Thought it was worth providing a general posting place for brief comments on upcoming events, quick notes on results achieved, or one para reports on sportive/training rides etc, for those times when a big front page post isn’t needed or you haven’t got time to write one (or don’t know how!).
So please use this as a notepad for anything quick that you want to get to other riders! To add to this page just make a comment in the usual way…no need for a WordPress account.
Phil, Questions, questions, I apologise in advance, How far in advance should we look to enter the BC Road races ? Do we send SAE or has that changed ? More a point for you fit buggers, how many points will you need to progress through the ranks ie 2nd Cat before we can’t find suitable races for ALL ?
I’ve renewed my BC licence
Ready to roll 
Hi Dave – I would suggest entering as soon as you are sure you want to ride the race as numbers are on the up this year (and last). The earlier the better! All events have a closing date listed, but many of the early season races are filling fast. Entry forms are here (you only need to use the individual’s one, not the team form) – http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/web/site/BC/roa/road_entry_forms.asp I always include an A5 SAE, but am not sure you really need to!
The category system is explained here: http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/web/site/BC/roa/road_guide_home.asp Clear as mud
Just passing by.Btw, you website have great content!
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Making Money $150 An Hour
Hi Guys,
Just a quick note to let you know the Cotswold League TLI series is begining next week details available here http://www.thecotswoldleague.co.uk/. I know Dave Lee did some of these last year. Also VC Montpellier are doing circuit races at Cheltenham race course on every friday in June. Details are available from BC or http://www.vcmontpellier.com.
Jake.
I have nothing to report as I am still off the bike, except that I am down to one crutch and plan to GENTLY turbo as general rehab in next couple of days – but I needed to test the page!
Great news Phil. Don’t push too hard too soon.
Marmotte Training Run – GFC Route
) and descents that had some of us leaving the motorbikers in their dust. Brilliant! Unfortunately as we came around to near where the Gran leaves the medio route for the extra loop, Simon split his back tyre so we called it a day having done a very lumpy 90 mile at an average of just over 18mph some of us (I think ALL of us) were quite happy to call it a day!
Myself, Ian, Simon, Greg, Torrie and Graham had a great ride on Sunday. With the weather being perfect we set off from Bala at around 10:30 and were soon chipping along at quite a high pace with Si towing us all along. This is the first time I have ridden the GFC route and wow, what a great route it is. With climbs you can only dream of (nightmare for some
A perfect training ride for the Marmotte.
Thanks to all who took part, that’s got some good tough miles in the legs. Bring on the Alps. 
Yeah I wanted to carry on and do the full route but the guys were not keen
NOT!! I was happy to ‘just’ do the 90 miles although it was getting late and passes were due to expire so all in all I think we made the right decision.
Fantastic day out in the sun and the wind was behind us over the Ranges (horrible moorland climb that goes on and on)
Bing on the Alps indeed :0
Great ride, if Sunday was our summer I’m happy I made the best of it.
I’d planned the route into my Garmin and at Betws y Coed just as my legs were feeling tired it was showing me we ONLY had 86 miles to complete the route!!
The Ranges are awesome and seem never-ending, as we climbed I had flashbacks to last years OMFG GFC when I was sat on the side of the road with my head in my hands, soaking, freezing and coudn’t imagine how I was going to keep turning the pedals for another 20 miles, luckily Sunday’s weather made it a totally different place to be!
It seems Si’s tyre splitting did us all a favour, I felt OK at the finish but I could feel the miles in my legs at tonight’s time trial, didn’t seem to slow me down though… got a pb!!http://s.wordpress.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif
Looking forward to La Marmotte more than ever now!!
It seems I don’t know how to make the smilies work!
Brief report from Sunday
14 laps of a fairly lumpy course. All the local hitters were present.
Break of two went as soon as the flag dropped. I mooched off the front soon after and 5 riders came up to me. we got together and the nine of us set about chasing the front two. We worked well together but the two in front kept pulling away (turned out that being local riders there had been some lead car drafting). I was going fairly badly. I hadn’t had much of a warm up before the race and so had being going hard straight out of the box.
