PLOMESGATE CYCLING CLUB 

June Club Run

July Club run

Do you fancy honing your off-road skills before the Slick and Knobbly?  July’s club run is this Sunday, 6^th July, from the RSPB car park at Minsmere.  Meet there at 10am.

Plomesgate Open 10

Sat June 28th saw 10 Under 17 riders face the timekeeper for the EAST heat of the GHS Championship with qualifiers going through to the National Final in the Midlands in September. The event was won by Will Dorsett with 23:20 which would have been good enough for 3rd in the accompanying open event.  Last years winner Kristian Downs had to settle for 2nd place in 23:48 whilst Ryan Smith was 3rd with 24:42.  Fastest of the three girls was our own Becky Figgitt in 29:41, although not happy with her time it was good enough for her to qualify for the Nationals for the 3rd year in succession.

In the following open event David Staff won but the conditions meant that the winning time was 23:09 some way off the course record.  Second was John Gabriel in 23:11.  Double National bronze medallist Julia Shaw made light of the conditions to smash her own course record to set new figures of 24:25.  Viv was 3rd Lady with her fastest on the Sudbourne course this year with 27:54.

I would like to thank all the marshals and helpers.  I have had several e-mails thanking us for an excellent slick event run off in a friendly and fun atmosphere, and one paid particular praise to the quality of the cakes - well done everybody.  Trevor

5 mile TTs

Well, the council managed to stop the first one we had planned for 19th June by digging up the road, but they've done a pretty good job of the resurfacing, so we'll let them off.  The two events have been rescheduled, with the first one now on 17th July and the second on 14th August.  These events are good introductions to the sport, so if you have children and/or friends who fancy having a go, but don't want to do the 10 mile course, bring them along.  If parents wish to ride with their children, that is perfectly OK.  The start/finish is on Tunstall common, just on the Tunstall side of the "camelback" lumps on the normal 10 mile course.  There is off-road parking near to the start on both sides of the road.  The event starts at 7pm - please be there at least ten minutes or so beforehand to sign on and get a number.

Talent Team Update

Saturday June 7th saw the Midland and South East teams get together for a joint camp run off as an Open Track Meeting at Nottingham Track. Some 36 riders took to the exposed, windy, 500m tarmac track, on a dry and sunny day.  In the first event the riders had to do a flying 200m TT, Becky finished fastest of the girls and 18th overall with a new pb of 14:29, this time would have been good enough to give her 4th fastest in the Junior National Championships.  Apart from some of the handicap events the girls were separated for their races all of which Becky won, and she placed 5th in the final event which was a mass start handicap over 6 laps.  All in all Becky had a thoroughly rewarding if exhausting day.

Results

31^st May Mildenhall CC Circuit TT

The Whelan’s rode this hilly Mildenhall special in warm conditions, Pete did 2 laps in 1:08:29 (6^th fastest vet), one lap for Bev in 46:16 and Andrew in 36:29 (3^rd fastest junior).

7^th June Ipswich BC ‘10’

A warm and windy ride on the A12 at Wickham Market saw Pete take 23:08 and Bev 28:52.

14^th June, Anglia Velo ‘10’

Plomesgate CC were out in some force for this event on a breezy hot Saturday afternoon.  The breeze made it slightly more difficult on the outward leg from Higham but of more concern to the riders was the change of finish back on to the sliproad which involved an up hill speed reducing drag before levelling off to the finish.  This where Trevor and Becky reckon they lost that all important second which would have made their finishing time of 22:00 in the Tandem event sound a bit better, still it was a pb by some 40secs.  Rob Cotton also turned his 94" fixed to a new pb of 22:34, Bev’s 28:18 was a pb by 1 second and Pete only just missed his with 22:23. Pete and Bev were then entertained by listening to the ever cheerful Mr Bateman grumbling about all the other courses in the region.

21^st June Gt Yarmouth CC ‘10’

This was on the Earsham course, with a tough wind on the return leg.  It was up hill all the way back.  Rob C was first Plomesgate finisher in 22:53 (10^th place), Mark B in 25:53 and Viv 26:50 (PB).  Rob got a special mention for being a good sport in being scratched from the handicap competition.  Viv won £15 vouchers for fastest lady on handicap.

21^st June Bike Week Crits, Eastway

After a month or so away, it was time to go back to Eastway.

Despite the baking hot weather, there were only 15 or so riders starting in my race, which had been shortened from 53km to 40km because the WRCA champs had overrun slightly.  The small field meant that it stayed together throughout the race – everyone seemed to have a go at one point or other, but the bunch worked well together and wouldn’t let anyone escape.

