Scunthorpe slow race

40 minutes plus two laps.
Well I arrived home safe and sound, slightly damaged from the race as I discovered later. I was trying really hard and I don't think I had any more to give. I managed to lap Heather by working with John C about mid race. We were working as a train of 3 when the leaders (well done Barney) came past again. Heather was on the front and managed to get a tow from the lead pack. By the time I realised that John C wasn't going with her they had opened a 20m or so gap. I took up the chase with John just behind. As he fell off my tail, the lead pack with Heather got further away and there was nothing I could do about it. It was now all about damage limitation. I could see Heather was gaining (as it's an oval track) and at the end John had joined up with her and they were both chasing me down to unlap Heather. One more lap and they would have got me. I think there was 20m in it on the line, but I was in front. My core fitness grows with each race and training session I do. Most of these guys have been cycling a long time. So I'm pleased.

Most of the time I was on my own. Hard work and I wanted to be sick after.

In November last year I wrote out a goal sheet with dates on it. It's on my wall right next to my computer. You can't miss it. So in November, I wrote that I would have an average race speed of 20mph on the 10th July... (So not to appear too smug I also wrote another one which I haven't achieved yet, but I will).

So, even though it was a hard race, I really quite enjoyed it. There is a certain satisfaction to be had driving home from a tough event.

My results are below (I'll post the official ones when they come through)
Average racing heart rate: 170 bpm
Average race speed: 19.8mph (40%)

Official results

Quibell Park
				Sunday 27th June
	Round 1 Race 1
	Pos	Name	Nr	Bike Name	Class	Tag Nr	Laps	Time	MPH
	1	Steve Slade	1	Beano	O	11	3	1:30.00	36.1
	2	Lee Wakefield	2	Beany	O	27	3	1:30.00	36.1
	3	Ian Perry	6	Quincy	O/Mf	36	3	1:42.00	31.9
	4	Claire King	25	Number 50	O/L	21	3	1:51.00	29.3
	5	Adrian Setter	16	VLR	O/P	20	3	1:57.00	27.8
	6	Mike Burrows	0	RatRacer B2	O/P	41	3	1:57.00	27.8
	7	Neil Fleming	7	nocom	O/P/U	44	3	1:59.00	27.3
	8	Howard Yeomans	82	hocus pocus	O/P/U	16	3	2:00.00	27.1
	9	Andrew Sidwell	102	Black Adder	O/P	28	3	2:00.00	27.1
	10	Rob Hague	51	Whitey Glyde	O/Mf	10	3	2:04.00	26.2
	11	T Higgin	117	Lotus	O/P/U	35	3	2:04.00	26.2
	12	Ian Robinson	108	Kwota	O/P/U/St/S	25	3	2:07.00	25.6
	13	Graham Sparey-Taylor	81	RatRacer	O/P	18	3	2:07.00	25.6
	14	Nick Marshall	52	Atilla	O/P/U	40	3	2:07.00	25.6
	15	Barney Harle	151	Rapto	O/P	30	3	2:11.00	24.8
	16	Andy Barnes	109	Ratracer	O/P	31	3	2:20.00	23.2
	17	Jon Coulson	62	Toxy	O/P	23	3	2:33.00	21.2
	18	Anne Coulson	61	Kingcycle	O/L	43	3	2:35.00	21
	19	Mick Crick	97	beast MK III	O/P/U/Mf/M	32	3	2:37.00	20.7
	20	Martin Brigden-Gwinnutt	59	HRS01	O/P/U/St/S	17	3	2:38.00	20.6
	21	Frazer Tomsett	46	Molerat	O/P/U	39	3	2:43.00	19.9
	22	Heather Fortnum	104	Mason King	O/P/U/L/Lp/St/S	15	3	2:46.00	19.6
	23	Jonathan Woolrich	84	Hocus Pocus	O/P/U	29	3	2:48.00	19.3
	24	John Lucian	86	KMX R2	O/P/U/Mf/M	37	3	2:51.00	19
	25	Judith Griffiths	116	Airborne	O/P/U/L/Lp/St/S	13	3	2:52.00	18.9
	26	Andy Forey	112	moulton deluxe	O	19	3	3:09.00	17.2
	27	Tracey Quarmby	115	Tandem	O/P/U/L/Lp	34	3	3:54.00	13.9
	28	Victoria Bottomley	119	Tandem	O/P/U/L/Lp/J	33	0		0
	Round 2 Race 1
	Pos	Name	Nr	Bike Name	Class	Tag Nr	Laps	Time	MPH
	1	Barney Harle	151	Rapto	O/P	30	50	42:08.69	21.4
	2	Ian Robinson	108	Kwota	O/P/U/St/S	25	49	42:09.30	21
	3	Andy Forey	112	moulton deluxe	O	19	49	42:09.30	21
	4	Anne Coulson	61	Kingcycle	O/L	43	49	42:24.80	20.8
	5	Andy Barnes	109	Ratracer	O/P	31	49	42:55.30	20.6
	6	Martin Brigden-Gwinnutt	59	HRS01	O/P/U/St/S	17	45	42:45.60	19
	7	Jon Coulson	62	Toxy	O/P	23	45	42:48.50	19
	8	Heather Fortnum	104	Mason King	O/P/U/L/Lp/St/S	15	45	42:49.19	19
	9	Judith Griffiths	116	Airborne	O/P/U/L/Lp/St/S	13	44	42:13.89	18.8
	10	Mick Crick	97	beast MK III	O/P/U/Mf/M	32	44	42:14.50	18.8
	11	Jonathan Woolrich	84	Hocus Pocus	O/P/U	29	13	12:46.29	18.4
	12	John Lucian	86	KMX R2	O/P/U/Mf/M	37	37	43:15.19	15.4
	13	Frazer Tomsett	46	Molerat	O/P/U	39	29	56:24.89	9.29
	14	Tracey Quarmby	115	Tandem	O/P/U/L/Lp	34	0		0
	15	Victoria Bottomley	119	Tandem	O/P/U/L/Lp/J	33	0		0

