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DE LAUNE CYCLING CLUB FOUNDED 1889
Sponsored by EVANS CYCLES (UK) Ltd. & SPECIALIZED CYCLES
Dec 2003 Valentia Road (to the Left) and its
dilapidated housing has now completely vanished, while the railway arches in
Station Road still thunder to the roar of a busy train schedule (including
Channel Tunnel traffic). The arches remain in use by market traders and are
currently being refurbished (sadly, losing some of their individuality in the
process).
July
2005
THE PRESIDENTS REPORTS HIS LAST AS PRESIDENT We had our AGM at the British Legion club on the 20th of June and we had a good turn out considering people being on holidays. You could say we had cream and not quantity! The atmosphere was good; well it would be with beer at £1.30 a pint. Guess what? We had volunteers to do jobs. I was so pleased to see two of our younger members wanting to be on the committee. James King and Sam Fensterheim and of course we obliged! A voice from the back said ‘I would like to be the Social Sec’. I asked Stax who it was, as I had not seen him before. It was Cliff Steel without a beard, bless him. He does 95% of the work for the Belgium Night so we let him have the job! Due to pressure at work and at home (new baby) James Lett stood down from the Treasurers job. Thank you James for your good work. Don White has agreed to take on the job but on the understanding that should a younger guy come along he will stand down. Thanks Don. It is not good for a club to have too many old farts like Stax, Don and I doing jobs. We need you younger guys to carry on the De Laune tradition. We have a similar situation with the General Sec job. I know that Peter Harris would like a rest from the job but no one has come forward. Knowing Peter, he would not drop us in it, but will carry on until a replacement can be found. Thank you Peter. Looking down the list of the members in the engine room all I can say is “Thank you all, it has been a pleasure working with you” Kav. YOUR NEW PRESIDENT
You will see a lot about my past in another part of this magazine, and on the web site. Now for the future. Just like every other organisation, in order to grow and prosper, the Club needs support and practical help from its members, so be warned, I may be contacting you to ask for your assistance! Together we can make the De Laune CC even more famous. To paraphrase Martin Luthar King. We have a dream, then a purpose. We must visualise the dream, set goals to enable us to achieve the dream, and ensure that we achieve our goals. Our goal is the continued success of the De Laune CC Here’s to the future. Roy Savery“El Presidente” Who?, What?, Where? and When? of: Your President - Roy Henry Savery - born on the 30th July 1936 and joined De Laune CC on the 20th February 1964. Roy was born within the sound of Bow Bells, not that you would ever guess! He has an elder sister and a younger brother and had a good "Inner-London" education. Roy's will to win and dedication to the task, any task except schooling, was gestated during the austerity of those post-war days. He took to bike riding at a tender age, learning his skills on that hotbed of cycling, Canvey Island. His interest in cycling at that time was touring and by the age of 14 he had toured Devon and Cornwall. The following year he went on to tour Wales.
By 1960 he wanted to try road racing and changed clubs to the CCI (Cycling Club Islington) where he proved himself a very capable rider. Roy showed such promise that he decided to work for himself so that he could train and race as he pleased. It was at this period of his life that be became involved with the concept of Time Management, something that he has carried on into all of his activities. He believes that you can do anything, and fit anything in, if you want too - and he did and still does. I think the whole system is based on getting up earlier and earlier! He raced at a high level and his best "25" was 56:59 (the comp record was 55:11 at that time). 1959 saw him winning the London Centre Pursuit and representing England in the Good Friday "England v Rest of the World" track event. During 1961 he lived and raced, for three months, in Lorient, France. During this time he was very successful and won enough prize money to pay all his expenses. After he retired at the top, at the age of 27, he gave away (to his father no less) his window cleaning business and, in 1967, joined the world of Life Insurance sales, something that I expect you all knew! He quickly made the grade aided by his likeable nature, his "never-give-up" attitude and a thick skin. In those days the Life business seemed to be full of active or ex cyclists, including, just from our Club, John Kavanagh, John Geoghegan and Malc Adams. Roy eventually started up on his own and until recently put in the hours (well, he needed the money?) - he has now retired from the business. His selling ability (and a lot of De Laune members contributions!) allowed him to join the "Million Dollar Round Table" - you have to achieve a mega amount of new business to join - in fact only the top 3% salespeople in the whole world qualify. His continued success has meant that he is now a Life Member and annually attends their conferences in America. He often participates on committees and was a speaker at their 1993 annual meeting in Boston. Over the years his business evolved and these days he sees his mission as a "Financial Coach", helping his clients to get more out of life, not just