From Woodbridge there was Bev & Pete on the tandem, plus Evert and Jonathan Wankowski.  We tootled off towards Hasketon to meander around the lanes, some of which a Paris-Roubaix rider would have been proud of. Evert muttered that he should have come on a MTB - it was only a small amount of grass growing in the centre of the road, plus the overflowing river of water from one field to the next was no more than half a mile long.  Not long after this we came across a freshly beaten hedge row and once through the cuttings stopped to check tyres.  Maintaining a steady 16 - 18 mph speed we reached Campsea Ashe, Dog & Duck PH just as the Suffolk CTC had arrived at 11:00, so swelled the numbers into the 40 region.  As we were about to leave, the two Ronnies arrived at 11:30, having struggled against a fair headwind all the way from Southwold.  We left them to recover for the journey home.  The four of us started off with the CTC medium ride, which was going to Framlingham for lunch. After a few miles, Evert and Jonathan decided to turn off to head for home and increase the speed a bit.  We had a pleasant lunch, stoked up with good beer at the Station PH (Earl Soham brewery).  Afterwards we plugged back hard into the wind to Woodbridge, with a fellow CTC member averaging 20mph (just to blow the lunchtime cobwebs away) 

Suffolk CTC Reliability Ride

Not many riders entered for the 100km version of the ride, as it was a gloomy, foggy start to the day; though the numbers for the 50km ride more than made up for the deficit. The only Plomesgate riders were Pet & Bev (tandem) and Adrian McTigue riding the 50km event.  We also had Andrew in tow.  At some point Adrian had managed to get past us, possibly at Saxmundham when Bev had to make a call of nature.  On arrival back at the HQ a fee massage awaited all riders.  All in all, a good ride around the lanes, on what turned out to be a reasonable day for weather in the end. Pete W.

February Club run

Again starting from Woodbridge, but heading to Stonham Barns to meet the CTC, no one had turned up apart from Pete at 9:45, so I hung on a bit, meaning that the planned route would change or speed increase to get their for 11:00 if anyone did turn up at 10:00.  Bev wasn't riding due to a cold (is bird flu their version on man flu ?).  So off I went by myself to Stonham, then with the CTC afterwards to Saxstead Green for a good lunch and ride back to Woodbridge. Pete W.

SPOCO East competition

Anyone considering riding the sporting time trial type courses in the area should consider signing up to SPOCO East.  There are a number of age related categories that riders can be placed in, plus this year there is a team award for the best placed team of three from a club. You need to sign up before the first event you plan to ride.  Note, that Plomesgate is promoting an event in each category this year. http://www.team-cambridge.co.uk/spocoeast/

Pete W

Internet Buying……

the response.

I guess as your local Independent retailer (Elmy Cycles – St Helens St, Ipswich) I thought I should reply to Everts piece on Internet buying.

Firstly let me say one thing - The  Internet is not a bad thing ! We have a Web Site, we sell by Mail order, I buy from suppliers far away & the fastest growing side of our business is the Web & we will be opening our E-bay store very shortly. However despite the fact we do it & accept it's the way to go I dread the day when commercial reality bites and we move to a bland out of town industrial estate. Everything we sell is sent out in boxes, and old Mr Smith who likes to pop in and have a browse and a chat finds the old shop is now just another overpriced Coffee shop.

But please bear in mind there is an alternative side to the hidden costs of distance buying, so could I leave you with a couple thoughts.

The first is a Legal one - as a club if suggesting the purchase of Cycling Goods from outside the EU i.e. USA it is important to point out to members that you do need to ensure that any goods imported are declared to HM Customs & Excise and Import Duty and Vat are paid. Typically this will add around 25% to the advertised price of goods from the USA. Details can be found on the HM Customs & Excise website. Note - failure to disclose purchases can lead to Criminal prosecution, Fines & Seizure of the goods

There is also a Moral Question - If we were all purchase our goods form overseas effectively dodging the payment of UK Tax - who then pays for the Roads we ride on, or the hospitals we use.

