Cult Racing Cycles are sponsoring me for the 2014/2015
cyclocross season. They have provided me
with a great lightweight Kinesis CSix2 carbon framed ‘cross bike with 3 sets of carbon wheels and racing kit.
My racing schedule for the 2014/2015 cyclocross season is below:
Sunday 14th Sept - WMCCL Henley-in-Arden/Johnsons Coaches 13th
Sunday 21st Sept - WMCCL Redditch, Pitcher Oak Woods 18th
Sunday 5th Oct - WMCCL Baggeridge Country Park 24th
Sunday 12th Oct - National Trophy Round 1 (Shrewsbury) 59th
Sunday 19th Oct - WMCCL
Sunday 2nd Nov - WMCCL Wolverhampton 12th
Sunday 23rd Nov - WMCCL Top Barn, Worcester DNS
Sunday 30th Nov - National Trophy Round 4 (Milton Keynes) DNS
Saturday 6th December WMCCL Mallory Park 13th
Sunday 14th December Just Ride Supercross, Top Barn, Worcester 3rd
Sunday 21st Dec - WMCCL Mallory Park 10th
Friday 26th Dec - Kenilworth Boxing Day Cross 11th
Sunday 4th Jan - National Trophy Round 6 (Derby) 39th
Saturday 10th Jan - National Championships (Abergavenny) DNS
Sunday 18th Jan - Barney's CX Bash (Misterton - am) 3rd
Sunday 18th Jan - LVRC Cyclocross National Champs (Misterton - pm) 9th
Race #13: LVRC Cyclocross National Champs (Misterton - pm)
The LVRC Champs race couldn’t have been
worse really. I got forced to the inside
of the first corner ending up in the tape and having to stop to untangle before
getting going again, by which time the over 50s had started and nearly all had
passed me. I battled long and hard to
work my way back through the field but could only manage to get 9th
vet 45+. But I did really enjoy the day
having two races of over 50mins on a changing course was really great.
Race #12: Barney's CX Bash (Misterton)
The LVRC only organise races for the
over 40s, so this year Dean Barnett decided to run a supporting event for BCF
racers to encourage more participants to bring along their families. I decided to use the opportunity to race the
supporting event as practise and warm-up, to the surprise of some of the LVRC
contingent. I used my practise bike and
although I wasn’t meant to be pushing too hard it was difficult not to. I had a great race, easing off in the finish
and claiming 11th place overall in the combine Juniors, Seniors,
Vets and Women's race and 3rd Vet.
Race #11: National Trophy Round 6 (Derby)
The final round of the National Trophy
Series was at Derby and I managed to get my entry on time, unlike Milton
Keynes. It was a very cold start for the
Vets and I was gridded up with my peers this time in a field of almost 80
riders. I like the course at Moorways
and the organisation is great. I had a
decent race, only “wiping-out” once when I tried to use a different line that
usual and finishing 39th just a few seconds down from the guy in
front of me.
Race #10: Kenilworth Boxing Day Cross
The next race was on Boxing Day at
Kenilworth Common. A great race to blow
away the festive indulgences and race some more ‘cross. The hardest feature in this race for me is
the repeated climb up Common Lane, along with the other climbs in the Common
itself which makes this a hard race to get a good rhythm going at. This year was the first time that the road
was closed to traffic which made the sprint up the hill at the start much
better for those at the front and slightly less congested for those starting at
the back like myself. With my poor start
position I wasn’t expecting much as in this race you need to be up front
at the start. I managed to ride pretty consistently and
finished 11th vet but could have been a bit higher up the field if I
had a better gridding, along side riders who had the same national points as
me.
Race #9: WMCCL Mallory Park
The final round of the WMCCL was back at
Mallory Park and I was keen to improve on the last race there where I had been
just outside the top 10 and 3rd Vet 45! I made a usual poor start getting caught
behind some of the younger vets, but started to pull things back towards the
end of the first lap when disaster struck!
I broke the rear mech hanger in two and had to run round to the pits
some 2 or 3 minutes away. This is why
you need a second bike! I managed to
pull back a lot of the places I had lost during that run, but had the issues
with clogging on the second bike towards the end of the race. I still managed to take 11th vet
and 4th vet 45+, but was disappointed as that could so easily have
been my first top 10 overall of the season, but that’s ‘cross for you.
