15km Individual Time Trial - Deepdale Feb 2011

Thank goodness it was only 15km…….

On a hot and windy Sunday morning, seventeen keen cyclists lined up to race against the clock and themselves.  The 15km Individual Time Trial sounded like a reasonably short distance to some but after the first lap all agreed they were happy for the smaller circuit.  First off the line was Vicky Sheilds and Shannon Farden - this was Shannon's first ride with Spokes and under Vicky's guidance she rode a very strong race.  Mitchell Crabb left just 1 minute later with mum Kylee Crabb hot on his tail at 2 minutes.   The wind wreaked some havoc right from the outset with many riders struggling to hold any kind of speed across the back straight.

Barb Glenister was next to leave and was followed by Reggie Richardson, Jennie Haste and new Spokes cyclists Cameron Dawson and Gus Ruiz.  Cameron was accidentally set off at 6 minutes when this was perhaps a bit unfair - the handicapper hadn't realised that Cameron was riding a hybrid with thicker tyres until he lined up!  Gus Ruiz powered from the start line and considering he hasn't previously raced with Spokes, he showed strength throughout each lap of the Deepdale Circuit.

Mike Reymond left at 8 minutes, followed by Julie Firth with this signalling the last of the minute intervals for start.  Jonathan Tamm left just 30 seconds after Julie Firth, followed by regular riders Tim Glenister, Reg Salmon, Duane Crabb and Eddie Muller.  As a result of his excellent form in the Australia Day race, Jamie Rowe was stretched out to a minute after Eddie Muller and was quick to settle into a high cadence and relaxed riding style. 

The first lap saw placings change however Vicky Sheilds and Shannon Farden managed to hold off an attack from Mitchell Crabb to remain the first team through.  Crabb was only a few seconds behind the duo and their placings would change throughout the race.  Kylee Crabb was a bit concerned that Mitchell was still out in front and put in a determined effort to catch him.  Gus Ruiz had a fantastic first lap and had caught many cyclists in front of him, a trend he continued into the second and final lap.  Reggie Richardson was a little nervous about the corners, but with encouragement from Peter Burchell she upped the pace as the time trial progressed, improving on every lap.

Everyone suffered in the heat and the wind, albeit no-one seemed to have told Jamie Rowe about either of the elements and he continued at speed around the course.  Mike Reymond did very well in his first time trial, maintaining a steady speed for the whole race.  Jennie Haste was enjoying her lovely new bike and Cameron Dawson was a inspiration to everyone racing around the course on his hybrid. 

Placings on the road continued to change and everyone was happy to hear the bell for the final lap.  Julie Firth was overtaken by Reg Salmon and Eddie Muller reigned in Duane Crabb.  Jonathan Tamm had fitted tri bars for the occasion and was very smooth and relaxed throughout the ride.  He held off the majority of riders behind him to finish in the top five.  There was some discussion at the start line about the benefits of tri bars with a certain Spokes member commenting that as much as he would like to use them he was reasonably sure his physique wouldn't allow the aero position........

Corrected times saw Jamie Rowe the the fastest time at 26:53 and an average of 34.1km/hr.  Reg Salmon was second fastest in a time of 29:49 (30.8km/hr) and Gus Ruiz in his first road race was third in 30:11 (30.4km/hr).  Full results are available in the table below and the Picasa photo stream has been updated with an array of pictures from today's event.

Many thanks to Tim and Barb for putting out and collecting the signs and to Roger and Tooves for marshaling.

Our next event is a Team Time Trial on the new Jandanol circuit.  Full details of this will be sent to all members in the coming week.

Results - 15km Individual Time Trial

Results - Australia Day Individual Road Race 2011

Pairs 15km Time Trial - Bring a friend

Some fast friends……………

Spokes Cycle Club started its 2011 calendar with a Bring a Friend - 15km Pairs Time Trial on the Deepdale Circuit.  Some old and some new friendships were formed and eleven teams lined up in preparation for the handicap start.   It was great to see a mixture of teams with many experienced riders teaming up with newer cyclists - Bec Swan and Kylee Crabb were one such team and headed off first.  They were closely followed by experienced duo Darryl and Vicky Sheilds and then Duane and Mitchell Crabb.  This was Mitchell's second ride with the Club and as a junior he rides with more restrictive gears, not that this slowed him down!

Barb Glenister and Paula Purcher joined forces with Barb excited to be out on her new bike!  Roger Swan introduced fellow mountain biker Tim Rogers to the joys of road riding and were next to leave - this was Tim's first event with the Club and having now seen him in lycra we reckon he is a natural!  They were followed by Patrick Bettridge and Jarrod Bell.  Rumour has it that Patrick and Jarrod had got talking after seeing each other out training and consequently teamed up for the Spokes event.  The more experienced teams were next to leave with Tim Glenister and Julie Firth joining forces, followed by Reg Salmon and Dave Kakuscek, and the very speedy duos of Paul Matthews and Gav Keyser and Paul Dodson and Paul Hearne.  Johno teamed up with close friend Paula for the event and this was her first introduction to cycle racing - welcome Paula and we hope to see you at future events.