An Environmental Question - I have a friend who has a Bike shop in Southampton, earlier this year a customer ordered something from our Website he lived in Southampton. The same week a customer in Ipswich ordered something from my friend in Southampton. Both shops could have happily supplied the Local customer had they asked - Is carrying products half way round the country a wise way of working in the context of what we know of the state of our environment.

Then, a Social Question - Buying over the Internet can seem attractive to some but who wins in the long run ? when I started in business in St Helens St we had a Butchers, a Bakers, A Grocers all providing a service to the local Community. Now if you want a lettuce you get in your car and drive to Tesco to buy one picked 2 weeks ago in a far away country. The UK bike trade is still hanging on, but it could go the same way as France where there are very few Independents and most towns only have a Decathlon. It's great to order a frame from Arkansas but when your daughter needs a new Bottom Bracket fitted and the Shops are gone what happens ?

A) it gets thrown away, and a new one bought from Tesco for £50, like most electrical goods are now (would you bother to put a new element in a Kettle now?).

A social, environmental and moral debate there !

Lastly a sustainability one - Is distance buying really sustainable ? I have touched on the environmental costs there are others, taxation, employment, diversity, community.  The Global Market could be good for some, but if taken to its ultimate conclusion what would be the cost to society if all goods were made in the cheapest 3rd world country we could find and shipped halfway round the world to save a few pence.

Well, I hope this comes across in the right way. Forgive me if it doesn't, I'm a humble bike mechanic by trade, not a lecturer or economist. It's meant to say there are choices and sometimes what seems to be cheapest doesn't always work out that way in the long run.

There is loads of stuff out there, on Fair Trade, the rights and wrongs of cheap labour, the debate on dodging U.K. tax (mainly for Cigs & booze) and the rise & power of Tesco etc. I started out as a market trader selling fruit & veg. to old ladies. I like shopping locally, I like people & I like fixing things.

We are fortunate to be celebrating 85 years of trading this year from our small shop in St Helens St. and over those years we have seen many changes the Internet is just one. When we started out we bought stock from the local wholesaler, we sold to the local community & we repaired everything freewheels, mudguards, hubs etc we re-used, recycled and very rarely threw anything away. Times are different now but we are still here, doing our best and still willing to supply the odd nut and bolt, jockey wheel or exchange the front mech. for free on a Friday afternoon before the race that was bought from Wiggle but came in the wrong size to fit (yes this did happen !) 

Hope to see you soon,

Yours,

Steve Grimwood

@ Elmy's

Elmy’s offer club members a 10% discount too – Matt

Internet Buying Part 2

In the January Newsletter I communicated some of the experiences I made with buying via Internet. I was somewhat taken by surprise when I was asked if I also had an opinion on buying at local bike shops. I didn’t expect the question; I do not have any problem answering the question. Yes, certainly I have an opinion. I am happy we have local bike shops around. Losing them would be a shame. The only way my wife can get me on a shopping journey is combining it with the opportunity to stick my nose against their shop window or even better drop in. I can be sure they have time for me and I talk to people who understand their trade and have their roots in cycling. I am prepared to support them as they support me when I visit them and ask for advice. I have really no problem to pay a little more if that turns out to be the case.

I still can remember that some year’s ago I needed very short term a bike case and I came to that conclusion rather late on a Saturday. That bike shop went through the effort to have one available for me the next Tuesday. I still appreciate the offer of the owner of another bike shop:

He suggested I should have a ride on his personal TT bike.

The way I feel about my precious bike, I really couldn’t accept that offer.

In summary:

My article was NOT a suggestion to move away from your local bike shop. My point is that ONCE you decided to go Internet you better make sure you make the best use of the Internet.

The decision not to buy at your local bike shop depends on many factors, different for each of us. Personally I have no problem to pay what appears to be a little extra to cover overheads as I can easily understand that our local bike shops have to calculate in a different way and I can clearly see the added value I get back for it in the end.