Race #8: Just Ride Supercross
I had missed the WMCCL round at Top Barn due to a mechanical problem with my motorhome, so this time I made sure I would be ok and left early and rolled up with plenty of time in hand. Field sizes were down on the usual regional races with only 30 riders in the Senior and Vets40+ race, so we were started in all at the same time.
Only the first row got called up and I wasn't one of them so I ended up hanging around at the back getting rid of my warm clothes ready for a chilly wind race around the activity centre. Sitting pretty much at the back, I got blocked by someone who missed clipping in at the whistle so I was already down a fair bit at the start. By the end of the first lap I was able
to move though the field as it began to string out. The course at Top Barn is always fast and is
one I like with some little tricky sections on the banks of the lake. I managed to finish 9th overall
(seniors and vets) and picked up the prize for 3rd vet!
Race #7: WMCCL Mallory Park
The circuit was another traditional mix of open fields, muddy off-cambers and some large mounds at the side of the racing car circuit at Mallory Park. The recent rain had mad the course very muddy and watery with some sections unrideable by the end of the race with some particularly strength sapping thick gloop.
I didn't get off well at the up hill start which I was already playing catch up from the outset. Fortunately I managed to fight a decent line through the melee during the first lap. By the end of the second lap I had managed to pass a few more and slot in with an small group. Though it is very difficult to tell who you are really racing in these events due to there being 2 races on the circuit at once, the Seniors starting 2 mins before the Vets are set off. A swap of bikes halfway though gave me an added boost to pass a couple of riders, that unfortunately came back to me in the final laps and I dropped a couple of places to finish 13th in the Vets, but a good 3rd Vet 45+ though a little disappointed as I had been racing in 2nd place for much of the race. **UPDATE** 2nd WM League Championship V45 silver medalist
I decided to stay faithful to the WMCCL and race the round at Wolverhampton on the 2nd November instead of heading down to Stroud.
The circuit at Wolverhampton is a traditional mix of open fields, muddy off-cambers and good use of some old railway embankments and cuttings. Always one for a fast start I didn't do to well and got caught in traffic at the first bottleneck. Fortunately I managed to pull some places back over the next few laps and didn't have any major problems from the sticky mud which the Tufo Cubus tubs shrugged off very nicely. Once again I felt I was just about getting the lines right by the end and managed to finish a decent 12th place again.
The WMCCL round at Solihull had a late change of venue to the Heart of England Conference and Events centre near Fillongley. This proved to be a great venue for the event offering a great mix of wooded tracks and flowing grassland.
The race went off in sunny, dry condition but the week of rain had made the going very wet and muddy. Some parts of the course were hardly ridable and for those on single bikes the best option seemed to be to carry through a long 500m section of mud to avoid clogging and caking the gears up.
I ended up with a reasonable result, 12th Vet, and thoroughly enjoying the racing.
The fog and mist at Sundorne Leisure Centre in Shrewsbury on a cold October morning provided a back drop for the opening round of the National Trophy Series. I took the motorhome and plenty of kit given the forecast had been dodgy all week and the course was expected to be soft and muddy, it didn't disappoint.
Race #6: WMCCL Wolverhampton
The circuit at Wolverhampton is a traditional mix of open fields, muddy off-cambers and good use of some old railway embankments and cuttings. Always one for a fast start I didn't do to well and got caught in traffic at the first bottleneck. Fortunately I managed to pull some places back over the next few laps and didn't have any major problems from the sticky mud which the Tufo Cubus tubs shrugged off very nicely. Once again I felt I was just about getting the lines right by the end and managed to finish a decent 12th place again.
Race #5: WMCCL Fillongley.
The race went off in sunny, dry condition but the week of rain had made the going very wet and muddy. Some parts of the course were hardly ridable and for those on single bikes the best option seemed to be to carry through a long 500m section of mud to avoid clogging and caking the gears up.
I ended up with a reasonable result, 12th Vet, and thoroughly enjoying the racing.
Race #4: National Trophy Series Rnd # 1, Shrewsbury.
I was gridded in the last quarter of the field, which was better than I'd expected. After a quick warm-up and some practise laps on the spare bike I was pretty much ready to race. After a steady start to make sure I stayed out of trouble I'd moved into a group I was happy with in the last half of the field (this is a race for the best Vets in the country after all). Unfortunately disaster struck as I moved through the group at the completion of the first of 5 laps when my chain dropped and jammed around the bottom bracket. Over a minute later I was back on the bike and being too eager to chase back into the race I took too wide a line around a corner and ended up in a fence! These things happen in 'cross and I then spent the rest of the race trying to get the lines right and to my amazement I wasn't lapped.
