The Bec Hill Climb

[Andrew G]

[quote="Gary Beckett"]Some hill climbs boast a long and colourful history, some have gruelling gradients that are talked about in revered tone throughout clubrooms the length & breadth of the country, whilst others claim to have the richest prize list in the UK....

Well, the Bec C C Hill Climb can claim to have all three of those, plus, and its a big plus, as it has probably the most enthusiastic hordes of spectators that will ever be found at any Hill Climb event including the Nationals if comments from past riders & spectators are anything to go by....!!!

Ok, our event is only 54 years old, our course might not be as challenging as some of the big Northern Climbs, but we feel pretty confident in saying the Bec event sets the bar for atmosphere. The noise & enthusiasm that the hordes bring to the slopes of White Lane, near Limpsfield, Surrey is something to be witnessed, and many competitors comeback year on year just to get the 'buzz' from the shouts of the spectators urging them onward & upward in their lung bursting efforts to record a good time when they cross the line... The Bec CC are unashamedly proud of its reputation for organising a good event for the supporters, as well as riders, and its ability to draw a wonderfully enthusiastic crowd to witness the competitors efforts... One supporter described it a couple of years back as the 'Carnival on the Climb' it is a title we hope to live up to again in 2009.....

11th October.... 2.00pm..... White Lane (known as Titsey to Bikies) , nr Limpsfield, Surrey . Be there, make some noise, or better still ride the event.....What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon.....

This year, those very nice people at Tandridge District Council have once again granted the Bec C C a fully closed road for the event, and the Councils Chairman, Councillor Glynis Whittle will be coming along to witness her first Hill Climb, as well as present the prizes. The council have also very generously donated some cash to the event, and are also informing local press & media in an attempt to help the event attract other interested parties other than just us cyclists, whilst also trying to enhance the event for future years. Their valuable input is very much appreciated....

The course will again have a very efficient PA system along its length to keep all the spectators informed & whip em up into a frenzy, and the job of being on the Mic is being hotly fought over this year by the McCrossnan brothers Anthony & Martin, and virgin Hill climb commentator and Cyclevox work Colleague of the brothers Mc, Brian Smith....
Who will win, to take the honour of chattering at such a prestigious event.....

The famous 'Cafe du Bec' tea stall, will once again be stacked with cakes, sandwiches, teas, coffees etc etc to keep the hordes of hungry supporters (and riders) in fine fettle. Although this year we are going to experiment with moving the Marquee a little further down the hill (amongst the trees) instead of its more traditional finish line siting. This is mainly to try and free up some of the congestion of so many hungry & thirsty spectators blocking the views of the timekeepers who work hard to record an accurate time.....

As for the prize list at this 2009 edition of the 'Carnival on the climb' the organiser Garry Beckett has struggled to finance a fully cash prize list as of previous years, mainly due to personal economic pressures as has beset a lot of us! But with the generous help & support of several sponsors the £2,220.00 prize list of past years is set to improve & be enhanced to somewhere in the region of £2,500.00

1st prize will again be a massive £1,000.00 which is not bad for less than 2 minutes effort on a 700yard course, and the team prize for (a bona fide, CTT registered ) team of 3 will again be £900.00

Other prize categories i.e 2nd, 3rd, Junior, Veteran, Ladies, beating of event record & Lantern Rouge will be in product or equipment format. (At the time of going to press, we were waiting final confirmation from one sponsor on their input) But we will confirm prizes will DEFINITELY be no less than in previous years, and will be updated & published as soon as the necessary information is received

Sponsors for 2009 are : 'Big' Dave, who runs Sharman Building, a Bec C C ex bikie who takes on all forms of building work including high quality extensions & loft conversions. He is also a very gifted joiner so please check him out at http://www.sharmanbuilding.co.uk <http://www.sharmanbuilding.co.uk/>
Ron Keeble, MD & owner of Gem Hygiene also now has a company called Gem Composites, which is importing and supplying high quality Carbon Wheels and components under the edge label which have been ridden by many top pro tour riders this year... http://www.gemhygiene.co.uk <http://www.gemhygiene.co.uk/> & http://www.gemcomposites.co.uk <http://www.gemcomposites.co.uk/>
Grant Young, owner of Condor Cycles, London has very generously donated some equipment to the prize list his website can be visited at http://www.condorcyles.com <http://www.condorcyles.com/> to view all the goodies they have available... As has Simon Mottram, MD & founder of Rapha (who are so much more than just a clothing company) by adding to the list of event benefactors http://www.rapha.cc <http://www.rapha.cc/> for some of the coolest bike gear on the planet....

Finally, for those of you who have never seen White Lane and wish to get a preview of the course, a short video of the organiser walking and (in between catching his breath !!) describing the course can be found at http://www.beccyclingclub.co.uk <http://www.beccyclingclub.co.uk/> there is also a short you tube video of the race a couple of years back. Info about the event & how to enter are also available....

And finally, finally, finally, once again the postal service (why do they always do it this time of year !!!) has thrown a spanner in the works and delayed several entries. Some may well be languishing in a dark corner of a sorting office never to be seen again!!!! . So if you have entered & your names (or your clubmates) are not on the 'received so far' list on the Bec Website, it means the organiser has NOT yet received it SO PLEASE CHECK, to avoid any disappointments.
Also if your entry is sent by the 'Registered or signed for' services, please remember that the organiser has a day job too & may well not be able to collect from the sorting office due to time constraints and the limited opening hours of the local branch !!! A certain team tried to pull that one sending an entry in late at the last minute in 2008 & then got pretty p---ed off, when the organiser refused their entry, branding him the "most unhelpful" etc etc official in the UK, and posting it on several forums for all to read, which did not really place them at the top of his list for bothering to enter again !!!.......
As well as info via the Bec Website, Garry Beckett the organiser can be contacted at Garrybeckett1 AT aol.com which obviously at this late stage would be the most efficient path to take.....