Club Run 09/06/07

[Nick]

I too had a great ride today average to the cafe was 18mph. Felt quite good I took the partridge turn off for the cafe with 5 others we had a very steady pace to the sprint it was a very close finish with three off us across the road (Safely I might add) there was 1/2 a bike length between all three of us.

I got left in the cafe with a few others so made a solo ride towards home then [size=150]BONK!!!![/size] I died almost 25 mile to go before home......I did make another food stop and that did help. I went past the cafe at Coulsdon with a brave salute little did you know the pain I was in but I am putting in more miles each week so should be back on form by the end of the season .

Nick

[Ian A4size]

Nice report Marco.

I'm sure you can edit a "turn your granny to the wall" line in somewhere and then i think you'll have a full set of expressions.

[Alex P]

What can I say but what a great club run. We had 79 at CSS, mostly in the ACC yellow, it was a great sight. I called the training group out and we had at least 15, I thought not bad, I then introduced the new 20mph group and 20 stepped up for that, a fantastic sign on how well the regulars to the club runs are progressing and feeling confident to move up. We also had a sizable 19 mph group that caught the 20's so I will need to increase the gap that everybody moves off from the station, then a 17/18 group, 17 and John's super 15s.

Due to the popularity of the 20mph group and the average speed that they returned on the run I'm even thinking of a 21mph group as long as we can get a 'sez what's on the tin' consistency. I think that with this we get the full spread of levels to better suit the range of riders that we are getting out on the runs on a regular basis. It would be interesting to see any feedback on this.

Always a lot harder to organise levels for the return trip but we are getting a good split between Box Hill and Reigate routes, perhaps need to work on getting different speed groups within these rides.

Roll on next week......

[Andrew G]

Good stuff Marco. Sorry we didn't wait at the top of Box (I guess you would have liked to get a photo or two), someone said "shall we make a move" and when I turned round they were already on bikes and wheeling away. No wonder I'm always chasing on to the back in the first k.

Look forward to seeing you on a few more CRs with that nice new Roberts, very classy looking stead.

[-Adam-]

Well that was a good if not different club run today.

Out with the 20's again as im still taking it easy post crash and possibly pre op Anyway, felt ok to begin with, eased myself off the front closely followed by Simon up the three steps. Was a bit suprised he came with me, but fair play, he's obviously kept working on the turbo while his elbows been on the mend...

Sat up near the top as i had already began to get a 'can't be arsed' feeling. Oh well, had a fairly normal ride from there until the start of the long duel carriageway. Oh, apart from what i thought was a hallucination when seanie h breezed past the front of us what!? I even had to ride up to him and touch him to check my eyes weren't deceiving me! They weren't, but fair play mate, the Italian miles have obviously had a rather good effect!

So the thru'n'off was somewhat ragged, a ver mixed ability group meant that the group was splitting almost as soon as it got together. Anyways three of us, Richard Munday, Dave Lombari and myself came to the sprint together. Well i say sprint, Dave lead it out (another man with fantastic legs after the 'italian job'), I went for it but wasn't exactly hammering it and Richard just never came round. I spoke to him after and apparently he's been struggling for motivation this year, but even so, still got great legs!

Then it all went wrong. I stupidly needed the loo on the way out of the cafe. Then when i walked out it was just me and Simon O left, then Joyce was there so i said hello. And before i knew it, the fastest guys on the usual run back must have had about 5mins on me. B0!!0cks! So I put my head down and chased, hard. Made sure simon was ok as we soon caught Nick and a couple of other guys who i assume grouped up. Anyway, got the the A217, still not caught the 1st group. Got to the climb up to the church, still on my own and no one in sight. Where is everybody i thought!? Now bearing in mind i was riding at between 37-42kmph all the while i just couldn't believe i hadn't caught up! And my legs were hurting, big time. Finally arrived at the top of the hill, caught Sean and enquired as to what was going on. Apparently things got a bit tasty on the way back and the speed was high. Great, the first time i ever leave the cafe late and the group decides to have the fastest run back to coulsdon ever! Anyway, got to the church just after redhill and there they were. I duly had my moans gulped down a energy gel and considered my revenge...