I had a dig for the early prime, taking off on the bottom straight, but a guy from Hitchin Nomads came past me with about 100m to go, then someone else got past him on the line.  We three then sat up and waited for the others to rejoin us.

By the end of the race, the bunch was down to about a dozen riders and I was just hanging on.  On the last lap, one guy jumped from halfway down the bottom straight, got clear and stayed away for the win - I couldn't do anything about that, but managed to pick up a couple of places on the drag to the line, enough for pride, but not enough for points or prizes.

On our warm-down lap, and the Elite, 1st and 2nd cat race's warm-up lap, a guy in full FDJeux kit came past - I thought "the judges won't let him get away with that, even if he has got a team replica bike as well"  ... duh! It was Bradley Wiggins, out for a training ride.  He sat in the group until after the first prime, then broke away, and had lapped the entire field by the finish.  Very impressive! Coming up the hill to the finish line, you could see in his face that he was trying, but as he rode away, he's so smooth, it looked effortless.

Now, if only I could ride like that...

Steve J

22^nd June Eastway

Mark H and Valerio decided this would be the day they tried their first road race, with Steve as the experienced pro, coming along to give advice and to show us how it's done.

After a damp journey there, we met Paul Watts (IBC) who had earlier won the U16 race, which was held as a time trial because of the conditions.  Fortunately, by the time we started, the weather had cleared up and the track was dry after the first couple of laps.  The field of 30-40 riders was split with the novices getting a 1/2 lap head start over the category four racers.  We spent the first few laps getting used to tight cornering, inches from the rear of the guy in front, we soon got the idea though and were taking our turn at the front with the rest of them.  The field as a whole seemed fairly even, with most of the novices staying as bunch at a fairly fast pace.  The novices were still separate at the first prime about 20 minutes in, Steve tried to lead Mark out, but Mark forgot to catch his wheel and so Steve sat up to let a youngster take it, only to have another guy steam past and take it on the line from both of them.  It took the fourth category racers 50 minutes of the hour to catch us, but they didn't go through, instead we formed a single slightly faster bunch.  For the 2nd prime with about 55 minutes gone, Mark took first novice in a sprinting bunch of 4th cats.

Overall Mark was 2nd novice after losing a sprint (badly) for 1st novice, again among a sprinting bunch of fourth cats, Steve and Valerio finished in the bunch, Valerio having hurt his leg in the last few laps and Steve sitting up letting the novices try for their moment of glory.

All in all an enjoyable day, hope Valerio recovers soon.  Thanks to Steve for inviting us along, showing us the ropes and the way there, we are all now looking forward to the next time, and also of course the Plomesgate road race championships on the 7th September.

Mark H

29^th June Ixworth Crits

The club was well represented at the Ixworth Crits (village centre races), and enjoyed mixed success.  Trevor got into the early break in the Vets, sorry "Masters", race, but was taken out, just like Cipollini in the Giro, as another rider mistakenly thought they could get through on the inside of a corner.  He slid, took out Trevor's front wheel and they both ended on the floor. Trevor escaped (?) with a bang on the hip, a few cuts and bruises and a road rash on his back, while the other guy left the circuit in an ambulance, with a suspected broken collarbone.

Becky was next up, in the U16 race, and managed to hang on to the bunch longer than expected.  A cat in the road was the cause of her finally getting dropped, but she continued to work hard and finished as first girl, despite the efforts of WSW to give the prize and plaudits elsewhere... Harry was dwarfed by some much bigger riders in the 8-14 yr old novice race, but kept his gears spinning well and sprinted past most of them to finish third (and nearly got second).

Steve and Matt Simmerson lined up in the 3rd/4th cat race and both made reasonable starts.  Matt's lack of racing this year soon became apparent and he was lapped and pulled out after about 20 mins.  Steve hung onto the back of the bunch for a bit longer, but then faded, was lapped and was pulled out with 5 laps to go.

Steve J

Evening ‘10’s

12^th June

A fairly tough night, with a stiff breeze that made it hard to the roundabout.  The sunny and warm day reminded everybody that summer is fast approaching.

Becky and Trevor were just 2 seconds short from the best time of the season for the B10/9 evening events.  More than a minute later, Pete was the first of the individual riders.  Pete has further extended his lead in the vets competition and, with two wins and a second in the last 3 races, has edged ahead of Richard in the points race.