financial wealth. He has addressed audiences in Singapore, Malaysia, USA as well as the UK on this subject. Roy had always taken part in the Cyclists' running race's that used to take place in November and December each year, and for many years was often in the winning team. In 1973 he, along with Mike Peel, joined Blackheath Harriers (they were in turn followed by Brian Saxton and John Kavanagh). He acquitted himself very well and when he turned 40 he was their Veterans Champion twice, and, was in fact, their leading veteran for several years. In the marathon boom he again dedicated his time to training and achieved the fine time of 2:40:51 in the 1986 London Marathon, at the age of 49. Unfortunately a bad skiing accident, where he was hit from behind, left him with a badly damaged knee. This, of course, effected his running and cycling and he has never quite got back to his former glory. These days he spends more time on his other interests which include the Toastmasters International Club (public speaking not red coats and a gavel!), an organisation that helps people to improve and develop their speaking skills. He founded a branch called the Bromley Speakers Club, which meets on the first and third Thursday each month and I am sure he will give you full details if you only pluck up the courage to ask. His other main interest is his Church activities - he sometimes preaches at the Westerham Hill Baptist Church. Roy is now using his skills to teach young children, within local schools and his church, and to nourish them in the philosophy of "Successful Living" - how to achieve whatever you want in life. Again, I am sure he would be pleased to elucidate. Roy is also involved with the CBMC (Christian Business Men Committee) and is currently the President of the Bromley branch. They meet on the first Thursday each month, at the Bromley Court Hotel - you can get a free lunch if you mention Roy's name. Roy is married to Gina (his first and only wife, he'll tell you) and they have one very bright son, James, who is is now a Doctor of Chemical Engineering. Roy still jogs (he hates that word) when his knees will let him and ski's annually. He is still helping at various events and enjoys "pushing-off" as it gives him time to chat to the competitors. He is now racing again and is in serious training for the World Vets in 2006 when he will be in the over 70's (just). He has already set several club age-related records and is promising more... watch this space! SPECIAL REPORT – THAT NEED YOUR SUPPORT Brian Dacey 4 May 2005 By our best estimate we think that this is going to involve cycling something in the region of 1500km. This sounds like quite a long way now that I think about it. I had a look at the Andes in an Atlas a couple of days ago. They make the Pyrenees look like a speed bump. I'm also a little worried about the altitude. Up at 5,000m the air is starting to get decidedly thin. Nausea, headaches and general exhaustion are a given. And apparently only 3% of Bolivia’s roads are paved. The remaining 97% is largely made up of rough corrugated dirt tracks. Dirt tracks which are often found to be inhabited by thundering Lorries which like nothing more than to hurtle along at dangerously high speeds leaving anyone foolhardy enough to be on a bike engulfed in a noxious cloud of suffocating dust. But it’s not all going to be fun, fun, fun! After all, what feels better after a gruelling day’s hard riding up the side of a mountain than to have to pitch your tent on some rocks and cook a delicious dinner of whatever tinned food may or may not have been available at the last tiny roadside shack before bedding down for the night against winds of -30°C? Then there’s also the fact that it’s really rather difficult to know exactly where you are up there, let alone where you’re going. Road maps? Pah! Signs? What are they?! We are hoping that the inevitable extra mileage due to getting completely lost does not add more than 50% to the total distance that we need to cover in our paltry 4 weeks. Life would no doubt be made considerably easier in this respect if one of us could speak Spanish. Life, however, as we all know, is not easy. Still, it's all in the name of a good cause eh?! Established over 50 years ago to protect the rights and interests of children who have lost their parents due to war, natural catastrophe or disease, SOS Children’s Villages and youth facilities are now home to some 58,000 children and adolescents in 132 countries around the world. Their guiding principle is that children who cannot remain with their biological families nevertheless have a right to family care, safety and a fair chance in life and should be given love, protection and respect as well as access to education and medical care. In countries where the available educational and vocational facilities are inadequate SOS often run their own kindergarten, primary and secondary schools and vocational training centres for the children and young people in their care and for children from the neighbouring communities. On top of this SOS Medical Centres provide basic medical care for the local population through vaccination programmes, childbirth facilities, guidance on nutrition, mother-and-child clinics, hospitals and dental clinics. You can find out more about the fantastic work that they do at http://www.soschildren.org/ We are aiming to raise £5,000 through the kind and generous sponsorship of
all those people that know us, and maybe even a few big-hearted folk that don’t.
