickly gained around twenty secs on the rest of us. On the flattish section near the start line I powered clear and the chase was on. Could I catch them without being dragged back by the bunch? Hey perhaps we/I could stay clear of the bunch for the whole race race mmm...with around 20 laps to go it wasn't going to be easy.
With my tongue out 'trying to catch flies' according to my main supporter Stephanie (Addiscombe CC), I finally managed to get over to them on the climb. It took two and a half laps and my heart nearly jumped out of my chest from the effort. Sadly one guy died just as I approached and was actually pedalling in reverse gear by the time I latched on; I went straight to the front to started working with his breakaway buddy but alas we were back in the clutches of the bunch a lap and and half later.
During this time I later discovered Hal (Addiscombe CC) had crashed out (he's ok). In the end it came down to a bunch sprint. I still make silly mistakes after 3 years at Palace. For the sprint you really need to be no less than 3rd or 4th position as you begin to crest the climb. Sadly I wasn't so only grabbed 10th spot I think. Oh well there's always next week. As I said to Kieran this 3/4 stuff at Palace is definitely getting harder.
Sunday, 15 June 2008
Highbury-Brighton Beach-Highbury
Today was the annual London to Brighton ride and coincidentally happened to be my biggest ride so far this year. Yes - nearly six and a half hours or 124 miles of mostly flat stuff, broken up just the once by a little lump called Ditchling Beacan. Ninety of those 124 miles were spent in the extremely agreeable company of my Addiscombe club mates: Anthony, Steve, Jonathan, Paul and George. It wasn't quite a social ride but then again we weren't exactly 'gunning it' either. In every imaginable way it was a great day to be on the bike :-)
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