Anyway after about half distance three more riders came up to us having crossed a gap of around a 2 mins. The race then bean to hot up. It was quite lumpy round the back of the course and the stronger riders were piling on the pressure each lap. we managed to get rid of a rider a lap until the last lap. there were only five of us left with two still up the road. I was feeling much stronger by now and able to counter everything easily and even managed to force a couple of moves myself. With a mile to go two riders got a gap and a moment’s hesitation meant we were left to go for 5th, which I secured by easily outsprinting my two remaining companions.
I’ve gone from the gun in lots of races this year. It’s a good way of staying in the thick of the action and even though it does make for a hard day out I’d recommend it as a good tactic…
Sounds like a very good way of avoiding a 50 rider mêlée that risks dumping you on the road too Giles!!
A couple of quick updates from Pete:
I rode a town centre crit in Totnes on Saturday night. It was and 2/3/4 event but was flat out from the start. Only about 16 finished and I was 9th. Up there all the race with a few attacks but just lost it on the steep climb to the finish!.
Someone shouted “Come On Epic” as I struggled up the climb, don’t know if they were being kind or whether they knew the club. But I was prominent in the race and as the oldest there probably got a sympathy vote.
Photos from the pain cave: http://www.charleswhittonphotography.com/photo2644889.html
http://www.charleswhittonphotography.com/photo2645111.html
And from last week (22nd):
I rode Castle Combe last night and got 5th. A good result as there
were over 100 riders and it is hotly contested.
I started in the scratch group. The 4ths go off first, the 3rds second
then us last (E/1/2) The 4ths have over a lap on us (1.9m) so it is
always very hard. The scratch group had to ride really fast and we
caught the 3rds after about half way. The 4ths still had over half a
lap but it was coming down slowly. There were a couple of good attacks
and I was away with 3 elites for two laps before getting pulled back.
As we did another group of 4 slid off the front and made their way,
slowly, to the 4ths. Our group was slowly catching the 4ths too and as
we entered the last two laps it felt as if we would catch them. We did
on the finishing straight! The last lap was flat out with the bunch
totally strung out. Two of the break had slipped off the front of the
4ths, who thought they were going for 3rd until we charged over the
top of them with 300m to go. It was hectic but I found a good line on
the outside and was third by about half a wheel in the mass gallop.
After last weekend I am quite pleased and it at last I have some
points this year.
Has Plowman Craven folded?
here’s my report from the West Yorks Divs following a rubbish week in which I’ve been nursing a cold.
got bike out of car, started the race, packed after 4 miles, went home.
Hi all.
Myself, Ewen, Dave, Matt and Matt Webb all rode in the W/Mids divs this Sunday. It didn’t go quite as I’d been planning in my head all the night before but here’s how it went. It was a fantastically sunny morning, even if it was only 6:30am as I picked up the lads from Craven Arms. All in high spirits and looking forward to a days racing on a course that was the toughest we had ridden. We had 5 laps of an 11 mile lumpy course to complete and the pace was hot from the start with riders trying to get away straight from the flag. Ewen was well up amongst the front and was looking in good form with the rest of us hiding in the bunch and trying to bump start our bodies which thought they were still in bed. In the middle of each lap there was a long drag up the A5 and on the second lap the pace was so high that it split the bunch in half with me somewhere in the middle desperately trying to hold any wheel that went by. I made it back onto the tail end just as it ramped up again and subsequently went out the back again. This was pretty much how my whole race went as I kept getting back on just as the pace went up again. For the first time in a race I was passed by the car following the bunch and it was only the guy hanging out the window yelling at me to get back on the bunch that made me empty anything I had left to get back up to them. I managed to stay with it for the last couple of miles, but didn’t have the legs to compete for the sprint. Only 35 riders were in the final bunch and many retired after the second lap, so I finished feeling happy enough, but also gutted that I had been taught such a lesson.
Ewen finished a very respectable 10th, but I feel he was disappointed as he had cramped up in the sprint and had lost a handful of places. I finished near the back of the 35 man bunch with Matt coming in a bit later with a couple of other riders he’d been working well with. Greek and Matt W called it a day during the race, preferring to shout support from the sideline which was greatly appreciated.
You guys better add your own comments as we all had totally different experiences!
Simon was the victim of yet another rear tyre and punctured in the first couple of miles in the E/1/2/3 after hitting a pothole that was big enough to get your whole bike in!