Overall, the planning before hand had been worth it, as disregarding the mishaps in the actual race everything else went well, and I was feeling a little better overall.
Race #3: WMCCL Rnd 5 Baggeridge Country Park, Sedgley.
With a reasonable gridding position on the inside of the second row I was hopefully of a good start. The whistle blew and I got off ok and took the first lap just of the leaders group back in about 15th position, but that was a good as it got. The revised course had a couple of technical sections that slowed me a little and if caught in traffic going into the stairs time was lost running. The problem seemed to be with the numerous dead turns and steep little inclines that sapped the strength from my legs much quicker than expected. I lost a few too many places in the last couple of laps, mainly due to a slip in traffic on the stairs section that allowed the guy behind to pass and gain nearly 30 secs. The racing was fun, but I'm still not where I'd like to be after having a good start at Johnsons.
Race #1: WMCCL Rnd 2 Johnsons Coaches.
This was my first race in Cult Racing colours and as it was my first race of the season in the WMCCL I was gridded on the last row as I had not scored any points yet. The game plan was to take it steady at the start and not get caught up in crashes or bottlenecks and then try to get in the zone and ride through the field to see where I'd end up. It went quite well and by the top of the field I'd managed to move up quite a few places going into the first corners. The new bike from Cult Racing was handling well and being light at less than 8kgs I was able to accelerate from one wheel to the next, moving through the field at a good pace. At about halfway into the race my legs were being to scream at me, but in my best Jens Voigt voice I told them what to do ... by this point I was passing back markers and it becomes difficult to know where your at really. With some great support from my wife and the Cult Racing crew I pressed on keeping a good line through the corners and over the humps. Couple of slips on the last lap but nothing that couldn't be correct by the CSix2's handling which saw me cross the line 13th Vet40+ and 4th in the Vet45 category out of a large starting field of 80+. The course was rock hard but had a good flowing feel to it and the sun was shinning to make it a wonderful return to CX racing. Bring on round 3!
Race #2: WMCCL Rnd 3 Pitcher Oak Woods, Redditch
This
time last week I wasn't to sure I would make it to the start line of
the next round of the WMCCL. I had a pretty awful start to the week
coming down with some sort of infection.which need a course of antibiotics to start to clear it up.
So
I did make it to the start line with the help of some meds, and got a
nice gridding on the third row. Unsure of how things would pan out due
to 4 days of the bike my plan was to follow the wheels and try and stay
in the front group for as long as possible. I started well and was in
the top 10 going through into the first section but was unable to
maintain the ffort even though I felt I should be able to. The rest of
the race was then a case of damage limitation, trying to not lose too
many places. Unfortunately by the last couple of laps I had slipped
back a bit and was finding increasingly difficult on any steep
sections. Eventually finishing 18th Vet 40-49 and 9th Vet 45+ really
wasn't too bad considering the week I'd had, but I know I could easily
have been 4 places higher at less than a 1 minute separated 13th-18th :(
Race #1: WMCCL Rnd 2 Johnsons Coaches.
This was my first race in Cult Racing colours and as it was my first race of the season in the WMCCL I was gridded on the last row as I had not scored any points yet. The game plan was to take it steady at the start and not get caught up in crashes or bottlenecks and then try to get in the zone and ride through the field to see where I'd end up. It went quite well and by the top of the field I'd managed to move up quite a few places going into the first corners. The new bike from Cult Racing was handling well and being light at less than 8kgs I was able to accelerate from one wheel to the next, moving through the field at a good pace. At about halfway into the race my legs were being to scream at me, but in my best Jens Voigt voice I told them what to do ... by this point I was passing back markers and it becomes difficult to know where your at really. With some great support from my wife and the Cult Racing crew I pressed on keeping a good line through the corners and over the humps. Couple of slips on the last lap but nothing that couldn't be correct by the CSix2's handling which saw me cross the line 13th Vet40+ and 4th in the Vet45 category out of a large starting field of 80+. The course was rock hard but had a good flowing feel to it and the sun was shinning to make it a wonderful return to CX racing. Bring on round 3!
Awesome! So I can borrow the beach racer then? ;-)
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