Central Cyclocross League Round 9: Kettering. My first ever cycle race!

On Saturday 19th November, two days from my 46th birthday I finally ticked off another part of my cycling to do list. I entered a race. I've only had a distant interest in CX until recently so it's almost a surprise I found my self in the Central Cyclocross League Round 9 Novice Race. It took place just a few miles from my front door so really this was the ideal start point. 

So how did this all happen? Well, having taken SuperSam to a few of these events this year I'd started to take interest in the novice race and the seed of a thought had planted:"I could do that!" Then some chat started. First Andy Brown (fellow C&Der and KCC Cyclones Dad,) mentioned we should enter, then some other Dad's and some other C&D Cycles CC members joined in and before we knew it we were signed up. If I'd had time I think I should have purchased a KCC jersey and then worn it with my C&D shorts to show my links to both clubs.

Race Organiser and Cyclones Coach - Mark Evans

The bulk of the work in organising the race was done by Mark Evans. It's a thankless task dealing with all the rigmarole involved so I'm going to take this opportunity to thank Mark for such a great event. 

The course was at Prologis Park near Kettering and hosted at the Kettering Football Club, known as the Red Kites because we're knee deep in those magnificent raptors around here! It was pretty close to the perfect location.

SuperSam

Before my race there was of course the more important matter of Sam and the other cyclones. The under 8's and 10's race was a joy to watch! The kids put in heaps of effort. Then in the U12 race Sam again showed a lot of grit and improved technique. At the front of the race the MK kids continue to set a furious pace but the KCC Cyclones never give up. Kudos to: Jake, Oliver, Harrison, Kyan, Coen, Tasmin, Ruben, Corben, Aimee, Jack, Dominic, Amelia, Hannah, Sam, Eddie, Josh, Bethany, Charlie, Fin and Jonny.

Screengrab of the Route

My first mistake of the day was not setting Strava at the start of the race. I logged my ride getting to the event and then turned it off to get a pure log of the race! I guess the excitement got to me. We lined up on the grid and the banter started. Everyone was trying to claim the position of most likely to come last. The commisaire then warned us about the course hazards, including his great dislike of the wooden fence, which we all then threatened to push Ashley into. So really it was just like any other Saturday ride. Then the whistle went and erm...it stopped being like any other Saturday ride!

In a world of pain!

We shot off from the line and after about 30 seconds I was knackered. Normal service resumed as I found myself behind my C&D teammates. Then Ashley took a tumble and it was 'see you later kid!' He overtook me a lap later. I think the disadvantage of 20 years plus a few extra stone in weight doesn't help me keep up with the whippets! The course was great. Some good ups and downs and a couple of technical bits but thankfully not the drop the experienced racers would face. 

Our race was just 30 minutes and the bell for the last lap did come as a bit of a relief. I'm not sure how but I started catching people on that last lap and set my fastest time. I had a lovely tustle with Jonny and Fin from the cyclones under 14/16's who did the right thing and outsprinted the old man for the line! I'm not going to pretend I went easy on them, I tried to go faster and my legs politely reminded me I'm not Wout van Aert! On the line I was 13th out of 20 Novice men. That's fine for me, I never expected to win, I just didn't really want to be last. I was gaining fast on Chris at the end but I think he'd have just outsprinted me if I'd caught him. Also he could hear me coming as all of Kettering must have thought my huffing and puffing was an oncoming buffalo stampede!

There was some controversy at the finish as the leaderboard showed Andy Brown in first place! The mix up became apparent when he wasn't even invited to the podium. Later on it was all sorted as Andy and Josh had swapped race chips apparently by accident. Our very own mountain goat is secretly a very competitive man though. He's obviously practised cx by entering an event the week before and leading a course reccie under the pretense it was a practise session for the kids! He lulled us into a false sense of security with his ridiculous mudguard and then tore off leaving us all in his wake! Andy, as you'll see was 6th in the end and all joking aside it was well deserved. In my eyes he has the honour of being the current C&DCycles CC CX champion. Some black and blue stripes seem in order!

Screengrab of the race results!

You can ride a cx race on any offroad bike. My 29r was a pretty good bit of kit for this challenge and as Andy did the best of any of us on an MTB I'd say a proper cx bike is not necessary. However I'll also say that there were some serious bits of kit on display and a fair bit of bike envy kicked in. The picture below is quite apt with the British Cycling 'Go-Ride Racing' banner. My advice for anyone considering having a go is: GO-RIDE!

Too fast for the camera!