Stephen, Jim H and Mark H made the most of the warm evening, all of them recording their PB:  Mark and Stephen with the same time, Jim just a few seconds slower.  Mark definitely made the most of his new tri-bars, and of the generosity of his boss that offered him more training time (not really sure this is the way Mark would put it): he improved his best time by about a minute and a half!  What can he do if he doesn’t find a new job soon?  He takes the lead on the handicap competition, with 30 seconds advantage over Jim.

26^th June

The 6^th round was blessed by another sunny evening, with a fresh wind giving a helping hand to the turn but taking it back on the return leg.  A brand new section of smooth tarmac appeared at the Tunstall corner, generating general appreciation from the riders.

Pete was the fastest on the night, just 10 seconds shy of the seasonal course best, beating Richard, who at the roundabout decided to join the long list of the housing estate visitors.  The rumour is that the site is of outstanding beauty and worth all the additional time and effort required.  Try to believe!

Another event, another long list of PBs: Matt, Jim H, Stephen, and Rob S (improving by an impressive 1:41), none of them has ever been so fast on a bicycle on 10 miles.  The list of high achievers is joined by Mark B. who rode the course under 26 minutes for the fist time to record his first vets "plus" in an evening event; by second-claim member, Jonathan, who improved by 20 seconds on his second outing on the course and finally by regular visitor Andrew H who, we think, also set a personal course best

Competitions: Pete improves his lead on the vets competition, and edge forward on the points as well. Jim H regains the lead of the handicap competition, while Viv adds a couple of seconds to her lead on the lady’s one.

Foxhall Fridays

There won't be a Foxhall session on Friday 4th July, as the stadium will be getting ready for the Hot Rod World Champs that weekend.  The sessions on other Fridays start at 7pm, weather permitting.

6^th June

A damp day, but a dry and clean track this time!  And a good crowd of people to make the most of it . The riders were in two groups – kids (up to 14) and big kids (over 14, in some cases, way over!)  In the opening time trial round, Paul Watts (IBC) was quickest of the “big kids”, with 34.1 seconds, just ahead of Jim Hardwicke, Kerrick Newstead (Wolsey), Valerio and Stephen Beaumont – just 4 seconds separating the top 5.  Slightly behind these was John Coles (Wolsey), a vet making his return to riding after a 20 yr absence.

When it was the turn of the big kids, Paul took his second win of the evening, after a close sprint with Kerrick, with Stephen B in third.  The final event was a devil, with Valerio unfortunate to be first out after a keen 6-up sprint for the line – I don’t think we’ve ever had 6 riders side by side during racing here before!  Paul then attacked and pulled Jim with him, and those two set the pace as the others were eliminated one by one.  Despite a final lap attack by Paul, Jim had saved some energy and was able to pass him on the back straight to win by a couple of lengths.

13^th June

With most of the riders from the previous week returning, and a couple of new faces, we had 14 riders, as well as a number of spectators.  A headwind on the home straight meant that times were a bit down on the previous week, although it didn’t seem to bother James B, who took 3 seconds off his previous best time, beating Jenny H by 4/10ths of a second.  Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t quite enough to hold off Gary Ingram, who was the only youth rider to get under 54 seconds.

Of the “big kids”, Steve was first to ride, setting a mark of 34.1 seconds, which no-one was able to beat.  Paul Watts was closest, at 34.4. Valerio just took third place, ahead of a surprising ride by newcomer Biagio (guest), with Jim H a fraction further back.  Nathan (IBC) freewheeled round the corners – on a bike that could this time! – in an (unsuccessful) attempt to get a favourable handicap, with John Coles improving, but still bringing up the rear.

The two handicap races for the younger riders were near copies of each other – with James B winning both ahead of Jenny, Lawrence and Jack.  Gary Ingram was unable to recreate his handicap heroics of last year and finished in 5^th both times, ahead of brother James and Anna, who suffered a number of mechanical problems during the evening.

Paul started strongly in the other handicap race and, with Steve on his wheel, moved into the lead and was just able to hold on to win.  Behind, Nathan took third, ahead of Biagio, Valerio won his private battle with Jim, with John once more in 7^th.

In the first devil, Steve made a couple of attacks, but was unable to shake off Nathan or Jim H, who both came past him in the closing stages, with Nathan too strong for Jim on the final lap. In the second devil, Gary quickly built up a good lead, but James B had judged his efforts well and the two were together on the last lap.  In the sprint, James had a bit extra left and even had time to raise his arms, Cipollini-style, as he crossed the line.

