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DE LAUNE CYCLING CLUB

FOUNDED 1889

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De Laune News     May 2001        No. 826 -72^nd Year

www.delaunecc.org

THE PRESIDENTS REPORTS

Another social season gone, and the racing season starts. Saturday the 31st of March we had the OMA supper at the Blackheath clubroom. This was organised by our OMA Social Sec, Dot Fuller. Well-done Dot! Ken did not attend as he had his new pacemaker fitted a few days before. I hope to see you soon mate.

I think the 40 odd who attended enjoyed themselves. The format of this occasion is a good natter, good food; plenty of drink (if you are not driving) the cross toasting and the banter that follows. I apologise if the jokes were a little near the mark, but I keep telling my Pat to watch it!

It was good to see Bill Miles in attendance. He lost Doreen last month. Our condolences Bill, she was a lovely lady.

In the chair was our own, and very own, Mike Peel, who kept us all in order. Well he tried. Congratulations to Mike, who is the new Blackheath Harriers President.
It was good to see a lot of people who I would not normally see. We had the Knapmans, all the way from Ashford. Ken was one of our bright sparks and practical jokers in the 50's but I did note that on this occasion he did not say a word, and it was the same with Johnny Geoghegan !!! That woman turned up again, Mary Dods. I have got to find out who she is!

George Wood and Pat all the way from Brighton, never miss an OMA do. Happy Birthday George. What is it like to have a free TV licence?

On Good Friday I attended the meeting at Herne Hill with the rest of the De Laune supporters club. You know what it is like, you start to natter to people you have not seen for years, and you do not see the racing. I do know that our Track Sec, Alaric, found the going hard, and the whole field had put up their gears by 10 inches and had not told him about it.

After the meeting we made our way down to the clubroom for the prize presentation and supper, and again another good evening. This was attended by about 40 members and guests, but mainly the younger members. (If you are under 40 in our club you are a youngster!) How I wish we could get the two groups together. I will keep trying.

The supper was organised by Quil Forbes, with his new hair cut. I heard it said by the ladies on my table that he is lovely! Can we take him home? (He is a pain in the butt at committee meetings, bless him)

We had a three-course meal and wine for £7. This was down to Quil, Cliff and Carol Steel, and another new member (I hope) Paul, who was complete with chefs outfit and shorts.

The prize presentation was, well, different but funny. This was organised by our Chairman, Mike Peel, and Brian Saxton. It was what I call a conveyor-belt presentation. Firstly the prize winner was called up by Mike, who checked it was the right person, he was then handed to me, to be presented with the cup or medal, he was then handed to Brian Saxton who took away his cup or medal to be engraved. So he went back to his table with nothing.

Mat Goods, wanted to dedicate his prize to his Mum, Wife, Cat and the postman! I did note that the bulk of the prizes went to our committee members!

That woman turned up again, Mary Dods. I have found out that she is a cycling Groupie, and has now joined the club. Well-done Mary. It was a good evening and you must not miss it next year.

Kav.

P.S On the 1st of April, we had our De Laune road race at Eastways, which was organised by our own Ben Neville. This was a well-run event considering Ben had to move the venue at the last minute due to the foot and mouth problems.

I managed to get Brian Saxton, Tich Shambrook and Alan Rowe out from the home to help out. The event was full of top class riders, but this did not stop our Mat Goods from trying to demolish the field in the first half, with Ben holding back the bunch when Mat was away. I think the man with the hammer sorted them both out later. You have got to have a go. "He who dares wins " A full result should be in this edition.

Training ideas.

I said in the last DLN that I would sort out my little book with notes on training ideas. It all started in 1954 when I joined the club, and dear Alan Jackson, who was then riding for the army, arranged for the then reigning world pursuit champion to give us a talk. His name was Norman Shiel.

His talk lasted about two hours, and I never stopped taking notes. His ideas where aimed at novices, which I was at the time. He said you must change your body from a touring car to a racing car; you must change your standard petrol to high-octane fuel. He was talking about food. Plenty of quality, and not stodge. Why get rid of fat, and then eat more of it?

Your heart is your petrol pump, so you need a big one to pump through the fuel, or oxygen. Your lungs are the carb. So, again, they need to be large.  The fuel (oxygen) is then pumped to your pistons (your legs).