After a quick wheel change he was back in pursuit of the bunch but with no luck as the miserable buggers didn’t slow down for him. 
We left him having to wait for the race to finish so that he could get his wheel back from the car, not happy! 
God help us all at the Wrekinsport this weekend, he’s gonna be fired up!
That was definitley the toughest course i’ve ridden so far and so it should be for the West Mids Div’s. It was completly different to the profiles i’ve done previously. The long climb did for me. Not really steep but a really long drag. I would have preferred it short and steep but then they don’t put races on to suit me!!!
The pace on the second lap was pretty high. A load of guys got shelled on the first lap. I was ducking and diving to stick with it going into the second time up the long climb when the guy in front of me lost the wheel on the flat bit before the island. I had to shoot round him towing a few others but the pace had it all strung out and the head of the bunch was already on the climb. I passed a few guys being shelled on the climb but the peleton was already getting away. Once over it and with the peleton out of sight i got together with a guy and we worked well bit and bit starting to pick a few others up. On the third lap we picked up about 4 or 5 stragglers and started to work again but the long climb split it all up which left me in no man’s land. At the end of the third lap i found Giff from Climb On Bikes at the top of the finish climb and decided to join him chewing the fat with Gary Mac.
Kudos to Charler for sticking with the final group, top effort!!!
Ewen, who animated things all day, cracking ride for 10th just a shame about the cramp 
Also good to see my mate Fluff working well in the small group that finished the course. He dragged them up the finish climb on the 4th lap and i could see he was itching to sprint for the line on the last lap but decided against it out of respect for the other guys 
It was a good experience for Webby and if he gets in some circuit races will soon start turning in some confidence boosting performances. Shame about Simon’s puncture…..i’m glad i’m not racing this weekend!!! Give ‘em hell mate! 
Hi guys, pretty god report on that, I wouldn’t be able to comment on what happened in the bunch, mainly as I spent most of my time ever off the front, or chasing down other people, “off the front!” A very frustrating day for me in general, most of the guys that finished high up, where ones that I hadn’t seen for the whole race! not mentioning any names! Well done to Charlie, Dave, matt and matt, fantastic to see the epic colours out in force once more! even if it was a disappointing day for most of us! next year should hold something different for us though!
Tales from the Pain Cave – Part 3 – Matt’s Story…
I felt fine on the first lap, cruising up towards the front and everything seemed under conrol. On lap 2 there seemed to be a big attack on the main road prior to the climb and although that in itself wasn’t a problem, it meant that when the pace went up again on the climb, the whole race seemed to get split in half. I managed to hang on to the back of the leading group, but I was already blowing and just lost contact going over the top. I tagged on to two other guys and we time-trialled the descent/flat and managed to rejoin the front pack of about only 45 surviving riders as we went into Sherrifhales. Stayed tucked in to recover and tried to move up the bunch prior to the the climb again on lap 2. Same thing happened again before the hill though, and although I hung on a bit longer on the climb, I dropped off the back again. But I managed to rejoin once more after another 3-man TTT. The group had whittled down again and there seemed to be stagglers all over the road. Tucked into the group again for about mile, but the little surge of pace just after Sherrifhales was just too much and several of us had lost the group just before the start of lap 4.
Two riders (Russ from COB and another guy) and myself thought we’d keep going to see if we could get back on, as we figured that somewhere behind us scattered down the road must have been a good 40+ riders, already dropped. But for the remainder of the race, despite working really well together we were in no man’s land – nobody in sight ahead or behind us, and that’s how it stayed. Russ went for some glory and struck for home with about a half a mile to go, but knew he’d gone too early (he was chuckling about it as we passed him) which left me and the other guy to call a truce and ride over the line together. A good couple of minutes (I think..???) behind the leaders, but pleased to have stuck at it and finished in the top half of a completely decimated field.
Big respect to Ewen, who looked sharp right from the off (bad luck with those cramps again mate) and Charler… and indeed anyone in that front group at the end (even if there did seem to be one or two ‘ringers’ in there
) I didn’t quite have the legs to stay in the mix. Not forgetting Matt Webb – hung in bravely, but that was a bloody hard race to cut your teeth on – don’t get disheartened mate.
