I fought the Law, and the law won

Brov'er Alan was caught and fined for riding on the pavement on his daily commute to work the other week, he just shrugged his shoulders and said "I was breaking the law, it was a fair cop" I on the other hand was a bit annoyed that he didn't put up more of an argument. Cyclists caught in this manner are soft targets for the Police who like nothing better than getting a quick and easy tick to say they did a bit of effective policing while we all know that in most cases cyclists are the injured party because the Police fail to clamp down on proper abuses of the law where road safety is concerned
Then on Sunday there was an article by James Daley in the Independents Cyclo-therapy column covering the same topic, If you are only armed with a bit of information on the subject then it's possible to have a good reason for being where you are and breaking the law!

Cyclo-therapy - Saturday, 17 January 2009

A few weeks ago, after I wrote in this column that I was prone to jumping a red light or two, I received an e-mail from a reader demanding that I turn myself into the police. Although I naturally wrestled long and hard with my conscience before deciding to ignore my correspondent's advice, karma soon came to get me.

Having been back on my bike for no more than 15 minutes after a two-week holiday in the United States, I ended up being handed my first cycling ticket – a £30 fine for riding on the pavement.

I have to say that I felt rather unlucky. As it happens, I rarely ride on the pavement. But in this instance, I hopped up for no more than 10 seconds after being squeezed off the road by an aggressive driver. Sadly, this very stretch of pavement happened to be just the place where two young coppers were spending their morning ambushing cyclists.

By the time I saw them, I was already back in the road. But alas; I'd already been spotted, and was ushered to pull over.

I think even the policeman who fined me knew that ticketing cyclists was a waste of his time, so he was very nice to me (not nearly as sanctimonious as most of the people who write me e-mails in reaction to this column).

And so, perhaps because he was so friendly, or perhaps because it was my first day back from holiday, I didn't even bother trying to argue – even after I noticed that his colleague was letting a pretty female cyclist go on her way without a fine.

However, once I got into the office, I remembered that I had a very good case for appeal.

You see, while riding on the pavement is technically illegal, the Home Office was careful to issue guidance about how and when cyclists should actually be penalised for doing so. And in a letter written back in 1999, Home Office minister Paul Boateng said the following: "The introduction of the fixed penalty is not aimed at responsible cyclists who sometimes feel obliged to use the pavement out of fear of traffic and who show consideration to other pavement users when doing so." In other words, it was not designed to fine people like me.

So I'll be taking Mr Boateng's letter down to court in a few weeks, in the hope of overturning my fine. Hardly worth the time for a £30 fine. But it's a matter of principle.

j.daley@independent.co.uk

On the situation of cycles being a threat to other pavement users ( a much quoted reason for cycles not being on the pavement)
The statistics show that cycling on the pavement, whilst it might be annoying, is not very hazardous to pedestrians. (These are the figures for pedestrian casualties for 2003, the latest I have available. They haven't changed much but overall road casualties have been going down)

V01 Pedestrian injured in collision with pedal cycle: 2 (Yes, TWO)

V02 Pedestrian injured in collision with 2 or 3 wheeled motor vehicle: 19

V03 Pedestrian injured in collision with car, pickup truck or van: 290

V04 Pedestrian injured in collision with heavy transport vehicle or bus: 109

Source: National Statistics Office.

Hillingdon Winter series - Race 2 Saturday 13th December 2008

No wonder Paul's not turning up for club runs on a Saturday

Man of Race : Paul Anderson - South Western RC

A much reduced field lined up for the start in atrocious weather. Continuing on from the start last weeks Man of the Race Rudie Marias (Norwood Paragon CC) attacked but with a slightly reduced distance no one was going to let him ride away. Bill Butterworth (Team Quest) and former overall winner Jason Streather (VC St Raphael) were also very active. Several other attacks were made notably from Edward Summerwell (Team Quest) all the way from Exeter but all to no avail until Joshua Worrall (Twickenham CC) went on his own. It was a brave attempt and looked as if he may have stayed away but some very strong riding into the wind in the back straight by Jason Streather, Rudie Marais and Steve Legg (RT316-Crown Lifts) pulled him back. Finally a TT specialist Paul Alderson (South Western RC ) back after several years went alone, his TT experience saw him stay away to the finish and an equally a brilliant effort by local Junior rider Martin Dawkins (Team Quest) held off Jason Humphries (Norwood Paragon CC ) for 3rd Place. Edward Summerwell lead the main group in some 55 seconds down with Jason Streather beating other fast finisher Vince Halpern (AWcycles) into 5th place. The award for Man of the Race went to Paul Alderson but Martin Dawkins’ effort ran him very close.