Laters, MBG

Links to videos below:

The whole slow race captured from on my bike.

Start 0-10 minutes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8jfKmbPZHc

10-20 minutes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGYge-BUSPg

20-30 minutes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiA3jTQFfB4

30-40 minutes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haVYSEYlTi0

40-45 minutes finish http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDlE2gvd-FM

Fast Race 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L3VPEy5t1U

Fast Race 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P64ZjqbY7c

Scunthorpe time trial

3 lap time trial is done.
Had problems clipping in again after the start. Puts me at a slower time straight away. Must try harder. Lap two saw 178bpm and 26.5mph. I tailed off on lap 3 but overall I saw 21.5mph average. Very hot now. Everyone agreeing that lap 3 is that bridge too far.
Looking forward to the race. (71% See results above)
Laters MBG

Scunthorpe Velodrome: That's all folks.

How many laps in 40 minutes plus two? I'll let you know. ;-)

Scunthorpe Velodrome 2

Scunthorpe Velodrome

Scunthorpe

Well today it's sunny Scunthorpe. It looks like a hot day in store for all the racers. Fluid intake has started already to make sure I'm well hydrated for the first race at 11ish. There are 3 main 40 minute races today. Slow, fast and streamliners. Well that's the plan.
I went to see the track last night and I'm looking forward to turning some laps today. It's a pretty short oval so it'll be manic I'm sure. Will try to video main race right through, especially if I'm in traffic.
Laters, MBG

Castle Combe - 2 Hour Race

I set of at 8am this morning for the 90 minute drive to Castle Combe. It was going to be my first ever visit to the circuit and the thought of a two hour race left me needing a strategy. It was a simple one. Follow Judith, Heather or John at least for the first hour or so.

It looked like rain and was threatening thunderstorms according to the weather forecast. Oh no, Fowlmead again. It wasn't a great start to the day for me as I had forgotten my over shirts (Doh!) but at least I had my compression layers. So it was basically a full compression layer (tights and long sleeves) and cycling shorts. I just hoped it wouldn't rain. If it started to rain heavily I had my yellow, lightweight Helly Hansen to keep me dry next to the track.