http://www.justgiving.com/overtheandes The actual costs of the expedition are coming entirely out of our own pockets so every single penny that is given will go directly to SOS. I'll try to keep you updated as to our progress with (ir)regular e-mails, although until we get up there it is impossible to know how regularly this can be done. In summary, we are doing something very hard to raise money for kids that really need it so please give us some cash. Thank you a million times in advance for your generous support.
Subject: How to almost die on top of a mountain (parts
1 - 7) We also wondered at how few people are stupid enough to live upon or for that matter even pass through such a horrendously inhospitable landscape. The odd thing about a high altitude desert is that the sun that is beating down directly onto you from the cloudless sky is searingly hot and feels like it's cooking you alive, but the wind that's battering you from every direction and the increasingly thin air that you're heaving down into your lungs is so icy cold as make you involuntarily stop breathing every now and then which is somewhat disconcerting to say the least. We were however very pleased with ourselves for having worked out that this must account for the complete lack of habitation and/or shops and therefore food and water available. We have come dangerously close to having to lick the condensation from the inside of our tents on more than one occasion. This seems to have been narrowly avoided by the state of near cryogenic suspension that our bodies have been placed into every night by sleeping out at -10 degrees. It is thus with a sense of some surprise that we find ourselves arrived in Uyuni having made it pretty much over the top of the Andes without recourse to bus nor truck nor donkey. We have pedalled every last kilometre and have the saddle sores to prove it. My fingernails may be bleeding but by God am I pleased with myself. If nothing else it just goes to prove that stubbornness and bloody-mindedness will outdo fitness and preparedness every time! Having re-read this e-mail I have just been struck by how overwhelmingly negative it may sound to those that don't know what a jolly positive fellow I am. To be honest, I still don't think that I've really done justice to just how hellish the whole experience is proving to be, BUT... it would be remiss of me not to mention that it has been and continues to be probably the most incredible experience of my life. Some of the views that I've seen leave you completely gob smacked, made all the sweeter by the knowledge that you are the only 3 people for miles and miles and miles around. I've seen the Milky Way every night amongst the clearest skies I've ever seen, scattered with so many thousands of stars that it's almost dazzling. The weirdness of watching a sunset and then turning around to watch an almost equally bright moonrise 60 seconds later cannot be put into words. The looks of utter bemusement and confusion on the face of every villager that we pass serve to give us the warm and reassuring (if slightly smug) sense that we are doing something that really not very many people have done before. And I know it's a cliché, but the people are so nice! Anyhooo... Having just crossed the highest desert in the world, tomorrow we are to set of across the largest and highest salt plain in the world (it's all superlatives out here...) 180kms of pure white, blinding salt. Deliciously, gloriously flat salt. Which is a very good job really as we are rather behind our ridiculously over-optimistic schedule, meaning that we now have to do the final 650kms in 8 days, with the Chilean Andes still to conquer. Still, should be all downhill on that side eh? Many thanks to those of you that have already generously sponsored us through a donation to SOS Children. To those of you who either haven't got round to it yet or were scuppered by me giving you the wrong address, you can still do your bit by going to www.justgiving.com/overtheandes . I should also point out that due to technical difficulties I can only send this e-mail to people that have e-mailed me recently so please feel free to forward it on to anyone that you think may be interested that's not on the list. Fingers crossed for the final push. I hope to see you all in the not too distant future, hopefully still with all my fingers and toes (although it was -18 degrees on the salt plain last night!) Jay. The De Laune Open 25 Mile Time Trial (Fred Peachey Memorial) Sunday 31st July, 2005 – first rider off at 7 am. The time is getting ever closer now to the above event and already I have four De Laune riders entered in the shape of Nick Butler, James Lett, Harry Corbett and Jim Evans – potentially the makings of a good team with two of the ‘lads’ – Nick and Jim already under the hour this year. I had promises from James King and Sam Fensterheim at the Club AGM last week, that they would also be entering, to ‘fight’ for another year for the Johnson Trophy. Don’t forget that this event has been declared the Club Championship 25 for which there is a trophy to be won – I believe the oldest trophy that the club owns – dating back to 1902. Many a famous name has been engraved thereon – rumour has it that your Ex-President Kav won the cup a number of times. The course is the same as last year Q25.8 on the A.28 starting at Chilham and going towards Canterbury then turns just short of the city and retraces back to the outskirts of Ashford, finishing back at Chilham. Paul Mill from Team Edwards was fastest last year with a 54.13 ride, just a trifle slower than 2003 when he completed the course in 53.48. Paul hasn’t entered yet but he still has plenty of time, as entries do not close until 19th July. I am hoping we will attract a good number of entries as the event has also been adopted as counting towards the Eastern Counties Best All Rounder competition. Apart from the riders I do rely heavily on club members volunteering help for marshalling etc. At the moment I have most aspects covered but would appreciate just 2 or 3 more offers – if you can help please give me a ring on 01622 727649 and your help will be gratefully accepted. Val the
Time Trial Results
ALL THE RACING RESULTS & NEWS OPEN PROMOTIONS HELP NEEDED We only put a few events on each year and one would have thought that with our membership, it would be relatively easy to get volunteers. No way. Yes, there are always the few, and I mean few, that help. And this year's circuit race at Crystal Palace, on 14 June, was no exception. With one day to go I had only 5 helpers, but thanks to email and family, I managed to get enough together so that the event took place. The racing was exciting and well supported with riders, even on this fresh June evening. Only one De Laune rider, namely young Sam, who this particular week did not do quite as well as he has in the preceding ones. Two minor crashes gave the first aiders some work; otherwise all went smoothly. My grateful thanks go to, in no particular order: Cliff & Carol Steele, Ross Fryer, Sam Armour, Adam Glaser, Bill Wright, Dave & James King, Mick Valentine, Stax, Brian Dacey, Kav, George Slater, Nigel Scales, my son Mark & my partner Terri and especially the person who most of you know least, although he has been in the Club over 50 years, Michael Moore. In the end it was a good De Laune effort and appreciated, yet again, by the organisers, riders and supporters. It was very good to see a member who has not been around for some years, and a good rider he was too. Yes, Georgie Plonka popped in to watch the racing, a little older, a little rounder but still the same old George. Sorry we couldn't talk longer. Later a few of us enjoyed a very pleasant pizza and eventually went home well pleased with the evening. Mike Peel SOUTHERN XC MTB Round One held on April 10 2005 at East Grinstead VETERAN - MEN 26 4 01:25:37 WILLIAM WRIGHT DE LAUNE CC/EVANS
Round two held on May 29 2005 at Deepcut SUPER MASTER - MEN Crystal Palace Circuit Races The 6th night of racing on May 31 Youth Erick Rowsell (Sutton CC), Sam Fensterheim (De Laune CC) & Ben Atkinson (VC Londres) went clear after a few laps & this lead group became two when Atkinson fell back into the clutches Amy Thompson (GB Cycles), Matthew Zeitz (Sutton CC) & Elliot Storey (PCA/Ciclos Uno), who were involved in a great fight. Rowsell & Fensterheim continued to extend their lead until with two laps remaining Rowsell attacked & went onto win by 10 seconds. 1 Erick Rowsell
Sutton CC The 7th night of racing on June 7 This group did split at one point seeing Sam Fensterheim (De Laune CC), Erick Rowsell (Sutton CC), Simon Lewis (VC Londres) & Iain Cooke (VC Londres) go head. Chasing hard was Louise Mahe (Sutton CC), Ben Atkinson (VC Londres) & Price & soon the lead group were back together. Another big chase was kept up throughout by Rebecca Thompson (GB Cycles) who in turn had Robert Lambton (VC Londres) & Jake Butler (Sutton CC) on her heels. As were Corrine Hall (VC Londres), Patrick Molinari (Team Economic Energy) & Euan Cattermole (VC Londres). At the front of the race Mahe had lost a little time & placed 7th, finishing 20 seconds down on the 6 up sprint for 1st. By a whisker Lewis won from Rowsell, Cooke, Fensterheim, Price & Atkinson. 1 Simon
Lewis VC Londres The 8th night of racing on June 14 1 Erick Rowsell
Sutton CC The 9th night of racing on June 21 1 Alex Aldham Breary
PCA/Ciclos Uno Brixton Cycles Beastway MTB May 25 1 exm Steve Hambling VC Deal/Active Folkestone 00:54:02 36 mam Clifford Steele De Laune/Evans/Specialized 01:01:26 Brixton Cycles Beastway MTB week three held on June 8 and hosted by Gemini BC. 1 exm Steve
Hambling VC Deal/Activ Folkestone 01:00:26 We were very happy to see Beastway founder member James Lyon (De Laune CC) return after a few years away to be placed 17th & 10 expert, sadly a one off as he is now marooned up north. Brixton Cycles/Torq Beastway MTB, week five held on June 22 and hosted by Lee Valley Youth CC 1 Michael