You have four pistons; two pushing down (thighs) and two pulling up (calves) Your timing must be spot on. It is no good pushing down, and not pulling up. How many riders do you see just pushing down, especially on hills? All that happens is the head go's up and down! The novice rider will do this if not told.

The question was asked:" where do I get the bigger heart and lungs "? His answer was," Train faster than you race, but over a shorter period." My first win was a second class 100 on the Bath Road, but not with a fast time. I was very strong with the miles I put in, but he told me "A strong cart horse has never won the Derby "  Point taken.

I remember asking him "Why have we a lot of fast time trialists in the UK, but we could not beat the foreigners away from home? His answer was that we ride too many time trials. We have got to mix it with short fast road races and track work. Remember, you must train faster than you race, but over a shorter period. He was not only the world pursuit champion, but the national 25 mile time trial champion, and he did not ride that many time trials.

I remember asking him what gear I should push, and he said you pedal a gear! And not push it. He then said you can pedal any gear you want, but it must be at about100 revs per minuet, and thus allowing a smooth pedaling action.

Another little note from my book was "If you look good, you feel good, and if you feel good you do good " This was Alan Jackson, telling me to shave my legs!

Never get back in the saddle half way up a hill, until the revs are too fast. Me falling off in the Catford Hill Climb!

Always have a target to aim for throughout the year. Each target must be a little harder than the last, and be positive in mind.

If you think you can, you will. If you think you might, you won't. It is all in the state of mind. Many a race has been lost before a pedal has turned; it is all in the state of the mind. This is me not getting out of bed to race, because it is raining!

Kav.

Calshot Training Weekend

It was wet, it was windy, it was miserable, foot and mouth was closing down the country! But what did we care - we were indoors!

The weekend course was attended by seven De Laune members, four from Brixton Cycles and one prospective member. Our numbers included Quil Forbes, Dan Haynes, Ben Neville, Alaric Lester, Bill Wright, James Peckham, Matt Baker plus yours truly in a non-riding capacity.

For those that don't know, Calshot is a wooden indoor velodrome and is the shortest track in the country. It is 142 metres round and 5 metres wide. The banking at its steepest is 45°. To give you an idea, it's just over half the circumference of Manchester, and less than a third of Herne Hill. Indeed, when you hit the 200 metre line, there is over a lap to go!

Riding a steep banked track is quite an experience. With the G forces in the turns, it is extremely exhilarating. It's something like an adventure ride at a theme park. Everybody loved it. At the end of the first session the general feeling was "Great, why haven't we done this before". I heard someone say, "When are we coming again", even before we'd got through the first day.

Anyone who missed this trip should certainly not make the same mistake again.

For any doubters, there should by now be photographic evidence on the website.

A major factor in the success of the weekend was the contribution of Malcolm Holmes the Calshot coach. He had the task of bringing together a group whose experience ranged from complete novice to Nationals finalist. He provided an excellent programme which involved a number of riding exercises and competitions including team pursuits; a short time trial (5 laps); a devil; individual pursuits; hare and hounds; flying laps.

Results: 5 lap time trial flying lap

There were four 2-hour sessions spread over two days. Each session comprised a warm up, stretching exercises, on-track training, competitions, warm down and stretching exercises. Malcolm kept everyone riding for most of the time. So, even when there was an individual pursuit match, all of the other riders continued above the blue line. It was clear that everyone made rapid progress as the programme unfolded. Not only that quite a few miles were clocked up.

It was great: no hills and no rain. Unlike a clubrun, if you got dropped, you just waited for everyone else to gain a lap and you joined in again. When it was all over, it was over. You didn't have a further half hour ride in the dark to get home.

Track training is beneficial for every other branch of the sport. It can improve speed, endurance, bike handling. It will give riders confidence and make them aware of what's happening around them.

Not surprisingly the boys had a few moments on the track, but no one was hurt. Quil (taking over the mantle of "Stack"?) was the only rider to actually come off. It happened twice at the same spot, just coming out of the banking. I don't think it was his fault. He was using one of the Cub bikes. This one has a low bottom bracket and 170mm cranks. It was really unsuitable for such a tight track! A tub came off as a result of his second tumble so he switched to one of the track's own bikes and had no more problems. Much to Quil's credit on each occasion he remounted immediately and got on with business.