Evert

Paris - Nice

A year of cycling used to follow the seasons of nature. Winter was a black and barren stretch of time and so there was no cycling, except for those carrying along a bike in the mud of a cycle cross. Spring coming closer you were searching the newspaper for the first results of races in the south of France and Italy. These obscure and irrelevant races were providing proof that we survived the winter. But actually I was looking for Paris - Nice, the race to the sun as it is referred to. The final proof springtime had arrived and you could be sure that it was coming; only a matter of time. But today you see a team supported by everybody involved tell us that there is a question mark put against the race, because of something they call the Pro Tour. Did you ever wait for the start of the Pro Tour? Of course not; you want to see the racing get going again, you want springtime. Before the invention of the Pro Tour the sequence of the races and the racing season were as predictable as the seasonal cycles in nature. Don’t get me wrong here; sometimes a season or even a whole year was difficult for cycling which is predictable too. Paris –Nice was cancelled one year because the race organizer, an older French lady together with Laurent Fignon, could not sort out the finances. I can not remember that the UCI came to the rescue and the race that year was off. A company called ASO was interested and bought Paris –Nice and since then I have my race back.

Now the UCI is making an intervention, an unacceptable one, telling the organizer, ASO, what to do and what not to by threatening them in public to stop the race going ahead. The UCI has lost perspective. The UCI in Aigle is terribly wrong where they believe they have the executive powers of the “EU in Brussels” for cycling. There is a very clear difference between Governance and Government. The UCI is well respected by all involved in cycling for their Governance, ensuring a solid body of rules, regulations and controls.   However the UCI has gone too far with the Pro Tour in their attempt to highjack Government powers via a maze of rules and regulations. Sadly for the UCI they can’t see that Government resides firmly with those who finance the business and at the same time carry the entrepreneurial risks; for example ASO.

After what happened so far it appears they are still in denial of these facts. In doing so they will lose face more and more, and that will benefit no one. That is to say, Unibet.com might. This team is NOT a victim. They get more exposure then they ever could expect and it is astonishing how well they are racing, when they are allowed to race. I want to believe that this is not just coincidence.

But Paris – Nice?

Now I know what Unibet.com stands for (!) I accept the invitation from the guys with the question mark on their jersey and I put my money on it: Springtime is coming; no doubt about it.

Evert

Committee meeting.

The first meeting of the new committee will be held on Thursday 8th March 2007 at The Horse and Groom, Melton. Trev

For Sale.

Rob Cotton has for sale:

Quill stems ( All used)

Seat pins (All used)

Contact details 07725897902 or robertcotton2006@yahoo.co.uk

Wanted.

Wanted: a small cross frame or complete machine for a beginner.

For sale: 21" Merckx frame with carbon forks as I used last year £100.

Contact Ron Shoobridge - ronshoo@tesco.net

CTT handbooks.

Trev has several CTT National Handbooks available at £5.50 each. He will endeavour to obtain the East DC handbooks in the next couple of weeks. Speak to Trev if you want one.

Club evening TT’s

The club events have been decided for 2007 and are as follows, we are planning to run our normal 10 evening "10"s, but in addition we will be running a "15" which is one lap of the new "30" course, and starts and finishes in the same place as the "10", plus we will be running an evening "25" in July. To avoid the possibility of too many starters the latter ("25") will not appear in the East District Handbook. There is also the option to run some evening "5"s on some of the free Thursdays, so watch this space.

Thursday April 26^th   “10” Start time: 18:45* Course B10/9

Thursday May 3^rd   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday May 17^th   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday May31st   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 7^th June   “15”  Start time: 19:00 Course B15/9. One lap of B30/2

Thursday 14^th June   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 28^th June   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 5th July   "25" Start time: 18:45 Course B25/2

Thursday 12^th July   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 26^th July    “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 9^th August   “10” Start time: 19:00 Course B10/9

Thursday 23^rd August   “10” Start time: 18:45* Course B10/9

* - note early start.

Club Subs pay up! Final call!