After my race I thought I was heading home. I decided to hang around for a bit and Lee took Sam for a well earned McDonald's (Author's note: I do not approve of Ronald flipping McDonald either for the pathetic products he purveys or the general ethos of his despicable company!) It was a good job I didn't rush off because I'd completely forgotten I'd volunteered for marshaling duty. Quite an error as it turns out because lovely as the day was, as soon as you stood still it was freezing! Mark lent me his fleece and off I set to prevent dog walkers inadvertently wandering onto the course. The racing was good to watch but I was struggling with the cold. A quick look at my race programme showed another couple of hours to go! Thankfully Mark is not only a good organsiser but he also looks after people. Another coat and a nice cuppa, which he brought to me one handed on his MTB, sorted me out.

My marshaling station

It was good to watch the more experienced riders mastering the course. My highlight of the day was seeing, Stuart Walters, another C&D/KCC member on the course. Stuart, 78, has featured a few times in my blogs because he's a phenomenal rider who inspires us all. I'd love to think I will still be riding in 30 years time. Stuart proves it can be done. There was also some very competent lady riders on the course. It was also very friendly with many riders shouting 'thanks marshall,' as they rode past. Then the last race of the day, the senior men. Wow they were quick!

Lee's Performance Enhancing KCC Cupcakes

My final comment on the day is a big shout out to everyone who gave their time. So, to all volunteers, in whatever capacity, you really are wonderful people. I'm glad I did my bit. Also the Queen of Cakes did us proud again with her KCC cupcakes. A really great day!

Apparently you should always wash your bike in a Santa onesie!

I was so tired last night I fell asleep on the sofa at 8pm watching the England rugby highlights. I'm glad I did because I watched them again on the iplayer this morning and unearthed an absolute gem as a result. Richard Parks Extreme Wales: Episode 1 Extreme Cycling This programme feels like it was invented for me. An ex rugby player cycling through Wales, creating a cracking four day route, talking about his love of cycling with other lovely cyclists and he even does a feature on Red Kites! Check it out for yourself, really really great cycling telly!

Another thing I've unearthed is a Cycling Weekly article 20 things for cyclists to do in 2017. This is great and number 20 is my all time favourite quote from cycling legend Eddy Merckx: 

“Ride, lots. It doesn’t matter about the bike, take any bike, but ride.” 

Happy Pedaling!

Remembrance Ride 2016

Over the last two years our club remembrance ride has been the highlight of our Sunday club rides. We cycle to sites of significance, particularly the airfields of Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire where so much brave endeavor took place on our behalf. It's important to remember and I feel this ride is a fitting tribute to the fallen.

I nearly didn't ride at all today due to a very emotional and stressful week. In hindsight, perhaps I shouldn't have ridden at all. You can never tell when riding 'emotional.' Sometimes you are inspired to a great ride and other times your legs are just dead with nervous exhaustion. Today my legs were dead. I was cramping on hills after just 30 miles and after 50 miles I gave up and called for help. The magnificent Mrs Lindsley came and rescued me at Thrapston!

So what has been so bad? Well for starters we lost Ben our Black Labrador on Monday. He's been with us for 13 years and the kids don't know a life without him. We had no warning really other than his advancing years. The picture above was taken on Saturday, two days later we said goodbye. As Dad I'm trying to hold it all together but it's not easy. We loved that dog! There will be dog lovers who understand and others who wonder what the fuss is. All I will say is the hurt we feel today is nothing compared to the joy he brought us for all those years.

Okay let's get back to the ride. One of the gems I found this week was that another cycling blogger has blogged about visiting the places we went to today! Check out the link below:

https://frankburns.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/war-time-disaster-at-mears-ashby/

On arrival at C&D Cycles there was the largest group I'd seen gathered since...well probably since the last remembrance ride. Steve was our leader but others had downloaded the route that I had prepared from Steve's interesting instructions! Notable in her absence was Nat, who overslept apparently!

Riding conditions were excellent. We had a dry bright day. The roads were still damp from the day before but in light winds we could not have asked for better.

First stop was at the lovely old tree in Mears Ashby. Commemorated here was the crash of two American bombers. If being shot at wasn't bad enough, it appears that accidents also happened. Miraculously some of the airmen involved walked away uninjured. The rest however were not so lucky and lost their lives.

The commemorative board

Ooh I say!

woof!

Banter is compulsory even on a serious day like today. Little did the cockwomble know that naughty plans were afoot. 

Steve was having a mare and this is the repair to his first broken spoke. Heather had usefully packed a cable tie for this on road bodge. At this point the naughty plans started as a novelty chocolate condom slipped undetected into Steve's back pocket. He discovered it at the next stop and the cheeky game passed to Mark. It's unknown if he's found it yet but Mark, if it gets you into trouble, please use this blog to prove your innocence. In any case its a standard size so it would never fit!