During one of Quil's "happenings", Dan took evasive action. The only route open to him was the track centre, which he entered at speed. Having avoided everything including people, bikes and the tunnel, he came very close to joining the track in the wrong direction. With some creditable bike handling he managed to stay down on the green inner track, around the banking, and avoided a disaster.

The overall facilities at Calshot are excellent. Not only is there cycling, but other indoor activities include skiing and rock climbing. On the water there is wind-surfing and yachting.

The accommodation was clean, basic and more than adequate. There was a cafeteria which again was OK, but on the Saturday evening we decided to take a trip into Southampton for the obligatory curry. Quil said that he was still suffering from the after effects during the Sunday morning gallop.

Not only was the riding good, but the group had a lot of fun. I certainly enjoyed myself even though I didn't turn a pedal.

Thanks to all of the guys for making it a great weekend.

Pete

Track Bikes

We have acquired a few track frames, in addition to the original Club track bikes. The benefit of having a selection of bikes of different sizes is very clear. It means that members from different disciplines can explore the possibility of track racing without having to make a large financial commitment for their own bike before they are certain. As we make a push to develop the Club in terms of track racing, it will also help to attract new members.

The situation is that we now have six bikes of uncertain antiquity and various levels of completeness. There are three complete bikes. The rest need various bits and pieces (in one case it's just the bare frame).

So could all members please have a look in the garage, shed or spares box to see what you have. We are after bars, stems, chainsets, seat pins, saddles and wheels are always handy. Don't be shy; have a look and contribute what you can. Anything is better than nothing.

If you can help, either drop it off at the Clubroom or contact Alaric, Bill or Pete.

O.M.A. NEWS

Yet another successful O.M.Supper held at the Blackheath Clubhouse on 3lst March. We had a good number of 46 booked in, but 4 didn't make it, Ken was not quite over his weeks' stay in Kings College Hospital, Jean Berkeley not quite recovered from her and Dicks' holiday in India (a few unseemly comments were made at the news about Jeans' absence). The other 2 non arrivals thought that the Supper was on the following day-Sunday - remember that the next 'Do' will be on a Sunday - so D or M phone to confirm you can make it! It was good to see Bill Miles amongst us, and he said that he enjoyed the evening very much, there's no stopping him, he has now bought a new Mountain Bike, but so far has only used two of the many gears on it, its hard to get used to them all, so he says after riding 'fixed' for so many years, Bill is certainly moving with the times - keep it up Bill, I hope he doesn't ask to come out with Maureen & I, as I'm sure he would drop us up High Elms Lane ~ It was a good friendly evening nice to see Geoff Sinnett! It with us again, Geoff says he so enjoyed catching up with his 'old' mates that he was going to the Track on Good Friday to see them ell again. Old faithful 'George' rood accompanied by Patricia and a friend (home the good natured Repartee' wasn't too bold for her?) came up from Brighton as usual. Mike Peel did his usual good job as Chairman, as 'Our Pres' Kay didn't want to be in the spotlight - but try to stop him! He was in good form and kept -the cross-toasting going, with help from the usual crowd who always respond - especially to insults ~ I must say that the 'make do' Presidents Chain of Office looked, very fetching - quickly made up by "himself" it was a large white card saying PRESIDENT attached to a huge white chain, looked like an anchor chain hung around his neck - he thought that Terry wouldn't remember to bring the real one (how could you think that Kay I) We had all we needed for a good evening - good food, good friends and a few bottles of the 'necessary' including our good friends from The Nomads - Val & Brian Skelton & Dick Berkeley. So here's to the next date for you all, especially the ones who didn't make it on the 31st.

Past President Mike Peel has in the past provided me with

Who?, What?, Where? and When? of:

About some of our members the last being in September 1998, and I have been hoping that there would be some more, but I could not wait any longer.

So below you can read what Patricia had to say about her Dad at a recent luncheon to celebrate his 80th birthday. Ed.

GEORGE WOOD

There is so much I could say about dad, but where do I begin - and of course I wish to keep my job, because not only am I talking about my dad but also my boss, or that is what I let him believe he is. Though actually all of us around the table know who the real boss is and its not Dad, Pete or myself, it's Stephen (grandson Ed).

So back to the point of why we are here today, and I want to welcome all of you, in particular our Somerset Branch (George's brothers families) and to thank you for coming to help Peter and I celebrate the 80th Birthday of our Dad George. I must also mention that he and mum have just celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary.