If you haven’t renewed your subs yet, please do ASAP, as they were due on Jan 1^st. As well as allowing you to continue receiving the newsletter, you must renew your membership before racing in the club’s name (BCF and CTT races) this season. I will assume you no longer want to be a club member from the April Newsletter if you haven’t paid up. The club subscriptions for 2007 will be,  £10 for Over18s, £5 for under 18s, free for under 12s, and 2nd claim members are 50% of the above. Make cheques payable to Plomesgate Cycle Club and post to Steve Jones at 4 Leicester Close, IPSWICH.   IP2 9EX.

Newport Track

As you know for the last few years Jeff Wade of Chelmsford CC has organised track training days at Newport Velodrome. This year however, he has been unable to get suitable track time on a weekend.  Instead, he has booked the track for Wednesday 7th March from 10.00 till 17.00. The format of the day will be much the same as before, with sessions for newcomers, intermediates and experts.

 The cost for track time will be £25.00, slightly up on last time due to increased track hire charges and bikes can be hired on the day for £6.00.

 As usual he can only accept bookings accompanied by cheques, (promises unfortunately do not pay the bills). Please supply your address, phone number and email details, together with the ages of any youngsters.

 As there is only 1 week to go and places are limited, I shall need a fairly quick response, so please reply as soon as possible if you would like to come.

 Jeff Wade - ChelmerCC@aol.com

Calendar Dates.

Tuesday evenings – MTB ride from Sizewell T, starting at 7:30 contact Mark or Viv for details, or to check whether anyone is riding.

Saturday mornings – MTB ride in Rendlesham Forest starting at 10am. Call Mark B or Trev for details.

Sunday morning -  3 hour (ish) training rides from North Ipswich. Contact Steve and Valerio for details.

TT Reflections

Please, let us be clear about this.Time trialling, I mean really RACING against the clock, is sheer abuse, from the very first until the very last second. But I have to admit that there is another perspective to Time trialling. And that is the continuing fascination it holds.

First: The confrontation with your own capabilities. There are absolutely no excuses, there is no hiding, no cheating, no team tactics.

It is just you against yourself. The whole thing is crystal clear; only your legs and the clock.

Second: there is the material and the applied technology. You see a TT bike and you know straight away that you want it and you want it now. A strong feeling is emerging that once you are on this bike you will give it everything you got, every little bit of it. And suddenly you know already that riding fast, irrespective of all muscles aching, will be a joy.

For many of us there is still another aspect to the fascination. It is the search for perfection.

The quality of training and more important even, our talent provided by Mother Nature, set a limit to how much power output we can sustain throughout a race. However: you can continuously pursue improved aerodynamics.

Basically the aerodynamics (in Time trialling) can be described in a mathematical Equation:

Power = ½.r.C_d.A.V_a².V_g + C_RR.W_T.V_g + F_w.V_g³ + W_T.V_g.Sin(Arctan(Road Grade)) 

And here is where the quest for perfection kicks in. Only after addressing ALL the elements which constitute the equation will you arrive at the minimum resistance and achieve the fastest time. And the relentless effort going into optimizing each and every detail pays of in your next Personal Best. If you are not interested in a “mathematical” approach to Time trialling stop here; reading any further is a waste of time.

Go and try to improve your physical abilities instead. We will translate the equation into meaningful, practical considerations, ending up with a checklist.

If you go really fast it is the air that is literally in your way. Even in the best aero position 80% of your power will be needed to overcome air resistance. Resistance from the wheels rolling along the tarmac account for only 15%. Your upper-body presents the largest area to the wind, so without the proper body position sorted out, forget about it. A good body position is an extreme position; your back has to be horizontal, and stretched, elbows close together, but avoiding breathing being impaired. As a consequence your body will have to rotate forward around the bottom bracket and your bike geometry has to allow for this. But we will not get into details here. It will take time, practicing this position, before you will experience this position as “relaxed”.  Of course you are familiar with all this, but remember that the optimal position is the predominant factor that makes you fast. To find this position and to be able to ride in this position is priority number 1. The difference between a good and an excellent position is 1 minute for a 10M TT, and have you already given it a thought if you don’t stick out your knees as some of us do, you might pocket 30 sec (!) on 10M?