The next stop was at Poddington or 'Santa Pod.' Some of these wartime airfields have been turned into places for other activities. Santa Pod is now one of Europe's most famous drag racing strips. In a similar way, Grand Prix circuit, Silverstone, was also a wartime airfield. Here's some additional info on RAF Poddington https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Podington

From Poddington we rode to Chelveston. The war memorial here is, I think, the best that we've visited. Even better still we discovered that the poppy and C&D Cycles keyring we left last year was still there!  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Chelveston. Steve decided to call it a day here because with two broken spokes his rear wheel was seriously misbehaving.

Another new visit for this year's ride was RAF Molesworth https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Molesworth

After that stop I was shattered and massively holding the group up. They kindly suggested my bike was letting me down due to a rear brake that kept sticking but that was just the straw that broke the camel's back. I'll have much better rides. My bike does need some TLC so, before I put her away fro the winter, is definitely time to go and see Andy at C&D.

Parked up waiting for the queen of cakes

The sock excitement continues. This week no one knew I was wearing these bobby dazzlers!

I won't be riding with the club next weekend but I will be riding for it and for my other club KCC. We have the KCC cyclocross at Glendon on Saturday. SuperSam will be riding and some of us older chaps will be entering the novice race. I'm really looking forward to this both in terms of participating and also to support a fantastic event. I know the KCC coaches have put together a great course, so...roll on next weekend!

No videos this week but I have found some every interesting articles. Firstly there's a company aiming to build carbon frames in the UK. That has to be good for us all! Then there's the amazing Detroit custom cycles show. Those bikes have to be seen!

http://road.cc/content/feature/210500-carbon-bikes-made-uk-man-who-wants-make-british-carbon-big

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2016/nov/02/pimp-my-bike-detroit-custom-cycles-slow-ride-in-pictures

Right then I need to get that entry form in!
Happy Peddaling

Friends, countryside, cyclists!

I love this time of year. The vivid autumnal colours, the low sun, falling leaves, halloween and bonfire night. Even more personal to me is I have the opportunity to light the log burner, my birthday is in November, the rugby season is in full swing and it reminds me of some truly memorable rides.

Today, the club I ride with, C&D Cycles CC, had their first Gran Fondo weekend. This meant we had a choice of planned rides with a standard 30 miler for the fast group and banter bunch and an extended ride for those who wanted to complete this month's Gran Fondo challenge on Strava. I didn't feel I could spare the time for an 80 miler so I opted for the standard Saturday club ride.Again I must praise Andrew Brown for the superb organising of our rides. I now have the ride calendar synced to Google where all the routes are available as a direct link.

Today's route is known as the 'Oundle Classic.' It's one of the first group rides I went on with the club and is possibly our most used route. There's a good reason for that. It's a good route! It was also a good choice for today because many of the riders know the route which in turn means there was no shortage of ride leaders and tail gunners.

Here's a cheeky little private joke for you: it's a well known at the club that I wear frowned upon trainer socks to ride. However today I was in winter kit with tights and overshoes so I decided to go secretly wacky on the sock front. I was glad of those long legs today because there was a bitter wind. It was okay whilst riding but you lost heat very quickly on the stops. Others went even further with undershirts, rain jackets, full finger gloves, buffs, headwarmers etc. I would have boiled in all that but that's the benefit of being a 'larger,' rider.

A cockwomble and a plastic cockerel

At the shop a healthy group gathered. Around ten riders set off on the Gran Fondo ride and the rest of us formed one group for the standard ride. At 17 riders we were on the limit of a sensible group size and this soon proved to be the case as the same car twice tried to pass us only to have to stop on the wrong side of the road facing oncoming traffic. This was incredibly dangerous so if anyone knows who owns SY02 EKN, a quiet word about road safety is advised. He also had a car full of kids including one who looked too small to sit in the front. At times like this you can blame the motorist and carry on regardless or do something pro-active to improve safety for all. Thankfully we did the latter and split the group, making us easier to pass and less annoying to motor vehicles.

How could you not love that?

I think I've said before that I used to encourage my friends to cycle. However since then I've discovered it's easier to make friends with cyclists. Today I renewed my bromance with one of my best ever cycling friends. Steve and I haven't ridden together for ages but today we just carried on where we left off. It was the usual enigmatic blend of pure filth, fast show quotes, unexpected facts and a shared understanding that we're very different but our love of cycling brings us together. Steve's facts for the day: Eels are the only fish that can swim backwards and if you google 'Teresa May porn,'  you will discover that such a thing exists (all be it that another Teresa May is a former glamour model and porn actress!) He also enlightened me that the resort where we stayed in Almeria is in fact a former Olympic village now used for holiday makers! Even more Steve likes it there because it's where Spanish holidaymakers chose to go making a difference from other more Brit dominated areas of Spain! That's right 'air,' Steve embraces the EU in all it's glorious diversity. My goodness we covered a lot on today's ride! The last discussion point of note is that Steve feels that Holly Willoughby's dress up as Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad was the best Halloween costume he's seen this year!

