Cyclo-cross season 06-07

[Richard M]

The London Cyclo-X season starts next Saturday and this year consists of 17 rounds of which the best nine will count for your series points. The races are typically of only one hour duration and are run around a short lap made up from a mixture of grass, dirt tracks and short lengths of road. They are therefore less technical than mountain bike cross-country races. The racing is inclusive of all rider abilities and despite all starting at the same time, everyone will have a rival of an equal ability to race against.

For those interested in winning club silverware, there are two trophies awarded to Addiscombe's cyclo-x riders; the league cup and the champion's trophy. The league cup goes to the Addiscombe rider with the most London League points at the end of the season while the champion's trophy goes to the highest placed rider in a single event; this year Round 5, held one week before Tamar and the club promote and run Round 6.

So you are now tempted to have a go; what do you need? A bike of any type are all the rules say but you will really need either a mountain bike or a cyclo-x bike. £10 for your race entry and either the minimum of Bronze BC membership or another £3 for the surcharge non BC members have to pay. Race licences and affiliations to the London League are NOT required.

The event dates, locations and junior/senior start times are given below and can be checked at [url]http://www.londonxleague.co.uk/dates.html[/url]. The web site also gives the times and race fees for the other age categories. If you have any questions please ask them here and I will do my best to answer them for you.

Hope to see some new faces out there,

Richard, cyclo-x secretary

Rnd 1: 23 Sept '06 - Lee Valley Cycle Circuit (Eastway) @ 13.00
Rnd 2: 30 Sept '06 - Lee Valley Cycle Circuit (Eastway) @ 13.00
Rnd 3: 08 Oct '06 - New venue to be announced
Rnd 4: 15 Oct '06 - The Howard School, Rainham @ 13.00
Rnd 5 [club champs]: 22 Oct '06 - Deers Leap Park, East Grinstead @ 13.00
Rnd 6: 29 Oct '06 - Penshurst Off-Road Cycling, Penshurst @ 14.00
Rnd 7: 05 Nov '06 - The Howard School, Rainham @ 14.00
Rnd 8: 12 Nov '06 - Reed Court Farm, Chainhurst, Nr. Marden @ 13.30
Rnd 9: 19 Nov '06 - Stanmer Park, Brighton @ 13.00
Rnd 10: 26 Nov '06 - Lydden Hill Motor Racing Circuit, nr. Dover @ 13.30
SE Champs: 03 Dec '06 - Temple School, Cliffe Rd, Strood @ 14.00
Rnd 11: 10 Dec '06 - Stanmer Park, Brighton @ 13.00
Rnd 12: 17 Dec '06 - Hillingdon Cycle Circuit @ 13.00
Rnd 13: 27 Dec '06 - Footscray Outdoor Activity Centre, Sidcup @ 13.30
Rnd 14: 31 Dec '06 - Kent County Showground, Detling @ 13.00
Rnd 15: 14 Jan '07 - Herne Hill Velodrome @ 13.00
Rnd 16: 28 Jan '07 - Axton Chase, Longfield, Dartford @ 14.00
Rnd 17: 04 Feb '07 - Deers Leap Park, East Grinstead @ 13.00
Team Champs & Prizegiving: 11 Feb '07: - Venue to be announced

[Dr Frigo]

Those pictures of Rainham reminded me of that fantastic course, surely the highlight of the cx season ....


[img]http://www.londoncyclesport.com/editorialGallery/galleries/lx4_sens_06/IMG_1259.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.londoncyclesport.com/editorialGallery/galleries/lx4_sens_06/IMG_1392.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.londoncyclesport.com/editorialGallery/galleries/lx4_sens_06/IMG_1360.jpg[/img]

[Elliot M]

did i imagine it or was there going to be a crystal palace round?

[Tamar Collis]

Yes - Sunday 29 October hosted by the lovely ADDISCOMBE. You wanna marshal?????

[Elliot M]

apologies, away for the weekend

[Tamar Collis]

Please note the ACC cyclocross on Sunday 29 October is now back at Penshurst NOT Crystal Palace.

[Toks]

Tamar, london cyclesport are still advertising Crystal Palace as the venue

[Dr Frigo]

Well done Aodan!