Back in July 1938 at the tender age of 17 Dad became a member of the De Laune C.C. His proposer was Ron Hoare, who also happens to be my godfather, and Ron was obviously present at the committee meeting along with several others, one of whom, Bill Miles is here today. The De Laune C.C. made Dad an honorary life member and in 1994 the Club presented him with the gold badge of honour. I could at this stage tell you a story concerning another member here, Mark Ballamy, and an incident that took place at the annual remembrance service, which is held at Newnham, Kent. Suffice to say it involves a drink at The George (a pub) and a car bonnet. This must have happened many many years ago, as I cannot recall and since the year dot I have been going to these remembrance services. (You are not old enough Patricia; it must have been before you were born Ed).

I am sure the De Laune members here today could tell many a story about Dad and his Barnard Bike. Though his proficiency in this department was cut short by the Second World War, and having travelled extensively with the Fleet Air Arm. The Wood family were very fortunate that Dad and his two brothers Roy and Fred returned relatively unscathed.

Dad is also a member of the Patcham Priory Cricket Club and has been their president for many years, though unfortunately in these changing times the club is not what it used to be. When I spoke to Roy Forgham, who like Dad has been one of the Stalwarts of Patcham Priory, we were not sure when Dad joined the Club, but is about to tell me(* If different from 50 that's buggered up the end of the speech. Like the De Laune, Patcham Priory has been part of my life since I was a very small girl, and I must admit that our Sunday driving to all those different venues all over Sussex leaves me with many happy memories.

In August 1955 Dad joined the Brighton Lions Club and nearly 46 years later he is still an active member. Having been their president twice, though it took the club 34 years to persuade him to be president the first time in 1989.

There is a Jewish proverb that says you must prepare in your youth for old age. Dad obviously started earlier as he seems to be taking it in his stride, which leads me on very nicely to tell you, that as 'most of you know, especially those Lions among us, that I go to the annual charter Sometimes Dad and I sit with other people that we may not know, and I hate to admit this, but some of them assume that I am 'the wife', so they obviously think to themselves what a lucky chap this man is with that gorgeous looking 'babe' sitting beside him.

Those of you here today that are connected with these 3 clubs, will hopefully agree with me that Dad's contribution has been immense and long lasting.

Now going off on a completely different tangent. All my life and that of my brother Peter and now Angela, Philip and Stephen, we all thought that Dad, Mum, Grandad, Grandma were called George and Phyllis. But no, they have obviously been leading a double life, as I have it on very good authority (and it appeared in print in the Evening Argus,) that they are actually Albert and Mildred. The Landlord and his wife at The Sandrock in Ditchling, where Mum and Dad go to every Thursday evening, always thought Mum was called Mildred, and then in the Argus there was an article about Phyllis Wood, who is a regular on the local park and ride, and that her and her husband Albert have just celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary. Where do these names come from!!

There is so much more I could say about Dad, apart from the things I have already mentioned, he is still and active member of the National Federation of Builders, because as you all know Dad still works full time, the only member of the family that does!! We would have expected by now to have celebrated his retirement - but he works just as hard as he has always done, and he still goes swimming every Sunday morning.

In conclusion, Dad has been a member of the De Laune C.C. for 63 years, a member of Patcham Priory for 50 years, A Lion for 46 years and married for 60 years; so in his 80 years he has managed 219 years service, which is typical of Dad, helping others before himself. That is why we all love him and are here to celebrate his birthday.

So I ask you to stand and raise your glasses to my Dad George.

Time Trials: Due to the clash of dates on the 1st April 2001 between the Novices '25' and the Club's SERRL promotion, it was agreed to postpone the Novices event and combine it with the Autumn '25' on 16th September 2001.

A member of the French Club - Rambouillet (our unofficial "twinned" club) had ridden a time trial with Matt Goodes under the De Laune name. This had been done with the knowledge and consent of both the event organiser (VC Elan) and the Time Trial Secretary.

New Member: Chris Marshall of 29 Peterborough Road, Tilgate, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 5ES.