Butler VC Deal/Hammonds/Activ 00:45:19 4 laps Shaun Hurrell (Maldon & District CC) went into the lead & a good fight looked set, but Michael Butler (VC Deal/Hammonds/Activ) was writing the script & he overtook Hurrell & then drew steadily ahead to win. Nonetheless only 31 seconds separated 1st from 2nd & 28 seconds more before Joe Perrett (Lee Valley Youth CC) took 3rd ahead of Kurt Warner (Team Darenth), debutante Sam Fensterheim (De Laune CC) & Rebecca Thompson (Bike Plus). LVRC Crit Champs held at Eastway on June 5 Cat F ESL Thursday League: June 23 4 Sam Fensterheim De Laune CC Youth Circuit races held at Hillingdon Cycle Circuit On, June 26. Around of the National Youth Series U16/A
This is how this article should have read in last
months DLN. The venue for this years ‘Enduro6’ (now called EnduroPLUS) was changed from the usual Trentham Gardens course to Catton Park near Tamworth, a course that has previously hosted rounds of the National Points Series. Catton Park is regarded by many as a fairly flat circuit and, while it’s certainly less hilly than Trentham, anyone who has ridden more than 3 laps will confirm that it’s definitely not flat! Ross and I had teamed up again for this event although a near disaster ensued on Saturday night when Ross realised that he was unable to get a hire car. A quick set of phone calls followed before Bill Wright stepped in and lent Ross his car for the weekend with strict instructions that Ross was to drive it like he owned it. Ross turned up on Sunday morning having done the 2hr London to Tamworth drive in 1hr 40 minutes… It had rained slightly on Saturday night and the weather early Sunday was still looking a bit undecided. The course was very greasy in places, the clay soil hadn’t taken kindly to the rain and Ross quickly swapped to mud tires. The event is run under “parc-ferme” rules meaning that there is a large Pit Zone and each pair of riders is allocated a 6’ by 4’ space where they must store all necessary kit for the 6 hour race – tools, clothes, food, chair, umbrella, sense of humour. The Pit Zone contains toilets and a water tap and racers are only allowed out of this Zone if they are on the course racing. We were ready in our little space by 9.45am, waiting for the race to start at 10. By now, the sun had started to appear and by lunchtime, it was a blazing hot day and the course began drying out rapidly. I’d pre-ridden the course on Saturday so knew what to expect and Ross had already made it clear that he wasn’t doing the Le Mans style run at the start so I lined up just behind mountain biking legend and former 6-times World Mountain Bike Champion Ned Overend who’d come over from America at the request of the event sponsors Specialized and was racing with his son as part of a publicity team. Also present was British Olympic rider Nick Craig and several other big names from British mountain biking. Ross and I were going to have our work cut out… The 800m run to the bikes was over fairly quickly and I came into the pit area just behind Nick Craig to pick my bike up from Ross and ride out onto the course. We’d decided to ride double laps of the 5.25-mile course thus giving each of us an hours riding followed by an hours rest. I completed my 2-lap stint in almost exactly one hour and handed over to Ross. I spent the next hour eating energy food and talking to Ned Overend who, although he is 55 (over twice my age), was still managing to ride a lap almost 5 minutes faster than either Ross or I were able to. By the time I started out on my 3rd and 4th laps, the course had dried out considerably although a lot of the singletrack sections in the woods had the consistency of plasticene, which made for an energy-sapping ride. The long draggy climb at the back of the course seemed to be getting longer and steeper with each lap too but at least it was warm and sunny and Team De Laune was only just outside the top 10. We had a race-long battle with the guys in the next Pit Area to us as well. One of them was about 1 minute quicker a lap than either Ross or me, the other guy was about a minute slower so we were neck and neck for most of the race. It was only when one of them had a mechanical in the last 15 minutes of the race that Ross was able to get past putting us in a creditable 12th place out of 84 teams in the Men’s Pairs race. We’d completed 12 laps between us in a time of 6.05.52. Each of us had ridden 6 laps 32 miles 2750ft of climbing and annoyingly enough, Ross got the fastest lap time, 9 seconds quicker than me! Note: my first lap time includes the 800m O.M.A. E-MAILS & NEWS Dear Mark, Meanwhile, all well here, we are expecting our 8th Grandchild in June - no cyclist so far! I still get the DLN on this infernal machine, thanks to all who put in all the hard work. Good luck to the De Laune during this racing season.