You’d expect the Divs to be a hard race and it bloomin was – the combination of a tough course and a quality field chomping at the bit meant a hard day at the office for all.
Had to feel for Simon too – he looked gutted after his lap 1 puncture in the E/1/2/3 race. Truly sh*tty luck mate, God help ‘em next week when you’re getting that anger out of your system
Totally agree Ewen. With a good strong winter and one seasons experience behind us hopefully next year we can all help up the front and get a better team result!
Well done on your ride mate, the result didn’t show the effort put in over the whole race, but it never does!! I’ll be up there with ya next year! 
You’ve pretty much summed it up already but after the roundabout after the long drag during the first lap I lost contact with the main bunch and had no gears left to push to try and get back.
With a few other ahead who’d already been dropped I tagged onto the back to do one more lap then called it a day as I could see nobody in front and nobody behind
Well done everyone else tho
and unlucky Simon.
Bring on next year
Sounds like an interesting weekend all round with punctures, colds and leg ripping pace!
Not exactly race winning or etape conquering stuff, but a small step in the right direction to be on a bike again within two weeks (just!) 
A bit sore when pedalling in the saddle – OK out of it – but pretty exhausted by the end through release of tension I think.
And I managed a whole 15 mile ride at a whopping 15mph without falling off
Hey Guys, that sounds like a tough one
Also sounds like the ‘pot-hunters’ were out in force!! Sounds like you all gave it a good go, which is what we are all about but great rides from Ewen and Charler 
So it could be a good idea to mention these puntures to Si on the start line of La Marmotte and get a super fast tow to the foot of the Glandon ha ha
Well done guys
Sorry Phil, meant to say great stuff that you are back on bike so soon, nice and easy mate
Hi Everyone
Just to let you know that there are some crits at Cheltenham Race Course every Friday in June. They seem to be new events, just added to the calendar last week.Youth and 2,3,4. My whole family will ride, so is anyone else going to be there?
Peter
Graham and I are contemplating at the moment with one eye on the forecast of possible rain
All things being well should be there 
I think one or two of the others were considering too 
Rain just makes it more fun…..
Rain = cleaning bike
Still haven’t trained missus to do that yet lol 
Just picking up on Gile`s “Plowman Craven” comment from earlier on, apparently it`s still going as a team but there will be casualties, so maybe some of these guys will be looking to become “Epicurians” ( sorry ! ) could you guy`s cope with a personality of Mr Gibb`s proportions ???
And regarding Peter`s Cheltenham races Ewen together with driver does intend to compete, apparently the prize money is mightily impressive !!
Looking forward to seeing loads of us there.
Myself, Simon & Ewen turned out in torrential rain today for the Wrekinsport RR.
Unfortunately the rain was too much and the roads were flooded so the race was cancelled.
If there were BC points for stupidity we would have all got maximum for even bothering to turn up!
Roll on summer. Oh hang on, that was last week!
Just a quick summary on Friday evenings Cheltenham race, Peter, Ewen, and another chap in an Epic jersey ( apologies for not knowing name ) competed in what was a VERY full on event from the gun ( instigated by Ewen I might add !! ) where the field was shredded within two laps on a very challenging course which had an equally challenging hill on it, Ewen missed the first split of three riders which held, these were followed by another group of three, then another three one of which was Ewen, Pete held on very gamely finishing solo as his fellow group fell by the wayside to finish, I believe, a very creditable ten`th, Ewen came second in his groups aprint to secure eigth`th spot, so all in all quite a sucessfull evening for Epic.
It was a excellent course, and good fast racing, the atmosphere was laid back and relaxed which made for a great night…………Friday was the first in a series of four !!
Thanks for the report Gary. I think the other Epic rider was Adam Gellately who was riding his first race of the year – hopefully not his last cos it sounded like a right mash-up.
Well done to Ewen and Pete.
Might be washing my hair this Friday ;o)
last nights SSSCCRRL race resulted in Ewen getting second place, he feels he could of won but just as he was about to overtake exiting the last corner the guy lost his pedal and swerved across his path loosing his momentum, he was however a marked man with the Wheelers employing every trick in the book to thwart him………needed some team mates !!! ………dont forget it`s Cheltenham tonight.
sorry I was the anonymous one !! Gary
Excellent one Ewen
Your flying at the moment, keep it going 
Boowen’s flying at the moment. Good work fella.