Steve may have been the highlight of my ride today but I must also mention that fellow riders old and new were a pleasure to be with today. A mention needs to go to Linda who was concerned her flashing jacket (that's a cycling jacket with a built in light, not something less savory,) was annoying (it wasn't.) We've never ridden together before but she has read this blog! 

Back to the cycling and I'm glad I didn't do the Fondo ride. That biting wind had completely sapped my legs for the last few miles. I was glad to get back to C&D Cycles where this week we had cake from Alison and owner Chris entertained us in the usual manner!

The brownies were particularly nice!

SuperSam has cyclocross tomorrow in Biggleswade as we count down tot the KCC hosted event on the 19th. Some of us in Dad's club have decided to enter the novice race (please make a nice course Mark Evans and James Simons-Boswell - oh yeah we saw James out on the ride today!) I'm now a member of both clubs but will ride in C&DCCC colours on the day. Which brings me to my video of the week. I'm always looking for a new challenge but don't feel the need to go longer than the 200 miles in a day we did last year. So I've found this ridiculous idea - The Three Peaks Cyclocross race!

Finally today's Saturday tea for the Queen of Cakes and I is a cyclocross inspired Belgian recipe, carbonades-flamandes:

We'll be having this with frites (chips,) and washing it down with Ale, which is the traditional way to do it! 

Even more finally I've heard that the Fondo riders also got home safely so all in all a great day of riding for the club!

Happy Pedalling

First group ride and cycling blog since July!!!

I'm not 100% sure how it happened but, until today I haven't been on a group ride since July! A lot of the reasons have been SuperSam and I would've ridden last week but for his Cyclocross race at The MK bowl. Anyway here's this week's route.





The little tail on that loop is me riding to and from home. I have to say I whizzed to the shop before the ride and then dawdled home on empty legs afterwards. 

Things have changed somewhat whilst I've been away. There is now a calendar of rides with a lot of pre-planning and routes available weeks in advance. Our ride leader in the 'banter bunch,'  Mike, took the time to learn the route and made sure we didn't lose our way. The quick lot managed to get it wrong a few times and arrived back at the shop several minutes after we did!

Bike Selfie

We all had a good ride and we all got back safely. The fast group gaff was actually a blessing in disguise because instead of them all home before we made it back to C&D Cycles, we all got some time together. Out on the road the Banter Bunch was a proper group ride. People took turns on the front, we welcomed three newbies, there was good communication and above all good banter. I've missed this lot and in turn they've missed my wife's cake!

Back at the shop the apple cake provided by the Queen of Cakes, Mrs Lee Lindsley, was demolished in next to no time. Banter continued with Andy P clearly relieved at not having to be the wittiest man in the room for a change. Nat and Gemma continued their unhealthy obsession with willies and frantic Strava downloads ensued. Some key players were missing though. I was disappointed not to ride with Andy the C&D manager (issue with a leek,) and Big Steve (dodgy knees apparently.) The latter's absence meant a complete lack of Fast Show quotes!

Most of all I needed that ride in good company. My work has been a bit too stressful of late and cycling keeps me sane, cycling with good friends gives me strength to face Monday!

SuperSam at MK Bowl: Round 5 of the central league

Okay lets get away from my cycling and talk about the fantastic stuff SuperSam has been up to with Kettering Cycling Club's junior section, the Cyclones. It truly is a fantastic club and this week coach Mark Evans, was awarded The Kettering Sports Awards - Volunteer of the Year Award. Mark is a tremendous encouragement and this award was exceptionally well deserved. http://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/news/kettering-sports-awards-2016-1-7652345

So far Sam aged 11 has taken part in circuit races at Rockingham Motor Speedway and has been in a couple of Cyclocross races. It's brilliant to see his love of cycling evolve. A number of the kids at Cyclones have parents who ride with C&DCycles CC so it's also a bit of Dad's club!The group is free to attend and they also fund loan bikes to ensure the kids have the right equipment. Those bikes are supplied by C&D Cycles. Makes you feel good doesn't it!

Cold, wet, muddy and very pleased with himself

Earlier in the week I had an off road spin of my own, testing my new tubeless tyre on the 29r. The tyre was fitted using a real Heath-Robinson rapid inflation system made out of an old lemonade bottle, some gaffer tape, old inner tube valves and the length of 5mm diameter tube from an old track pump. Believe it or not it worked great!

Several days later the tyre remains fully inflated and whats more it performed great on the ride below!

I always like to share a video in my blog and no surprises I'm going with a GCN video this week. I love these guys. They're nearly as funny as the Banter Bunch! Check out this challenge.

Okay that's all I've got. Cheers all for the great ride today and the massive welcome back!

Happy Pedalling