As we lined up for the start it was spitting with rain and as I pushed off to start the race I promptly lost balance and toppled over as I couldn't get my left foot out of the clip in time (right in front of a running video camera as it happens). So I was on the floor and everyone else was away. Cursing, I got up and was away pretty smartish after that. I was to play catch up again. Sprinting, I managed to catch and pass a few people aiming to get on the back of Heather. I managed that on the first lap and sat there learning how to pace a two hour race. We were riding anticlockwise (opposite to the cars) which meant within 300 ish meters from the start it was downhill into the first chicane. Plan was to grab the highest gear possible and push hard until I reached maximum speed where I would spin out on the pedals. Do it right and I would see 25mph down the hill which then helped carry 20+mph round to the next chicane. From there it was a short respite until the into wind, long drag up to the start line. It doesn't look much but it's a long way and a long climb (to me!)

The field thinned a bit and I was also riding with Judith, Eddie, Adam and Chris. I took my turn at the front but then, about 50 minutes in, disaster struck. At 2/3rds of the lap (Castle Combe being about 2 miles round) I got a rear puncture. It was squirming all over the place so I had to stop and push back to the pits, which took about 10 (more like 15!! see below) minutes. Not easy in road shoes and cleats. Once at the pits my unofficial pit crew, Steve (Thanks), helped me extract the tyre. A quick run back to the car and a new inner tube and I was back out within another 5-10 (more like 15!! see below) minutes. Fresh-ish legs saw me catch, and pass Heather (who in reality was now about three laps up on me) and regain my lost laps from Stewart G (I finished a little behind him on the road). It was a bit like a solo time trial for the last 40 minutes, aiming for a rider in front and trying to close the gap.

Never has the last lap bell sounded so sweet and the chequered flag looked so good.

Ultimately it was a tough race which taught me a few things, but then that's what it is all about.

I'll post the results as soon as I get them, but I'll take solace from Heather's average speed as I reckon I would have stayed with her for the whole race.

Results: 27th place out of 34 (79%), with a 30 minute stop for walking back & puncture repair as timed on the race video. Heather lapped at 17.5mph ish and 20th place (58%). I'm down at 14 ish mph but with 16 laps due to the stoppage. I have calculated my average not counting the stop but it's a bit distorted I think. I'll stick to Heathers average for now.

See you all in Sunny Scunthorpe.

Laters, MBG

26th in the World! You have to be in it to win it! ;-p

It's not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or when the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worth cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who at the worst if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat. Theodore Roosevelt

Jersey Worlds - Final Results... Find Me!