London Cyclo Cross 9 - full results
By LCS


USE/Mosquito London League round 9 held on November 19 at Stanmer Park, near Brighton, and hosted by Brighton Excelsior

1 23 Matt Holmes Arctic RT 58.16
2 11 Darren Barclay Arctic RT 58.54 @ 37 secs
3 39 Dean Thompson Twickenham CC @ 59 secs
4 19 Steve Hamblyn Activ Cycles @ 1.29
5 10 Allister Tullett Arctic RT @ 1.48
6 27 Gary Bryant Old Portlians @ 1.59
7 9 James Dear In Gear RT @ 2.00
8 25 Ben Lockwood GS Invicta @ 3.20
9 65 Matt Seaton Mosquito Bikes vet @ 3.21
10 5 Russell Short London Dynamo/Cyclefit @ 3.40
11 89 Neil Simpson London Pheonix vet @ 4.13
12 26 Nigel Ling Kingsnorth Int @ 4.24
13 63 Nick Welsh GS Invicta vet @ 4.36
14 56 Douglas Fox Crawley Wheelers vet @ 5.38
15 14 Anne Boorsman Dulwich Paragon @ 6.38
16 42 Aodan Higgins Addiscombe [color=blue]@ 6.39[/color]
17 8 Jo Burt Mint Sauce/Kona @ 6.46
18 37 George Higgs Brighton Excelsior @ 7.36
19 15 Kevin Knox Dulwich Paragon @ 7.37
20 51 Simon Scarsbrook VC Etoile vet
21 81 Geoff Bores Ford CC vet
22 36 Paul. Hudson Kinesis
23 46 Nick Herbert Brighton Mitre
24 58 Andy Seltzer East Grinstead CC vet
25 4 Jon Sharpe VC Etoile
26 100 Adam Gent Sussex Nomads Jun
27 68 Luke Evans Sydenham Wheelers vet
28 40 O. Pepper
29 35 B. Raymond
30 84 Thorsten Klassen Kingston Wheelers vet
31 73 S. Wood London Dynamo/Cyclefit vet
32 57 Andy Parle Brighton Mitre vet
33 43 S. Brown
34 21 Gary Record
35 64 Stephen Burgess Lewes Wanderers vet
36 7 Dean Taylor Dior XT
37 32 Tom Underhill
38 61 Chris Bracewell VC de Londres vet
39 60 Steve Blackmore Gemini BC vet
40 48 G. Thomson
41 92 Jenn Hopkins Minx-Kona Women
42 18 Stuart Nisbett Crawley Wheelers
43 94 Nicky Hughes Activ Cycles Women
44 44 J. Wilson Rapha Condor
45 97 Gemma Collins Activ Cycles Women
46 16 Kevin Ball Dulwich Paragon
47 2 Darren King
48 3 Simon Roberts Brighton Excelsior vet
49 6 Nigel Foskett GS Stella
50 34 J. Drain Whiteoak Tri
51 29 Stuart Wilson Baker St. Bikes
52 33 P. Munday Whiteoak Tri
53 38 Mark Burgess Lewes Wanderers
54 69 John Kelly London Pheonix vet
55 83 John Fillewl vet
56 87 Neil McCann VC Elan vet
57 88 Tim Phillips Arctic RT vet
58 59 Paul Atkinson Gemini BC vet
59 41 F.S.M.
60 30 Alex Tyrrell Old Portlians
61 66 Nigel Langridge Crawley Wheelers vet
62 45 J. Pritchard Dulwich Paragon
63 70 N. Glowinski VC de Londres vet
64 80 Nigel Franklin GS Avanti vet
65 67 Peter Ruffhead Arctic RT vet
67 91 Katherine Mason Sussex Nomads Women
68 95 Helen Bullimore Crawley Wheelers Women
69 101 Ben Miller VC Jubilee
70 72 Mike Kennard vet Jun
71 47 Marc Lloyd Old Portlians
72 24 R. Lofthouse
73 20 Andrew Postings Archer RC
74 82 Brian Scarboro vet
75 90 Nicola Admay Kingston Wheelers Women
76 52 Andrew Scarsbrook VC Etoile vet
77 71 Bill Wright De Laune vet
78 22 Guy Little Old Portlians
79 55 Tom Silverlock London Pheonix vet
80 96 Maria David Pearson Cycles Women
81 53 Glenn Cooney vet
82 93 Lesley Auchterlonie Archer RC Women
83 17 Bill Burgess
84 13 David Seager
85 1 N. Bores
dnf 12 Gavin Williams
dnf 31 John Lemmonius
dnf 54 Barry Allen London Pheonix vet
dnf 62 Konrad Manning Finsbury Park vet
dnf 86 Greg Blackwell Hastings vet
dnf 102 Matt Zietz Pearson Cycles
dnf 98 Anna Glowinski VC de Londres Women Jun