20^th June

After Nathan’s tumble in May, this time it was Anna’s turn – catching a wheel on the edge of the speedway track during warm-up.  After being patched up, she then went on to set the fastest time of the under-12s in the time trial, just ahead of Jenny.

While Anna was being patched up, the adults practised some group riding with a 10 minutes + 5 laps race, riding in a steady “pace-line” for the timed period before letting rip for the last 5 laps. Jon Evans (Finsbury Park CC) used his time-trialling ability to ride away from the group and despite a brief chase from Steve “I’m not racing tonight” Jones, held on for a fairly comfortable win ahead of Jim H and Valerio.  It was then the turn of the youngsters with a 2 minutes + 3 laps race, again, keeping together for the timed period.  This was done very smoothly – like they’d done it a hundred times before – before Mark Evans (Finsbury Park CC) accelerated away in the last 3 laps to make it a family double.

In the TT, Mark’s time of 44 seconds put him in a bit of a no-man’s land between the adults and the younger children, and he was eventually persuaded to ride the adult handicap race, while Jon set a new course best with a stunning lap of 33.5 seconds.

In the senior handicap race, Jim hit the line first, just ahead of a very tight sprint for second, with Jo fractionally ahead of Colin.

The final event of the evening was a devil for all riders, which after some slow early laps wound up to a quick finish with Jon finishing clear of Jim, who’s becoming a bit of a devil specialist, with Colin in third.  Mark was the last survivor of the youngsters, ahead of Anna and Jack.

27^th June

The Evans clan came out in force, with Jon and Mark joined by Stephen (11) and Timmy (9), but it was Paul W who made his mark on the evening first, setting a new PB of 33.6 seconds, fractionally behind Jon’s course record from the previous week.  With Stephen B doing a cracking time of 34.0, John Coles getting under 40 seconds for the first time and newcomer Jon Hobson (IBC) doing a solid ride (37.1s), it was clear it was a fast night.  Jon E then showed he was on top form, as he sprinted round the 400m lap in 31.6 seconds – taking 2 clear seconds off his own course record!

The youth handicap race was won by Mark, while Lawrence made good on his start advantage to come second, just ahead of Stephen and Helen.  The re-run was far closer, but Helen couldn’t quite find her way through the traffic from scratch, finishing 3rd, as Mark squeaked through in the final metres to take victory from Lawrence, with James in 4th.

The adult race was also very tight, with Paul leading a very tight bunch of riders around the final corner, but as Paul, Stephen B and Jon H ran slightly wide on the exit, Jon E found an opening on the inside and came through to win.  Jon also showed his power in the endurance race, but perhaps Stephen B could have been a bit closer if he hadn’t done so much work on the front of the line earlier on?  Paul was third, Jon H fourth and John C fifth.

The youth devil nearly ended in disaster with two laps to go, as Helen and Stephen E ran wide on the last corner, taking Mark E towards the fence. He tried to cut back, but couldn’t quite make up the lost ground and was forced to watch as Helen then took the win a lap later.

The “oldies” finished with a new game – a team sprint (also known as Olympic sprint, Italian/Australian Pursuit, …) with the experience of Team A (John C, Stephen B and Jon E) against the younger Team B (Rob Cotton, Jon H and Paul W).  Both teams kept good formation, but Team A were that little bit quicker - John C setting a new PB of 38 seconds as A’s lead-out rider, as they went on to a winning time of 1min 38 for the three laps.

Footnote regarding Jon’s time of 31.6 seconds for the 400m lap:

Sprinters Mickael Bourgain and Laurent Gane both clocked the fastest 500m time of 31.59s recently to qualify for the French national team for the next round of the Track World Cup. The question is, How do the gains of riding indoors on a banked velodrome compare to doing that extra 100 metres? Answers on a postcard to Peter Keen, c/o British Cycling, Manchester.

Dates For The Calendar

12^th July, Redgrave Road Race

12^th July, Fenland Clarion Grass Track, Bigglewade

13^th July, Wolsey Open ‘25’ at Risby.

13^th July, Ely & Dist Grass Track, Witchford

17^th July, Plomesgate 5 mile TT

20^th July, Team Welwyn Grass Track, Hertford

26^th July, Heckington Show Grass Track

27^th July, WSW Grass Track, Bury St Edmonds

3^rd August, Winterton Grass Track, Winterton

14^th August, Plomesgate 5 mile TT

7^th September, Plomesgate Road Race champs at Eastway (part of Ciclos Uno event).  Contact Steve J for further details.

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