Below Malcolm has also written about some of his memories of Chris. Perhaps my most typical memory of Chris is trying to wake him up by banging on his window at five in the morning prior to going to a two-up and finding he was in fact in the bathroom shaving his legs!....as if he thought that might actually help us to beat a PB on some godforsaken course in deepest Surrey....or the time he actually drove over one of his best racing wheels as we were leaving for that well-earned breakfast in the Happy Eater.....his response was typical “Oh what the hell I'm hungry and I need a new set anyway so let’s eat!”. I also recall burning one of his best tubs on his rear wheel because I had strapped the bikes on the back of my car in a rather hurried fashion (because he was late presumably!). Again his response was to simply blag one from some sucker who thought he might actually see the wheel again. However my favourite...though not at the time...was when he and I were driving up to Shropshire late one Sunday evening in a snowstorm on the way to a framebuilding course. He is at the wheel of my car on the M1 when he calmly announces....“I've lost a contact lens, take the wheel”. So there we are visibility next-to-nothing, pitch black, and our hero is scrabbling on the floor looking for his cursed lens while still appearing to keep his feet on the gas. After what seemed an age he calmly announces “Panic over, I’ve found it”. Only Chris would be so stupid, but also only Chris would be so lucky to actually find the needle in the haystack. I will miss his daft enthusiasm for all music, cars, bikes and much else as well as his crazy yet optimistic and positive approach to life. It is so cruel for him to be struck down with so much more to live for. He will be missed. Malcolm Smith
My 1st Triathlon - Basildon Off-Road Tri The date, Sunday May 8th, the place, Basildon, Essex, and my first ever triathlon. It wasn’t the 7.OOam start that meant rising at 5.OOam on a Sunday morning to get the necessary food and drinks down my neck that made me slightly nervous. It was the feeling of not quite knowing what I had let myself in for. I have participated in numerous running races before, but this was different, after all in a run all you do is turn up on time and run as best you can. Here not only did I have to attempt three different disciplines but also the transitional areas, which are very difficult to re-enact when training. However, thanks to the helpfulness of the marshal’s, it all went well and I completed my first triathlon successfully and managed to finish 58 out of a 100. I went away feeling happy with myself, aware of the areas I needed to improve upon for next time and very much looking forward to my next triathlon, albeit at hopefully a more sociable hour. Scott Wellcome
This is an early season off-road event aimed at the first time racer, within the confines of Gloucester Park, Basildon. The unpredictability of good old British weather makes this a fun challenge, as those who survived last year’s mud bath will vouch. An Essex Police Tri Club promotion Blenheim Palace Triathlon May 22nd saw the inaugural Blenheim Triathlon with over 2,200 competitors taking part in super-sprint and sprint distances. The transition area was set up in the Palace Courtyard with slightly confused Japanese tourists looking on. The swim took place in the lake in front of the Palace with the temperature as breathe taking as the views, followed by a long run up to the transition area. The bike section then looped and weaved through the undulating Capability Brown estate grounds at times descending sharply down to cross a number of covered cattle grids! The run then followed through the gardens around the “Queen’s Pool” finishing up and over Vanbrughs’ Grand Bridge in front of the Palace. In all a fantastically picturesque setting, all staged in closed off roads. Most of the cheers I could hear in my wave were for James Cracknell, even my wife seemed more impressed with his efforts! TIMES-Swim 750m-13:21-Bike 20k-36:22-Run 5.2k 23:07-Total Time 1:19:31 (5mins behind James ! ) POSITION-102nd out of 1425 Males
Royal Windsor Triathlon June 19th the BTA Event of the year for 2004 took place in exceptionally warm conditions.There were over 2,500 competitors in the Olympic and sprint distances. The swim was in the majestic Thames, initially against the flow, under the railway bridge, then turning around under the A332 relief road, returning past the boat dwellers sipping their Sunday cuppa, avoiding the swans and ducks to climb out and run into transition. The bike section then headed into the Berkshire countryside returning through the Windsor Great Park, winding through the town back to the transition area. The multi-lap run course initially winds up to the Castle along the High Street, over Eton Bridge and along Eton High Street passing Eton College. The exceptionally hot conditions taking