Sounds like Si needs to ride!!
Nice work lad! It was only a matter of time till you got a good result there.
I should be riding next week, not sure how much use I’ll be to you though!
Tough day today at the SPIUK Stratford RR. 66 miles – 3.75 laps of a hard 17 mile circuit. Each lap contained two short but killer climbs in quick succession with a very lumpy loop along the Fosse Way.
Breaks went/got caught all day and the bunch was all together coming to the last 2km, with the climb up to the finish awaiting. My ‘plan’ was to go full gas on the climb and try and hang on till the end. But it all went t*ts-up when I punctured after hitting a cat-eye hard coming into Kineton, with less than 1.5k to go
Tried carrying on but was right down on the rim – game over. Adam Gellatly seemed to be right in the mix when I pulled up and I think he finished in the bunch.
Interestingly though, on the result sheet at HQ, I’m down as finishing 34th of the 80 riders
After a few false starts I have had a some wins this weekend. I rode the LVRC Devil Two Day in South Wales. Nick was down to ride but was unable to due to work commitments, so I was the only Epic there.
The race started with a 3 mile time trial. A,B and C cats vets were one race and D, E, F & G in the other. I was second in my category, 2 secs down in the prologue. One C cat beat me, Malcolm Whitehead from Kent who was 6 seconds faster. In the afternoon’s 46 mile road race there was just attack after attack. In my usual way I was quite active but nothing would stick. Then as the last 8 mile lap started a soft move of 3 went and I jumped up to it. We nailed it, got the gap and dropped one rider. We rode very hard to the finish where I won the sprint, putting a few seconds into the other two.
Today’s stage was longer, 60mile, and again was jumpy to start. Then at half distance one was away, I jumped up to him and a few others came across, making seven of us. We rode really well together and I was constantly pushing it so no one else attacked. I was cramping on the last lap but jumped early and won by a few seconds again. So, two stages and the overall for the A’s – best result of the season.
Cracking effort, congratulations Pete.
Fantastic result Pete well done!
well done Pete. That’s mega. it shows what a class act you are. Let’s hope these are the first of many. roll on the track champs and the rr champs.
i got 2nd in the Tom Simpson Mem.
Pete, Fantastic stuff, really pleased for you
It has been on cards for a while but its paid off 
Giles Congrats to you too. Keep it all going
Brilliant results Pete and Giles – and great timing too with big targets coming up
Very envious – can’t wait to race again in late July!
Good night at the Sundorne circuit last night, in the penultimate round of the Shrews & South Staffs league.
Ewen looked very lively in the E/1/2 race and with about 9 mins+5 laps to go, managed to escape with a Paramount rider. Paramount were soft pedalling in the bunch and the two carved out a 15 sec lead going into the last 5 laps (Ewen doing most of the work has to be said). On the final straight, it looked liked Ewen was going to come round to take the sprint, but just didn’t have the gearing in the last 30 yards and he was second by a wheel. Bit unlucky really at the end not to get the win, but great result in that company – good effort fella.
Before that was the 3/4s race, which contained Matt Webb in the first group, then with a 3/4 lap handicap, the second group containing Chris Lines and myself. Matt looked very comfortable in the first group and even launched a big attack shortly before the two groups came together.
Linesy was like a pig in sh*t, mixing it up at the front throughout the race, and with a lap to go we were in a great position – he was at the front giving some gas and I was locked on his wheel, and we had em strung out. Then, a crash at the tail end of the group, meant we had a neautralised lap, which allowed it to all come together again. Then when the racing started again, it was chaos – all our work undone. I managed to get into a decent position for the last corner, and hung on to get 6th. Happy to get the points (which should take me to 3rd cat I think
) but, we were left thinking of what might have been if we didn’t have that neautralised lap. Never mind, next time eh?
A cracking night’s racing though. Really enjoyed watching Ewen getting his 2nd, great to see Matt Webb beaming with satisfaction afterwards – well done mate, hooked now eh?. And chapeau to Linesy, who on his first ever race, put the hurt on at the front when it mattered and would have finished in the top ten if it wasn’t for that pesky crash. Thanks for a great night chaps
Great riding guy’s, would have been there if not for work commitments. Congrats on your 3rd Cat Fluff, well deserved! Good to see Linesy out mixing it up and Matt Webb getting some confidence. Ewen getting closer all the time!