'let me tell you about the local
delicacies I had for dinner
last night…' d. duffield cliches part: 3

Road race news
Welcome one and all to the wonderful month that is/was April. A time when the sun stuck it's hat on….occasionally and the smell of embrocation was heavy in the air. Foot & Mouth is still a major player in our sport so for some it's been a diet of Eastway, Eastway and more Eastway. The Surrey League seem to be having better luck and most of their road races are actually on the road rather than Hillingdon. Hopefully the SERRL will get back to the real roads very soon as I'm starting to miss long climbs. Our SERRL promotion (see report below) was transferred to the Eastway circuit thus requiring only a few helpers for the signing on. A big thanks to all those who gave their support (on and off the field, so to speak).

Plenty of us have been giving it more off the front with a little more success this month. The diary below is from races I have entered or found out about. If you want to see a report of any races you've been in, and I know some of you have been at it, all you have to do is write a small report and send it to me for inclusion. DO IT!

If you are in a race where there are two or more De Laune riders try to start racing tactically. If you can, sort out who wants to go for the overall and who's going to be the domestique(s) or go for primes before the race and act accordingly. Sometimes there will be a natural selection as someone is feeling good and others not. Organisation is the key to success so if you've sorted it out before the race there can be no misunderstanding during the race as communication in a large bunch is not the easiest thing to do. As we all know chance plays a large part as well, If you get the chance , go for it, and hopefully your team mates will slip into support roles like a well oiled machine.
As we have no designated road race championship should we designate a particular race in August/September or have a league type thingy with points awarded for placing/taking part in any type of road race. Let me know what you think. Please!

I trust you have all been glued to Eurosport for the past month viewing some of the best races the professional scene has to offer. But just in case you weren't…. The Tour of Flanders was a little strange with all the big names in the second group but no one taking responsibility to chase down the leaders. What on earth happened to Max Sciandri in the sprint? After big Ludo (the man with the longest tongue in pro cycling!) had given his all up the Bosberg he peeled off the front with about 150m metres to go, giving Max a perfect lead out - and Max sat up !!!!!!!! The other 6 riders in the group swarmed all over him like a bad rash and it was lost with Bortolami taking the honours Ghent - Wevelgem will go down as a classic dual played out by five riders over the last 10 kms. With Mattan, Hincapie, Van Bon, Wesemann and Piziks all playing cat and mouse and the bunch breathing down their necks it was a nail biter of a finish. Hincapie and Van Bon emerged as the front runners with about 50 metres to go after they'd all tried to get away over the last few kilometres, but it was Hincapie who just scraped it by a tyre width from Van Bon. A Well deserved victory after the amount of 2nd's and 3rd's poor George has had in the past.

Paris - Roubaix…..what can you say? - here goes! Mud, crashes and punctures everywhere, riders slipping and sliding like a holiday on ice spectacular. For the last 100kms it was poor George H. and Ludo up against four, yes count 'em, four Domo riders that included Museeuw, his faithful worker Peeters, current world champion Vainsteins and eventual (some might say lucky) winner Knaven. Peeters went clear during the Arenburg forest section when Gaumont (Cofidis) crashed and broke his femur whilst third from the front and held everyone (group of about 20) else up slightly. Peeters managed to get a maximum of 1m 15s on the chasers George and Ludo (showing less tongue than usual!) while the three other Domo boys sat on in true teamwork style (take note). With Peeters pulled back with about 15km to go it was cat and mouse time, only it was 4 cats against 2 mice - pass the carving knife! Every time George or Ludo tried anything there was a Domo or two straight onto it. Then Knaven attacked and was pulled back by George but attacked again and was free with 7 kms to go. Knaven held the chase off easily and came into the velodrome with the (Belgian) crowd on their feet screaming their heads off in joy. Museeuw entered second having slipped the chasers in the last kilometre. To add insult to injury George was beaten in the sprint for 3rd by Vainsteins with Ludo coming in 5th , Peeters having trailed off the back in the closing kilometres. An abject lesson in teamwork I'm sure you'll all agree.

Belgian Rik Verbrugghe (Lotto)put in an impressive performance on the Mur de Huy to win La Fleche Wallonne. Verbrugghe caught the remnants of an eight man breakaway with 15 kilometres to go and rode them off his wheel one by one. In second place was Italian Ivan Basso (Fassa Bortolo), with Jorg Jackshe (ONCE) following in third.