a heavy toll on those runners out later on the course. Once again a very popular well organised event. TIMES (Including transition)-Swim 1500m 25:28- Bike 40k 1:11:20-Run 10k 44:55-Total Time 2:21:39 POSITION-116TH out of 1450 Will Matthews MARK'S BUREAU of INVESTIGATION I have just had a very interesting few weeks with people who trace me via the De Laune News on the clubs website, and I hope that the following may be of interest. I wonder if you can assist me in tracking down the above. I think he is a second cousin of mine. I think he would be in his 80's and I did hear that he is still around giving lectures from time to. He is related to me through my mother's family who are the Lindsay’s. In the 1950's my grandmother was living in Lee Green in South East London. My mother was Dorothy Lindsay, her sisters were Kate, May, Letitia and Grace. My mother's married name was Groves. Any assistance you could give me would be greatly appreciated. Marion Cocksedge (nee Groves) I will see what I can find out for you, have not heard is name mentioned of late but I do remember him in the 50’s I think I was in the wrong vocation - I should have been a private detective with all the enquires I get. Hope I have not kept you waiting to long and yes Ken is still in the land of the living.
Ken Joy Hi Mark Just to let you know that I duly wrote to Ken and he has come back to me on the e-mail. He is going to dredge up some childhood memories and let me have chapter and verse. I think he was pleasantly surprised to hear from me and I would like to once again thank you most sincerely for your assistance. Did you know that "older" people are being welcomed back into the working world? I am sure your local police authority would admire your powers of detection! Best wishes – Marion I found this in DLN May 2002: "Do You Remember”? The bicycle repair and frame shop of Percy and Bert Barnard in the railway arches at Brixton. Herbert William Barnard was my father and Percy my grandfather. The shop was not in the railway arches but on the opposite side of Station Road. The shop closed owing to a compulsory purchase order. My grandfather died a few years later but my father went on to become a director at Holdsworths. He died about 35 years ago but my mother still survives at age 93. She is now very limited in what she can do. My brother-in-law has located and purchased a 1921 Barnard frame - presumably this would have been made by my grandfather. This has awakened a new interest in the old business. My memories of the shop and workshop go back about 50 years; my mother's would go back another 10 years or so. We have very little knowledge of the origins of the business or how my grandfather became involved. The two cycle clubs that were mentioned when I was a child were the De Laune and the Old Kent Road (I can find no mention of the latter now). I believe my grandfather was well known in the cycling world in his younger days, but when I knew him he was already quite old and worked quietly in his workshop at the back of the shop making and repairing frames. Does anyone have any memories of the business in those old days? My mother would be very interested. The shop was due to be demolished after it closed and to be replaced by a blank wall. I was surprised to find that Vic and Kit Clark's shop next door still survives as the Market Office although everything else including some roads have disappeared. My father mentioned an even older shop. As far as I can remember, he showed me the place where it stood next to the then existing shop. Even my mother knows nothing about it so it must have been demolished before the War or destroyed during it. It was very small. Regards Alan Barnard --- alanbarnard@blueyonder.co.uk All you members that had ” Barnards” and I can think of a few, Charlie Carlton, John Kavanagh, Don White what can you tell us about Percy and Bert – was Bert a member of the De Laune? Not only did the shop deal in Bikes it also had a great smell of Paraffin for they maintained all the “Hurricane Lamps” for the market stools.( see below) Ed. The following is from the club committee meeting minutes dated 23rd January 1947: Proposed E.N. Chippendale seconded K.J.Hill that Albert Barnard of 65 Station Road, Brixton be elected as an ordinary member and that Albert (Junior) be elected honorary member. “Chippendale remarked that this made the first case in the club of Grandfather, Father and son all being members.” Hi Alan Have a little more news for you your father was a member off the De Laune Cycling Club It appears that he joined in January 1947 and if you are A D Barnard born the 2nd November 1946 he also join you as a member when you were three months old (were you riding a bike before you could walk. I have reproduced your e-mail in our next magazine and added a few bits about the shop together with a photo of looking along Station Rd towards where the shop