Well done mate. Great riding and well done on the 3rd Cat. Well deserved.
Great rides from both Linesy and Fluff – well done on the 3rd Cat
No Marmotte tales Charler?!
Just a short report this week. Was in the break at Ilton on Saturday, feeling strong and in control when my chain broke. That’s two this year after only ever breaking one as a junior out training with Colin Lewis more than few years ago. The one at The Etape De La Defonse was due to catching the chain between chainset and frame a few weeks earlier but I have no idea why the one on my road bike went.
I had wanted two hard rides this weekend to get the road miles in as prep for the Master’s Road Race Champs next week. Today was 1.5 hours at Castle Combe. An E,1,2 race that was the South Region Crit Champs. Rapha was there with Tom Southam and Darren Lapthorne, and a load of Sports Beans plus lots of elites. It was horribly windy and just fast and splitting all the time. I had ridden to the circuit in the morning (30m) as my wife and kids were riding today so was a bit leggy. After trying to get in the moves the break went in what appead like slow motion. You are at the front of the race, mixing it but extending yourself when after a few skirmishes and minor splits people like Tom Southam attack and they just go off in ones and twos faster than you can ride. You know what to do , you are in the right place but your legs wont do the business – I suppose that’s what happens when you get old.
Anyway – seven get away and surprisingly it is still hard for the rest of the race, Over half pack and on the last lap am able to attack, one comes over me, 5 get up and I end up getting 4th in a horrible head wind finish behind the break for an 11th in the race. So quite pleased considering how many didn’t make it. I think these might be my first national points. Suitable knackered I am going to rest now before next week.
Peter
Campagnolo – the equipment choice of yesteryear – discuss.
meanwhile back in the 21st century riders nowadays tend to choose Shimano or SRAM.
honda’s have always been more reliable than fiats!
apart from that well done this weekend Pete – good luck for the national rr champs on sunday.
I rode a race too this w/e but didn’t win so have deleted all memories of it from my very small brain….
Haha – well I wish I could delete the memories of yesterday’s visit to the Pain Cave (Paramount/Bontrager RR at Telford).
After reaching the ‘dizzy heights’ of 3rd cat recently, I went into this one quietly confident. WRONG!! 66 hilly miles and I found it harder and hillier than the Divs in May :-0
Had Greek and Adam for company, but after Adam got taken out by one of the silliest for-christs-sake-look-where-you’re-going type crashes you could imagine, we were a man down less than a mile in! After removing his hand from the perpetrator’s rear wheel he managed to chase back on 3 miles later, only for the bunch to crank up the pace again – game over. Unlucky mate, great effort to get back on though.
Meanwhile, Greek realised to his dismay that for the second time this year, he’d gone and entered a race with an effing great hill in it. Not a happy bunny, and after grinding up the mile-long bugger for a second time, the writing was on the wall for our rouleur friend and he’d had enough by the end of lap 3.
Which left me. I wish I could tell you all about what breaks went etc – but for the first half of the race I stuck at the back, and never managed to take a turn at the front all day. A combination of being poorly placed from the off and fast start was taking its toll. I was wasting too much energy trying to move up the group, only to be undercut by 20 late-brakers on the big left-hander off the back straight. Which meant I was constantly coming to the climb knackered. The wake up call was looking over my shoulder and seeing the flashing light of the commissaire’s car. So, now hanging on, I stayed tucked in and grabbed any shelter I could and tried to ride conservatively. Two or three laps later, I was feeling a bit better and wormed my way to the middle of the bunch as I picked up some places as people began to tire on the climb. I stayed tucked in and on the final climb up to the finish, I kept gradually moving up and managed to get 15th as it all broke up towards the top. I promptly sat in the shade for a few minutes as I thought I was going to spew or faint or both.
Disappointed not to be in the points, and for riding like a novice at the start, but pleased I was able to even contest a place after considering packing on lap 4. I’m not proud of admitting I never came to the front all day, but I was in survival mode for almost all of the race. Roll on next week at Hillingdon
PS well done Pete and good luck for next week. Keep us posted on here.