At Liege-Bastonge-Liege the climbers have their chance. With 50km to go a group of 13, including Max Sciandri, had a gap of 40 seconds. By 9 km to go it was all back together with the remainder of the peloton looking to the last 2 climbs to sort it all out. It was on the penultimate climb that Exteberra (Eskatel) attacked and took Rebellin, Casagrande, Camanzind and Boogerd with him. Casagrande tried to shake them off his wheel up the climb to the line but it was Camanzind who claimed the sprint from Rebellin and Exteberra respectively.

The Amstel Gold is on Saturday 28/4/01 with coverage on Eurosport starting at 3.00pm. Reserve your armchair now!

Race diary
1/4/01 SERRL (De Laune promotion) @ Eastway, 1/2/3/4/W/J, 1hour + 5 miles
A bright and dry day with little wind. Matt and I were the only De Laune entries (!) of 60 starters so with Matt going for a placing (doesn't he always) it was going to be a hard race for me in support. Indeed, within 3 miles Matt eased up to the front and then continued easing off the front pulling Mark Daly () and Paul Mill (Team Edwardes) with him. They soon had a good gap so that was my signal to get on the front and start blocking. For the next five miles it was pure agony as I chased everything with two wheels, moved through to the front and then soft pedaled. It seemed to annoy a few riders but as this is a team sport, they should put up or shut up. Matt and the others pressed on and with a gap of around 40 seconds were out of sight, which was just as well as I was now knackered. I then spent the rest of the race hanging on the back as I never seemed to recover from the initial effort of blocking and soon a stitch and then cramp in my thighs added to the pain. With 3 miles to go the ever eager bunch, much slimmed down by now, finally caught Matt and the others and I decided enough was enough and packed. Matt finished in the middle of the group. Close but no cigar!

1st Mark Daly (T. Omega)
2nd Gavin Sellen (Woolwich)
3rd Nathan Harman (CCA/Dataphonics)
*Also:20th M. Goodes - same time;
B Neville DNF (the shame!)
Average speed: 43 kmh

7/4/01 Eastway Supporters League Spring Rumble, 32 miles
As the only De Laune rider my objective for this race was to finish. A field of 92 starters set out and a succession of attacks, a couple even from me, had riders drifting off the back. The crashes soon started to happen. Wheels touching left, right and centre made for total concentration - there's nothing like the sound of metal and flesh scraping on tarmac to focus the mind. Brian Curtis (Team Corridori) managed to get away early on so the race for 2nd place was going to be a 50 up bunch sprint. Then on the back straight wheels touched again near the front on the inside and half the field was on the deck. I'd seen it coming and was near the back on the outside. There were broken bikes and road rash everywhere and two riders needed hospital treatment for dislocated/broken bones. This meant that I suddenly found myself in a position to sprint for the line and claim a top 20 finish. Hairy but good fun!

1st B. Curtis (Team Corridori)
2nd L. Rowe (Interbike) @ 0.07
3rd I Gould (Alpha RC)
*Also: 20th B Neville, same time
Average speed: 41.9kmh

8/4/01 SERRL @ Eastway, E/1/2/3/4/W/J, 80 mins. + 6 miles
Two races in two days ! I must be mad. This time Matt and I were joined by Danny Rudd which on paper is a very good team. It also proved so on the road. 70 starters headed off swelled by a few Elite riders (Simon Cope + cronies) who'd got permission to join in. The elite riders were soon off the front taking a couple of 1st cats. with them, making a group of eight. They were never seen again. Danny was soon in the thick of the action as the attacks started to fly but an ever vigilant bunch was not letting anything else go. After about forty minutes of racing Matt and I got into a group of five and started to hammer it and a gap started to appear. Within a lap it had grown considerably but I was feeling the consequences of the previous days exertions and a nasty head wind so decided to drop back to the chasing pack and start blocking, another of our breakaway group dropped back with me leaving Matt to fend for himself with the other two. Another one of those soon came back to the bunch leaving Matt off the front with only a Gemini rider for company. Dan and I stitched up the chasing bunch and Matt and partner were also never seen again until the finish. With lapped/dropped riders now all over the place the judges had a hard time telling who was where. Most of the peloton, myself included, thought there were only four off the front to start with so that Matt's break was actually sprinting for 5th place. The judges didn't even appear to have Matt on the finish sheet until it was pointed out that he was definitely off the front but even then would only award him 11th place. Dan and I finished to the front of the main bunch. A very good team display and well done Matt. Pass round the slim panatellas!