would have been with the Arches on the right. When I go to print at the end of the month I will e-mail you a copy. The following is from club handbooks P. BARNARD – Vice President: 1934 to 1961.. An extract from Brixton Memories – Published by the Brixton Society Brixton Market in those days meant Station Road and Popes Road. There were no stalls in Electric Avenue. Customers might be from anywhere because Brixton was the biggest shopping centre in South London. Before it was bombed the extended Quin and Axten store on Brixton Road was much bigger than Bon Marché. Stall traders bought their goods cheaply at special traders’ supplies, from job lots and end of stocks - often from the Camberwell/Walworth area. Shops and stalls were open all night on the last few days before Christmas. Stalls were usually lit by two lamps on bell-shaped stands which needed pumping every two hours. A gallon of paraffin lasted all day. Before paraffin mantles were common, stalls were lit by an open flame like a blow lamp - this gave a poorer light equal to about six candles. Mark
I have received a letter from my mother, who would be remembered as 'Bonnie' Barnard. As well as my father being a member and myself being an 'honorary member', my grandfather Percy Barnard was Vice President for many years; but she did not indicate when this was. He was also President of the Old Kent Road club and she has photos and newspaper cuttings of Ted Wingrave presenting him with a medal "For Services to the Club". Ted and Anne Wingrave were old friends of my parents. regards Alan Barnard
Brian Saxton the clubs Archivist has been searching the records and Percy was a Vice President of the club from 1934 to 1961.
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Hello, I am emailing as I did a search for my great aunt Evelyn Hamilton and came up with your page. Sadly she died just over a week ago and I went to her funeral today. (not that sad as she lived to 99 and had a full life including working for the French Resistance and also once cycled 12,000 miles in 100 days). I have temporarily aquired a drawerful of amazing photographs of her and her shop- and I intend to make a web page to commemorate her achievements. Let me know if you know of anyone interested and I can send the URL when it is done. Apparently a half page obituary is coming out in the next week or two in the Daily Telegraph. Regards Michael Bannon
Hi Michael This is quite a coincident as only a few weeks ago I was searching the net to see if I could find anything about Evelyn and her achievements. Having lived in Brixton for the first 40 odd years of my life I remember the shop in Streatham very well. Was she still living in Swaffham as it was there that in the late 60s or early 70s that I last? had a drink with her in the local pub when I was visiting another old cycling friend (Reg & Min Dawkins) who was a friend of your aunts. I would be most interest to see the site when you set it up; also I am sure that the news of her death will reach the cycling press soon. I will mention it in our next club magazine. Please accept my condolences - see was a great lady My regards Mark Ballamy
Do we have any member who can recall anything about Evelyn, her shop was just opposite Streatham Common to the north side of Greyhound Lane, later to move to the south side when it became a motor cycle shop. I cannot remember any one in the De Laune with one of her bikes but I happened to mention to my ex business partner that I had been receiving these various mails and he was riding with the Southern Road Club in the late 1940 (long before we went into business together) and tells me that he was their club champion in 1948 riding an Evelyn Hamilton Bike. NOTICE BOARD
Dear Mark Ballamy, Thanks for your email of 23.05.05. The tricycle in the picture is a Cheylesmore of around 1881. Unfortunately, we inherited it as you see in the photograph - it had been grossly over-restored into an 'as new' condition so, since we also had a good machine in original condition, we have since sold the 'tarted up,' photographed one - we need the space - and the money! Regards, National Cycle Museum Scotford Lawrence.
I only received one answer claiming the bottle of wine and that was from Arthur How, he thought that it was a “Doubleday Humber” I though it was a “Salvo”. Peter Gunnell the member riding the trike did not know what it was, just that it had three wheels. Cheers Ed.
PRODUCED
by MARK & JASON BALLAMY ***end***
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Hi,
first of all I would like to thank you for allowing me to serve you as President
of the Club. 
One
of Roy's first jobs was as a Hoffman Presser for Willerbys the tailors, and one
of his work colleagues was a member of the Shaftsbury Cycling Club. He soon
coerced Roy into helping at a feed station in a 24-hour race. Roy was bitten and
soon joined the Shaftsbury and started time-trialing. 