With all the teams on the road the pace was on and really varied amongst all.  The strong winds made the back straight of the Deepdale Circuit quite tough and this is where the experienced teams really benefitted. The placings of the teams continued to change as the race progressed and those that were able to work together maintained consistent speed throughout.  Bec Swan and Kylee Crabb were reigned in early by Darryl and Vicky Sheilds who went on to cross the line first. 

Tim Glenister and Julie Firth were held up by a grain truck and were given a 20 second time alteration by the very generous timekeeper.  Roger Swan got a flat tyre which he tried to blame on wife Bec as she had pumped the tyres up pre race.  Roger's team mate, Tim,  was pretty happy for the rest albeit he did think Roger could have been a little slower in effecting his tube change to allow for a longer break!

Second to cross the line was Bec Swan and Kylee Crabb - this duo was excited to have held off the extremely fast finishing Paul Matthews and Gav Keyser and Paul Dodson and Paul Hearne.  Matthews and Keyser averaged 35.8km/hr for the event with Dodson and Hearne extremely quick at 37.0km/hr around the circuit. These are great speeds when viewed against a strong and warm breeze - it's also fair to say that Dodo probably didn't benefit too much from using Hearney as a wind break considering Paul's slightly smaller stature.

Tim Glenister and Julie Firth were next to finish and they were followed in by Patrick Bettridge and Jarrod Bell, and Reg Salmon and Dave Rakuscek who averaged 32.8km/hr. Barb Glenister and Paula Purcher combined really well to cross the line with an average of 28.2km/hr and they were followed in by Duane and Mitchell Crabb, Roger Swan and Tim Rogers and Johno and Paula.

The announcement of corrected times following the race identified one clear winner in the Crabb family and that was Kylee - it might be time for Mitchell to ride with mum as she was faster than dad around the circuit on this occasion!   Many thanks to Barb for her delicious slice post race - much appreciated by all.

Thanks to Ian Andrews, Dom Micono, Peter Burchell and Sharon for running the event, marshalling and timekeeping and to Tim and Barb for putting out the signs.  A full list of corrected results is below.

Our next event is the Australia Day Individual Road Race - this is an exciting 20km race around the Deepdale Circuit with prizes for placings and also novelty.  Please stay around for a lamington after the ride!   

Results - Pairs 15km Time Trial

25km Individual Road Race - Deepdale

Thank goodness for the southerly……….

A warm Sunday morning dawned and eleven keen cyclists lined up for the 'Farewell to 2010' 25km Individual Road Race around the Deepdale circuit.   The heat from the road was felt by all and it was probably the first time ever that cyclists almost welcomed the southerly, albeit only for its cooling efforts!

The pace was on from the start with the lead group of Paul Dodson, Paul Matthews, Reg Salmon, Paul Baldock, Eddie Muller and Mark Greene combining well to ensure good speed was maintained.  Julie Firth was just a few bike lengths behind after the first lap, followed by Donna Meneguzzo in her first ride with Spokes, Jennie Haste, Barb Glenister and fellow newcomer Paul O'Mara.

The teamwork of the lead group took its toll on Reg Salmon into the second lap who was unable to remain in touch with the pack, dropping off to ride a few seconds behind.  Dodson, Matthews, Baldock, Greene and Muller continued with their turns and by the fourth lap they had started to set their sights on picking up some of the individual riders who were struggling in the breeze on their own.

Donna Meneguzzo rode consistently throughout each lap , with only a slight variation in time for each 5km circuit.  Paul O'Mara improved as the ride progressed and was able to overtake Barb Glenister in the fourth lap of the event.

Julie Firth had been confused at the start of the ride about how many laps she needed to complete (Jules had thought it was a handicap start 15km race rather than the 25km group start event!) and so seemed pretty happy to receive the bell going into the last lap.

The lead group reigned in Barb Glenister and Paul O'Mara and continued working all the way to the finish line.  Paul Baldock tried for a very early lead out, attacking the group with 1500 metres to go.  Baldock couldn't maintain the pace and was soon picked up again by Dodson, Matthews, Greene and Muller.  Matthews, Greene and Dodson then started to inject further speed and effort about 300 metres from the finish and with just a few metres to go, Dodson was able to out sprint Matthews to take line honours.  Greene was next across the line followed by Muller and Baldock.  Dodson once again showed his experience and strength and it appears he is unbeatable on this course. Eddie Muller has had a stellar year having only joined Spokes in 2010 and improving consistently to now ride at scratch pace.

Reg Salmon finished some four minutes after the lead group and was followed in by Julie Firth, Donna Meneguzzo, Jennie Haste, Paul O'Mara and Barb Glenister.  Spokes Cycle Club would like to welcome Donna Meneguzzo and Paul O'Mara to the Club - both rode very well in their first ride with us.  

The event was followed by a try on of sample sizes for the Spokes Cycle Club jersey and knicks - remember if you wish to order these items then you will need to contact the Club as soon as possible.

Special thanks to Barb Glenister for putting out and collecting the signs, Deb Greene for marshalling, Paul Baldock and Roger Swan for assisting Barb in collecting the signs.  The picasa photostream on the right has been updated with pictures of the event courtesy of Roger at blackswanphotos.com  

Spokes Cycle Club would like to take this opportunity to wish you, and your family, a very Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year. 

We look forward to seeing you in 2011.

Results - 25km Individual Road Race