Men overall
Position Name Race no. Hill Climb Time Trial 50m drag 2 Hour 200m sprint Town Crit total
1 Stephen Slade 127 1842 2000 1608 2000 2000 1763 11213
2 Erik Marynissen 105 1921 1921 2000 1842 1763 1684 11131
3 Pieter Hollebrandse 110 1531 1684 1608 1763 1480 1921 9987
4 Robin Boucher 113 1582 1480 1842 1531 1633 1582 9650
5 Aurélien Bonneteau 128 2000 1842 1017 1921 1842 815 9437
6 Laurent Delcroix 148 1633 1582 1017 1582 1429 2000 9243
7 Lee Wakefield 109 1367 1633 1339 1684 1582 1398 9003
8 Sandro Bollina 138 1274 1531 1763 1633 1100 1633 8934
9 Malric Leborgne 116 1150 1005 1921 1305 1531 1367 8279
10 Arleen Troost 134 1455 1305 1017 967 1684 1842 8270
11 Marc Lesourd 132 1724 1398 1339 929 1166 1480 8036
12 Martin Beyst 108 1243 1429 1339 1480 1243 1150 7884
13 Bernard Rodolphe 119 1305 1367 1339 1181 1367 1429 7988
14 Marcel Flaux 117 1455 1181 1339 1429 1119 1212 7735
15 Adrian Setter 140 1110 1274 1339 1367 1081 1274 7445
16 Sébastien Courteille 115 1197 1119 1017 1274 1398 1100 7105
17 Philippe Descubes 129 1197 1081 1017 1212 1212 1181 6900
18 Rudi Cools 142 1043 1043 1017 1081 1166 1062 6412
19 Gilbert le Page 104 1024 967 1339 1100 1005 948 6383
20 Stefano Negri 122 986 1062 1017 1119 1024 1024 6232
21 Barney Harle 107 967 929 1017 1043 986 986 5928
22 Andrew Sidwell 137 1110 1243 1017 1243 0 1243 5856
23 Andrea Carraro 118 929 815 1017 1005 1043 929 5738
24 Chris Wilson 106 948 891 1017 948 929 910 5643
25 Eddie Robbins 111 1062 948 1608 986 0 967 5571
26 Martin Brigden-Gwinnutt 100 872 872 1017 891 967 891 5510
27 Walter Berger 125 1398 1212 0 1398 0 1305 5313
28 Philippe Guigo 112 1081 0 0 1062 1274 1081 4498
29 Giovanni Eupani 145 910 910 1017 834 1062 0 4733
30 Jon Coulson 139 891 853 1017 910 0 853 4524
31 Geoff Bird 123 1005 1024 0 1150 0 1043 4222
32 Pieter Pas 150 0 1150 1017 0 1921 0 4088
33 Gav le Brun 101 0 986 0 1024 948 1005 3963
34 Sjaak Bloemberg 133 0 1100 0 0 1305 1119 3524
35 Alan Braley 131 853 796 1017 0 0 834 3500
36 Charles Henry 130 1724 1763 0 0 0 0 3487
37 Paolo Baldissera 151 0 834 1339 872 0 0 3045
38 David Troost 135 0 0 1608 0 0 0 1608
39 Keith Davis 200 0 0 0 0 0 1531 1531
40 Piergianni Sgura 0 0 0 0 853 0 0 853


Men/Unfaired
Position Name Race no. Hill Climb Time Trial 50m drag 2 Hour 200m sprint Town Crit total
1 Pieter Hollebrandse 110 1684 2000 1763 2000 1842 1921 11210
1 Robin Boucher 113 1763 1842 1921 1842 2000 1842 11210
3 Laurent Delcroix 148 1842 1921 1339 1921 1763 2000 10786
4 Malric Leborgne 116 1398 1367 2000 1582 1921 1582 9850
5 Martin Beyst 108 1480 1763 1608 1763 1455 1429 9498
6 Bernard Rodolphe 119 1531 1633 1339 1480 1633 1633 9249
7 Marc Lesourd 132 1921 1684 1339 1212 1398 1684 9238
8 Marcel Flaux 117 1633 1531 1339 1684 1367 1480 9034
9 Sébastien Courteille 115 1429 1480 1339 1531 1684 1367 8830
10 Rudi Cools 142 1274 1398 1339 1398 1455 1274 8138
11 Gilbert le Page 104 1243 1305 1608 1429 1274 1212 8071
12 Andrea Carraro 118 1181 1150 1339 1305 1305 1181 7461
13 Martin Brigden-Gwinnutt 100 1150 1212 1339 1181 1243 1119 7244
14 Chris Wilson 106 1212 1243 1017 1243 1212 1150 7077
15 Eddie Robbins 111 1305 1274 1842 1274 0 1243 6938
16 Philippe Guigo 112 1367 0 0 1367 1531 1305 5570
17 Walter Berger 125 1582 1582 0 1633 0 1531 6328
18 Paolo Baldissera 151 0 1181 1608 1150 0 1100 5039
19 Sjaak Bloemberg 133 0 1429 0 0 1582 1398 4409
20 Keith Davis 200 0 0 0 0 0 1763 1763
21 David Troost 135 0 0 1608 0 0 0 1608
22 Piergianni Sgura 0 0 0 0 1119 0 0 1119

Full Results Here http://homepage.mac.com/jobank/WC2010/FinalResults.htm