Well done Matt!
I think I would have been with Dave when the hill kicked in after a lap or two . . . or maybe not two . . . so would not have been there at the finish. So, I could apologise for the late entry retraction but will save it for a rainy day . . or a rainier day at least!
No apology needed matey. Yesterday’s race can only be described as a hard f*cker.
If I’d have realised what a kicking I’d be getting I wouldn’t have entered so keenly! No such thing as an easy race I suppose, but even so, it would have been nice to finish and not feel like I was going to spew onto my handlebars
Well done Matt. Sounds like a real stinker. Great job to stick in there til the end. Is it just me, or are these rr’s getting harder as the season goes on?
Either they are getting harder or i just shouldn’t go on holiday!
Fluff is being a bit harsh on himself on his positioning in the bunch. I’m sure the comissiare said that we weren’t to start racing until we all got on the course a half mile down the road…no chance! It was a battle for position out of the car park and made for some very nervous handling by some ( over use of brakes, twitchy handling ) all the way to the course which resulted in the crash that Adam, quite literally, got tangled up in!
So to the course. Well i hadn’t raced in 6weeks and whilst at the time, me sat on the beach in Turkey chuckling to myself about you lot racing in the rain, was funny it suddenly slapped me right in the face on Sunday! I managed to find a gap early on and slipped into the front 15 where i stayed round the fast A5 stretch and over the the 3 short steep hills on the return but i realised early on that there was a long drag which went up in 3 places to the finish and this was going to be difficult for me. Mental note stay at the front, drift back and don’t lose the bunch. That was fine and i moved back up each time until on the third lap. I got boxed in on the corner prior to the climb and had to slow right up which meant i was at the back before i’d even started to drift back. I was about 30 – 40 secs off the back and couldn’t get back on. I got with a couple of guys to try and get back but dropped them and couldn’t get back on myself. You know when they say at times like this you need to concentrate and think positive, er my thought process at the time was, in no particular order, – 1.I’ve not raced enough 2. I’ve eaten too much on holiday 3.You’re getting dropped 4.You hampton.
Game over for the Greek.
Matt did very well to finish in the top 20 ( i think ) as the field was full of 3rd cats of a very good standard. Unlucky for Adam who was frustrated not to be able to really get into the race. Apologies Adam if i wasn’t exactly talkative after, i’m a miserable bugger when i get dropped!!!!
So on to Hillingdon and a few weeks of hard training before Stafford. Certainly know what i need to work on now in the winter months!
Hi All
Just wanted to update on progress over last few weeks. We had almost a week in Spain on holiday, where thanks to the fact that we were staying with my mum, I was able to get a few rides in the hills. Came back on Wednesday and rode a seafront crit at Paignton in Devon on Friday. It was an E,1,2 race and was flat out from the gun. It split all over the place but I managed to stay in the front group, finishing 8th. Not as high as I would have hoped as it was my home town, but a very hard race.
Sunday, I rode an E,1,2 crit on the motor racing circuit at Llandow in Wales (1 hr 15 mins plus 3 laps). There were only about 30 starters but quite a few 1st and elites.
A break went on lap one, which stayed away for about 1/2 an hour. I was feeling a bit tired but didn’t want to chase all day and managed to get in a 4 man break with about 40 mins to go. It was a bit wet and I had to drive it to stay away. We got half a lap at one point but they started pulling us back towards the end. We really had to nail it over the last few laps, but I turned out to be the strongest and attacked on the last lap to win comfortably. My first elite win, so I am quite chuffed. Next week the LVRC national RR champs for Giles, Matt and myself.
Nice one Pete continuing an excellent season
Good luck to you, Matt and Giles for the champs.
Pete, Excellent stuff
I’m back on line now after 8/9 weeks in the dark.
Massive congratulations and respect on your National Champs jersey
You are having a fantasic season 
Dave
Fantastic result Pete! Again… Great season eh?
I am finally getting back to some sort of fitness after my unscheduled summer break…just in time for the end of the season
But I plan to be there for the final Percy Stallard and Inkberrow a week before. Forms have been sent, just hope there are places as I want to be there for Giles and Matt.