[Andrew G]

Well done Aodan, still clocking up the results in the mud. Chapeau Maria .
[img]http://www.londoncyclesport.com/editorialGallery/galleries/lx11_06_sens_mike/_AA_0458.JPG[/img]
USE/Mosquito London League round 11 held on December 10 at Stanmer Park, Brighton
1 111 Andrew Griffiths Glendene/Biketrax 7 Jun 51.25
2 8 Matt Holmes Arctic RT 7 @ 25 secs
3 10 Gareth Montgomery Endura/Voodoo 7 @ 1.57
4 22 Steve Hambling Activ Cycles 7 @ 2.06
5 5 James Dear In Gear (Sussex Champion) 7 @ 2.48
6 9 Allistair Tullett Arctic RT 7 @ 3.10
7 112 Matt Zeitz Pearson Cycles Jun 7 @ 3.53
8 25 William Bell Gemini BC 7 @ 3.53
9 27 Gary Bryant Old Portlians 7 @ 4.26
10 15 Darren Barclay Arctic RT 7 @ 4.30
11 26 Nigel Ling Gemini BC 7 @ 6.56
12 1 Steven Griffiths glendene/bike trax 7 @ 7.08
13 7 David Seager san fairy ann cc 7 @ 7.12
14 12 Jo Burt kona mintsauce 7 @ 8.10
15 64 Neil Simpson London Pheonix 7 Vet 9.02
16 71 Nick Welsh GS Invicta 6 Vet
17 75 Andy Seltzer East Grinstead CC 6 Vet
18 13 Jon Sharpe 6
19 28 g.whittington evans cycles 6
20 16 david low GS Stella 6
21 21 paul hudson Kinesis 6
22 61 Geoff Bores Ford CC 6 Vet
23 18 byron raymond 6
24 32 aodan higgins Addiscombe 6
25 110 Adam Gent Sussex Nomads 6 Jun
26 77 graham stacey catford cc 6 Vet
27 31 matt gallagher pca ciclos uno 6
28 33 nik pullen 6
29 67 paul warner team darenth 6 Vet
30 40 oli pepper desalvo 6
31 74 Luke Evans Sydenham Wheelers 6 Vet
32 4 will cooper orange monkey 6
33 63 Simon Scarsbrook VC Etoile 6 Vet
34 36 Mark Burgess Lewes Wanderers 6
35 24 G. Thomson joy pride 6
36 38 andrew eagles Dulwich Paragon 6
37 73 Neil McCann vc elan 6 Vet
38 106 nicola hughes Activ Cycles 6 Women
39 78 Stephen Burgess Lewes Wanderers 6 Vet
40 70 Simon Roberts Brighton Excelsior 6 Vet
41 37 ryan harris cambridge grove 6
42 14 Nigel Foskett GS Stella 6
43 102 Katherine Mason Sussex Nomads 6 Women
44 11 rory hitchens use exposure 6
45 34 Stuart Wilson Baker St. Bikes 5
46 79 Bill Wright De Laune 5 Vet
47 60 Nigel Franklin avanti 5 Vet
48 3 graham clark orange monkey 5
49 23 Guy Little Old Portlians 5
50 41 Alex Tyrrell Old Portlians 5
51 35 j. green 5
52 72 Tim Phillip Archer RC 5 Vet
53 2 ian sutton san fairy ann cc 5
54 62 Brian Scarboro 5 Vet
55 20 Andrew Postings Archer RC 5
56 17 mason thomas 5
57 76 nigel longridge Crawley Wheelers 5 Vet
58 81 steve wood London Dynamo/Cyclefit 5 Vet
59 105 Maria David Pearson Cycles 5 Women
60 68 Steve Blackmore Gemini BC 5 Vet
61 100 nicola wadham Kingston Wheelers 5 Women
62 29 d.wakelin 5
63 80 simon catmor 5 Vet
64 104 l. auchterlonie Archer RC 4 Women
65 103 Helen Bullimore Crawley Wheelers 4 Women
66 101 j. filleal 4 Women
67 69 warren ring 4 Vet
dnf 6 brian curtis corridorri 2

[Dr Frigo]

From a newspaper article - love the shredded crisp packet and 50p tea images:


"As soon as my wheels took off I knew I'd crash, and I did, spectacularly, according to those who saw it. A cartwheel in the air with the bike still attached to my cleats, followed by a landing on my head that broke the helmet, bent the bike and smashed my sunglasses.