Now wheels become relevant to discuss. The effect of aerodynamic wheels can be substantial. But differences between aerodynamic wheels level off very quickly and you might be disappointed about the overall effect. Studies suggest that the difference between 32 spoke standard wheels and a combination of a Carbon tri-spoke front wheel and a lenticular disc is approx. 30 sec. for a 10M Time trial. Studies on the aerodynamics of wheels are difficult as the results depend on wind direction and the speed.

It is probably fair to say that a lenticular disc provides under most conditions the best aerodynamics. As a front wheel a tri-spoke seems to be a very good choice, but an old fashioned Campagnolo Shamal comes very close. Before you decide on wheels, please realize that the manufacturer’s claim to offer you faster wheels is probably true, but not necessarily under all conditions, AND the differences might be disappointing.  Maybe you should limit your investment in wheels and save the money for your next TT frame.

A really well designed frame will not only offer you a perfect geometry to help your body position but could save you up to 20 sec on a 10M Time trial.

What about weight? This seems to be an emotional topic for many of us and heavily overrated. But if you take a “mathematical” approach: Never sacrifice aerodynamics for lighter weight. A gain in weight NEVER makes up for a loss in aerodynamics. And if the course becomes really hilly you should look at your body weight. But ok, if you can afford to invest in aerodynamic AND light components it will make you somewhat faster (and definitely happier). The effects of weight can be calculated rather straight forwardly and I would say that the results indicate you might want to spend your money on other things which could make a bigger difference.

 Some thoughts for this alternative spending:

I hope this contribution has reinforced your hunger for the upcoming season and has triggered your thinking on what COST EFFECTIVE improvements can be made.

It is difficult to resist all the temptations on offer but try to stick to a rationale approach AND nevertheless achieve a new PB.

Oh yes, and don’t forget: The slower the rider, the more improvement you can expect from improved aerodynamics. Good luck.

Evert

PCC Open 10, volunteers please.

Our first event of the year is the Open 10 on 17th March.  Viv would like some volunteers to help on the day, and is looking for people to marshal, help with catering, pushing off etc.  Please contact me either by e-mail on broughton.m@btinternet.com or phone, 01728 452143.

Thanks

Viv

Articles for next month

If you feel inspired by anything  in this months newsletter then please drop me a line, by e-mail, post or carrier pigeon by 25/3/07. Everything will be considered, do you have something to sell, something you want that another club member may have somewhere gathering dust, something to get off your chest or memories you want to share? It’s your newsletter so drop me a line at

matt.donaldson@edfenergy.com

or

Matt Donaldson
3 Boyton Road
Hollesley
Woodbridge
Suffolk.
IP12 3LD

………and finally

Manchester UCI Track World  Cup

I can't say I was looking forward to a fourth 05:30 awakening by the alarm clock but this one was in a good cause. I was out of the house by 06:30 and picked Paul Ross up at the Ipswich Ski Slope at bang on 7. I won’t bore you with the journey but we made good time and the decision to go up the A1 and across the A57 via The Peak District and Snake Pass was brilliant as the scenery was breathe taking.