1st Andy Proffitt (Arctic)
2nd Robert Enslin (Twickenham)
3rd Gary Kristensen (Army)
11th Matt Goodes (De Laune CC)
*Also:20th B Neville; 23rd D Rudd.
Average speed: 43kmh

16/4/01 Bill Tiemme Memorial Road Race @ Eastway 3/4/J/W 32miles
Matt and I lined up with 96 other starters on an overcast and windy bank holiday (no change there then!). Matt said he felt tired from the previous days TT but was soon giving it some at the front. I sat in behind waiting for his inevitable break. Brian Curtis (Team Corridori, is he really a 3rd cat?) was quickly off down the road with A N Other. The bunch was very alert and for the next 15 miles no one else got away. Then Matt made his move, taking a rider with him. That was my cue to hit the front and cause some trouble. For once I felt strong and blocked and chased for the next 10 miles. I even made a couple of dummy attacks to see if I could get 1 or 2 away with me but as I wasn't letting anyone else go they certainly weren't going to let me go. With 4 miles to go it was obvious that Matt and Co. weren't going to get caught so with my dislike for large bunch sprints I slipped to the middle of the peleton and rolled in. With 4 lining up for the main sprint Matt had his work cut out especially as the two juniors had been sitting on as much as they could leaving Matt and Brian to do the lions share. Sure enough Brian Curtis took the honours with a junior sneaking past Matt to nick 2nd. Pass round the fat Cubans….and I might have a cigar afterwards as well!

1st Brian Curtis (T. Corridori)
2nd ?
3rd Matt Goodes (De Laune CC)
*Also: 30th B Neville @ 20 secs.
Average speed: 41kmh

21/4/01 Interclub hilly ITT, Ide Hill, 12 miles
(All together now, all I want for Christmas is a pair of Matt's legs….)

1. M Goodes (De Laune) 31':30"
2. R Hallett (Sydenham) 33':54"
3. B Neville (De Laune) 34':02"
4. J O'Brien (De Laune) 35':27"
5. R Royston (Sydenham) 35':44"
20 starters (7 De Laune)

It may(not) interest you to know that the top three riders in the above where all riding the new Specialized SL S Works frame (I've said it before and I'll say it again…phworr, sexybike!). Richard Hallett's can be seen in the current edition of Cycle Sport magazine as he and a colleague ride round the Liege-Bastogne-Liege course.

22/4/01 SERRL @ Eastway, 1/2/3/4/J, 35 miles
A little bird tells me that Danny Rudd was in this one. Well Done.

1st Russell Williams (Gore Bike Wear)
2nd John Taylor (Gore Bike Wear) @ 11 secs.
3rd Mark Daly (T. Omega) st.
Also: 8th Danny Rudd st.

* Placings are approximate

NB: There is always a good family atmosphere at Eastway so if you have a young family don't be scared to bring them along (that's if they want to in the first place !). Eastway is probably the most spectator friendly circuit. My 17 month old daughter had a whale of a time running round the clubhouse playing with the other kids, eating cake and shouting at her dad each time I went past (big thanks to my childminder - Steve).

Here is a short phrasebook you might need to race with/for Matt Goodes:

Matt speak: I feel tired today
Translation: He will attack after 3 miles and you'll have to block and chase
until you die a long slow death!
Matt speak: I'm going to sit in and see what happens
Translation: He will attack after 3 miles and you'll have to block and chase
until you die a long slow death!
Matt speak: I feel good today
Translation: He will attack straight away and……(you get the picture!)

You have been warned!

Avec travail d'equipe
Ben
b.neville@lcp.linst.ac.uk or 020 8692 9918.

London Marathon 22 April 2001

The one between the two girls is our very own Dan 'Rhino' Haynes! Dan completed the course in 5:41:09.Little pic is Dan at Calshot

Nick Kinsey was our fastest in 91st place 2:36:03,  Mike Peel completed his 21st London in 3:47:03

Congratulation to Mike on completing his 21st London Marathon, it only took him 56min 33sec more than his first London when he was 39year old.
If my calculations are correct that is about 2min 48sec slower each year, if he keeps going at this pace, when he is 70 he should record about 4hrs 5 min; and at 80 - 4hrs 33min. We will be watching you Mike. Ed.

PRODUCED by MARK & JASON BALLAMY
DISTRIBUTED BY BRIAN SAXTON

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