Merstham drag, i love it some times. Sean had his dig, nobody chased, so i let him have his moment then moved to the front and put the hammer down. A couple of guys came thru after the motorway bridge but didn't really help the pace. So once again the shadow made an appearance at the front, which was by no means for the first time today! Nearer the top he put in a real dig, which i just about matched. Anyway we put a huge gap between us and the chasing peloton. Over the top i came thru, turned round to him and said

'come on lets go, lets do the b******s over!'

And go we did, like a 2 up TTT we duly hammmmmmmmered our way down in to coulsdon for another coffee. Wonderful. revenge was sweet!

The ride home from there however was what i like to call a warm down ride, man i paid for all the chasing i had done post cafe! But a good ride all the same. Legs are more or less there, im just really conscious not to strain my shoulder.

Bring on next week!

[Marek]

First club run for me for a while, I mistakenly started off with the training group that wanted to do a hilly ride. After averaging around 28mph to Reigate, I decided that actually I did not really fancy being beaten up today on all the hills, so I turned off on the run in towards Dorking and went through the lanes to meet back up with the club run.

Sat in for a bit with Andrew Green giving it some on the front. He started to tire and I decided to go and help out and sit in front of him. Think he felt sorry for me on my own so he came up to talk, but then we hit a drag and he soon disappeared.

The group was pretty strong and that is one thing which is great is that over the years the club has built up a very good level of riding. In fact I felt a lot safer riding in the bunch today than I have done in a lot of races this year where allegedly the standard of rider is better.

At the dual carriageway we split the group up into two. I went off with the first group which had Steve B and Andrew Green and the other tall rider whose name I have forgotten but he had the number 6 emblazoned on every part of his body for some unknown reason. Maybe he is a devil worshipper.

We kept a smooth through and off all the way to the sprint. I felt that I was a bit of a marked man, so I thought I would try and go early and give it a really huge jump to make a gap. It did not work. The Devil worshipper and Steve B were on my tail. Now, I was giving it some, I mean mashing it big time and we were going very very fast but I could not get them off my tail. Then the devil and Steve came around me and then Steve came around the devil and he won it.

I have to admit that I have heard a lot about Steves sprinting ability and today was the first time I have witnessed it. Man that guy is fast in the sprint I take my hat off to him as I really did give it some.

Ride back over to Box Hill was fun. I could not help putting the hammer down a few times, I need to get in a few fast digs on the ride to keep my racing speed up. Over to Box Hill and the Devil led me up. As we approached the last bend Simon came through and did a good pull and then I took over and managed to get to the top first.

Good blast back Coulsdon. Really enjoyed the ride, a pleasant change from the racing.

Cheers

Marek..

[David Lombari]

After an inauspicious start (drizzle), it turned out to be a lovely day.

Out with the 20's to push myself (ooohh aaaaahh) just a lil' bit, the hammer first went down on the 3 humps but a breather was grabbed due to a lorry parked in the middle of the road on the descent. After a brief stop for Steve's rubbing brake block (??), allowing the 19's to catch up, we wound our way through the lanes and onto the through'n'off.

After the cafe, a rapid ride over to Box Hill was followed by a slow ascent for me as a loose chainset was causing my gears to jump all over the place. I split from the rest and got it tightened at Dauphin and continued my solo ride home. I soon came across Robbie (stop tittering) and we rode back together, collecting Marco and pausing for a very pleasant coffee in South Croydon.

The cafe stops weren't over as I couldn't resist nipping into La Bruscetta in CP for a cappuccino milkshake after a very slow and strained ascent of South Norwood Hill.

Got home elated as I'd enjoyed the day so much, put up a good-ish show and met so many old muckers.