Tumbling to a halt on muddy turf, I pranced up like a wild animal, dragged my bike off the circuit, rose unsteadily to my feet and into the face of a medic. Without compassion she said, "You know you can continue if you want to." At which point I said to myself in a jumble, "If I can continue if I want to then I should," before jumping back on, nearly falling off again and then riding two more lung-busting laps of the treacherous circuit at Stanmer Park, Brighton until, mercifully, the race ended.

This is the world of cyclo-cross, or the traditional winter sport of roadies who want to keep fit in the "off season". Except that, as my colleague James Daley also notes, the off season is increasingly mild because of climate change, and the discipline is exploding in popularity in the United States.

Halfway through my first season I can say it's brilliant. For someone who grew up loving bikes but shying away from the competitive side of cycling, it's been a revelation.

Cyclo-cross caters to a wide range of ability, off-road riding is plain good fun, all ages and genders are welcomed and there is a deliciously English eccentricity surrounding everything from the 50p scalding cup of tea from the boy-scout urn before the race to the school playing fields you often race on, invariably strewn with crisp packets recently shredded by the local authority lawn mower.

The London League season began on a hot day last September at London's Eastway circuit, and I turned up with nothing more than my £10 race fee, a £12.50 British Cycling provisional race licence and my daily commute -a Dawes touring bike - sans mudguards but with the addition of knobbly cross-tyres.

Kids' races preceded the youth, senior and veteran events. So the circuit was a mêlée of toddlers, families, bike roof-racks and kit. As the 13.00 start approached, I started to get very nervous, having never taken part in a proper race before, let alone an off-road race with a field of nearly 100 riders.

But as the start whistle went and the cleats clipped fiercely into place, I realised there was no reason for this to be anything but fun, even if it hurt like hell.

I was right, and did it again the next week, and then again at farms and schools across Kent and East Sussex over the following weeks.

Highlights included eating a piccalilli and cheddar roll at the Reed Court Farm venue; ending the race at Brighton after my big crash, happy to come 72nd out of 92 riders, and taking delivery of my first real 'cross bike, a beautiful Condor Baracchi model with a carbon rear triangle plus the signature cantilever brakes and large clearances for mud.

Lowlights include puncturing at said piccalilli venue after only 20 minutes and with no spare wheel, and every spinning class I have attended at my local gym in order to be fit enough to race.

At 34, I have also realised that aside from age, ability and fitness is all relative at this level. The gridded, leading riders are ultra fit, deeply talented athletes, while some of the veteran riders are unbelievably good.

But the real highlight is just taking part, handling the bike to its limit and feeling exaltation for completing a race intact. At a certain point in an hour-long race, usually on the penultimate lap, nerves dissipate, the field thins out, technique relaxes and you get a second wind of energy.

I don't know if anyone else has written about cycling in terms of motoring, but if you really want direct steering, under-steering and over-steering, then try two skinny, mud-clogged wheels on a bumpy downhill path scarcely three feet wide with any combination of stones, exposed tree roots and smeary mud.

The true equivalent is driving on ice or soft sand, where the whole vehicle begins to shimmy. That's what the bike does on a wet Kent playing field, and it's quite unnerving if you're trying to go as fast as possible. Crashes are normal; the point is to crash well and not into a hard object such as a tree.

My persistent error is to carry too much speed into a corner, whereupon the "under steer", usually straight into a bramble bush, is simply to avoid falling off. Then there was a corner on the Brighton circuit where a hairpin right-hander at the base of a descent also included a steeply off-cambered path glistening with mud. Worse than ice, I thought to myself, and I was right: the rider behind me went down heavily.

There is a moment in every race where you see red, get into a killer state of mind and overtake the rider in front, and maybe another, too, piercing your lungs along the way and gasping so hard for breath that you can't even pause long enough to gulp water.

It's not for everyone, but highly recommended for anyone who likes a challenge on the weekend - the evolution of what was called "the Sunday scramble" 50 years ago."