After checking in the hotel we walked the advertised 2 miles (felt like 10 but was more like 4) to the Velodrome. The racing had just started so down we sat to watch the racing. The big news of the session was a sensational national record for Wendy Houvenaghel in the Women's Pursuit and an equally impressive PB for Rebecca Romero. This was followed rapidly by another national record, for Vicky Pendleton in the 500m Time Trial, with Anna Blyth, who was a contemporary of Becky in the National Youth  programme, also producing a PB and collecting the bronze medal. The GB Team Pursuit quartet only just missed out on a national record of their own, but had the satisfaction of dipping under the magical 4 minute barrier as they qualified fastest by a county mile. The racing was amazing and blew us both away, after a tuna baguette for lunch (healthy or what!) we finally gave in to the bar at about 3pm and started on the Boddingtons at regular intervals until the tea time break. We had 2 hours to kill so hopped on a bus into the city centre and found a great pub called The Junction in Piccadilly, it was like a JD Wetherspoons pub, cheap ale and good food, so we plonked ourselves in front of the TV to watch Ireland vs England from Croke Park Dublin. England were totally outplayed and lost 46-13, but the burger we had at the pub was incredible and about the size of my head! The highlight was when a little Chinese woman came round flogging hooky DVD's and tobacco, the lads sat behind us jokingly asked if she had any porno, quick as a flash she pulled out a massive wad of hardcore porn DVD's, I can't remember if they bought any as Paul and I were laughing so hard! Anyway we had to head ff at halftime in the game (it wasn't hard to drag myself away from the 23-3 score game!) we jumped on another bus and got back to Velodrome in time to see the racing restart, more Boddingtons insued and the racing didn't disappoint. GB picked up their expected gold in the Team Pursuit final, whilst the Olympic Academy riders in the 100% ME team stepped up a level and took the bronze medal. Both teams recorded stunning times once again. Plus, there was Gold for Wendy Houvenaghel, Julia Shaw's nemesis in the Time Trial National Champs and Silver for Rebecca Romero who has only recently got on 2 wheels from the GB swim team in the Womens Pursuit. GB didn't have it all their own way however, with near-misses in both the Women's Team Sprint (Silver) and the Men's Sprint competitions (Silver again). An excellent evenings racing, we may have heckled the German team a little ( no, we didn’t mention the war!) and laughed when the organisers were meant to play the Russian National Anthem for the winners of the Womens Team Sprint but played the wrong one! We don't know whose got played as the only people aware it was wrong were the Russian riders and the rest of their team. We only realised when the apology was broadcast over the tannoy. The walk back to the hotel sobered us up a bit so we had a couple of Jack Daniels before we headed to our rooms at about 11:30.

We met at 9am for breakfast and helped ourselves to the continental buffet, the hotel Diamond Lodge was cheap and cheerful but was clean and the breakfast was great, eat as much as you like (Paul saw some people filling bags to take with them!) I drove to the Velodrome so we could get a flying start for the journey home after the racing finished. As we had arrived early we went to the shop and for a look round and ended up taking up a position at the end of the final banking looking straight down the finish straight, we didn't actually go to our seats all day. There was plenty to cheer and being so close to the action really made it exciting, especially when Gregory Bauge the French Sprinter punctured right by us on the last lap of the JKA Keirin and skidded across the rough boards of the track on his backside! It looked very painful and there was very little of his skin suit left covering his modesty, he'll be picking splinters out of that for a few weeks! The third and last (but definitely not least) of the days' racing, was capped with towering performances from the GB Mens Team Sprint trio of Hoy, Edgar and Maclean to take the Gold. Victoria Pendleton also showed her resolve and raw power to dispense with her rivals in a closely fought Women's Keirin to win her third Gold out of three events. Also the GB Madison pairing of Rob Hayles and Geraint Thomas rode a gutsy race in an epic Madison Final, coming second to the Dutch. Olympic Academy riders Anna Blyth and Lizzie Armistead showed they are making great progress in their first year as seniors when they both put in determined performances in the Womens Keirin and Womens Scratch races respectively. Chris Hoy capped off a fantastic weekend by winning the Japanese Keirin competition and £10,000 in style, in what was a tremendous weekend for the GB team. Sending all the British fans home with smiles on their faces and hope in their hearts. For me it is hard to pick out a favourite moment but it is between, the Mens Team Sprint, Team Pursuit, Chris Hoy in the Keirin and Vicky Pendleton in any of her races, they are all class acts.

We jumped in the car and decided to let the SatNav direct us on the way home! M6 and A14, except there were road works, road closures and it made the journey seem longer but I dropped Paul off at 10:30 and was home around 11ish, another great weekend and Paul is now an Iron Maiden fan and wants to get on a track session at either Newport or Manchester, obviously as his best mate I will have to go too

Matt