A prossimo Sabato.

[Snoop Doug]

I must've read this thread about ten times already. Great innit....that so many folk can get out there and have such a blast!

Snoop

[huw williams]

Quote "like a cheap firework and fizzle out as fast as I shot off"

official cycling parlance is 'two-bob rocket'

[SimonJOsborne]

Good if somewhat sticky run today.

Last few miles before the cafe I wasn't feeling all that so I passed on Rusper. Whatever they put in the fruit cake at the cafe did the trick. And I was goaded by Big Mike and Robyn into Box Hill, but that wasn't to be.

Adam and I got stuck at the end of a long queue for the loo's. We were the last two left at the cafe. So after a quick chat with Joyce we made our way back at a fair clip. I kept with him for as long as I comfortably could, ta for the tow Adam. Luckily by then we had caught up with a few people so I cycled the rest of the way back with Peter on the Pinarello. Managed a respectable, for me, 16.5 avg.

Worked out ok in the end as it gave me more time in the avo to get to GB's.

[SimonJOsborne]

Yep, I think it went something along the lines of, "If you don't do Box Hill this week you are a big jessie"

[Steve B]

First off, great to see Brian R back on his bike after a lengthy 3 months off with a nasty broken shoulder. Being able to do some hard core turbo work over the last month or so, meant that he could jump straight back in and join the 20 group. Nice work

Also good to see Simon back after his broken elbow - neat scar Simon!

Great turn out at CSS - i think 80 odd.

Decided not to go with Jon's 'legs of steel' ride, because compared to Jon, George, Paul H etc, I've got 'legs of paper mache' when it comes to hills. (All we need is a 'Ringo' and we have our own fab four).
A new 20 group was called up next and 20 joined it.

Now the embarrassing bit. I had taken the car to the garage in the morning with the bike in the back. I obviously didn't put the rear wheel back in squarly, which was not an issue to start off with as I forgot to push down the release lever on the caliper. But when I get to the lights before the Reigate steps, I remember and push the lever down. Not realising, the rear brake is now rubbing- der. So up the steps and everyone is going away from me, even the kid on the pavement on his BMX , and I'm thinking sh*t I must be ill or something, this is not good at all. After catching the group down the other side, I got to the front and stopped at the common to quickly check the bike and - Doh! Oh well, gave everyone a laugh

Anyway, back to full strenght now and once into the lanes, and after picking up Marek, who had jumped ship from the 'legs of kryptonite' ride, the pace picked up a touch, averaging nearly 20 exactly- good pacing.

Thru&off was split into 2 groups, I was in the first with Marek and Toby.
Oh my word, what a sprint, one of the best ever. Absolutely text book stuff, couldn't have been more perfect. I knew Marek would go quite early so new I had to position myself close to him otherwise he would get too big a gap. Toby was directly behind Marek, but this was ok as he is super fast also. 60m past the right hander Marek goes for it big time and Me and Toby jump on. This was fast, but getting faster, I didn't think Marek could keep this speed going but he did. Round the left kink and I now have to drop it on to the 12 sprocket. We are really motoring now and for a sprinter this is what it's all about. Adrenalin pumping I make my move but Toby makes his at the same time. I have to go wider but manage to keep the momentum going. Legs going full speed now and with the sign looming I go past both of them for the win. I don' know what speed I had but it must have been close to 40 - Marek , Toby? Thanks for the lead out Marek, that was awesome, and thanks for the kind words earlier in the thread

Went back the normal route and did a lot of the work on the front as I felt quite good, but then my legs died a bit up through the golf course, so took a breather ready for the drag up Merstham. Sean showed good form and broke away before the drag but Adam pulled him back. Me and Adam shared the work on the lower part but I then tried to get away with a big effort at about 2/3 up. I think I almost had him but not quite enough legs. We then took turns again blasting it down into Coulsdon, where a nice latte was in order - thanks Brian

Again, another great day in the saddle

Steve