Series leaders Jerone Walters (Sigma Sport) and Paul Alderson (South Western RC) are equal with 200 points with Rudie Marais in 3rd with 190 points

Catch up with other events, or get down and ride
http://www.imperialracingteam.com/imperialracingteam/results0809.html

SWRC Dinner/Walk

Annual get together of the great and the good to dish out the silverware and toast the winners and tell the tales of how we nearly and not quite managed to live down the boasts of the twelve months ago one more time before we do it all again next year.
The preceding day I had gone out with the 'A' group from Betchworth to Westerham, giving the 'B's a head start we all ended up at the cafe together after the 'B's split under mechanical pressure while we had our own map reading blunders while carrying more computing power on our bikes than got the first astronauts to the moon. We were all glad to get there on one piece as the cold morning gave way to blue skies and decent riding conditions after a miserable week, I'd fallen off on the ice on Wednesday and sporting a few bruises and a rear end (on the bike) come unglued and clunking a bit, I only spotted it at the stop and rode home over Woldingham slightly more gingerly where Alan & I said goodbye and dropped back through the Xmas traffic descending on London.
The dinner at the Barley Mow in West Horsley was preceded by a walk through the countryside organised by Dawn Jackaman, twenty hardy souls turned up and set off across the fields where the black faced sheep ignored us as we splashed our way through the mud. It was a splendidly sunny and cold morning, we were all glad to be on foot rather than a'wheel, we stopped after an hour in a gladed wood some resting on the felled tree trunks and others catching the sun where it broke through the leafless trees. On through a wood yard where the wispy smoke from a fire of slow burning sawdust mingled with the trees to give the impression of early morning fog, and over a steep hill of flint where the trees thinned and we broke out with views over Hatchlands Park (NT) we completed the 7 miles in just under 3 hours (2 walking)
The setting for the dinner in a renovated barn attached to the pub was an excellent venue, the food was hearty and plentyful (lots of vedge and not overdone some of the roast potatoes a little on the hard side!)
President Geoff Redhead did an excellent job of MC'ing the official part of the dinner with a attempt to embarrass a cross section of the attended including yours truly but most know i'm quite capable of doing that myself without any help
I was pleased to be asked to present the 2 Up trophy (named in honour of my father Phil Sr) to the winners Roger Jackaman and Andy Hicks and also one (of the two!) regional Time Trial awarded to 15 Yr old Tom Nason for his rides during the season (the WLCA & the SCCU Best all Rounder)
Managed to have a chat with quite a few people (new members & riders who I rarely get to see in the racing season) Graham Collins who's L'Eroica exploits I loved reading about and still want to see the bike who went sailing on the Thames at Walton with my Grandfather. Tom and his dad Jeremy, Who will get to use the fast wheels this week?
Soon it was all over and we were heading back up the motorway (furthest to go always the last to leave) broken bike and trophys in the car

2008 Season Conclusions - Ain't Complaning

Had a look back in my diary to see how I did target wise for the season, only 36 seconds out in the '50' a mere 6 seconds in the '10' and an impressive 5 seconds out in the '100' Not surprisingly my 50.46 for '25' was the only target I bettered but I had aimed to beat the Club Record by under 10 seconds so to beat it by a minute more was very pleasing. The one time/distance I was way out on was the 12 hour, (280 miles what was I thinking?) even if I'd ridden a perfect race I'd have been happy with over 270 but I only rode the one and unlike the seven '100's (count them) I guess you can't expect to have the perfect ride on demand
For the BBAR I held out the hope that these rides would give me a top 10 place, my times would have given me 12th in the last couple of years but it was a competitive year with Ian Cammish back in the reckoning (2nd) for the first time since 2004 and two new Turks in the top ten in the shape of Andy Baston (5th) and Bradley Johnson (7th) while there were quite a few other movers and shakers the 25.5mph to get into the top 10 has stayed fairly consistent the last 10 years and I'm not quite there yet. I had to settle for 15th (25.374mph Av.) in the end, I guess I have to be happy with that and knowing I can/could have gone faster especially in the '50' even though I did a 3 minute PB in May I never got another good day, but in a pretty bad summer weather wise I was not the only one in the top 20 this happened to. This always happens Yes you could always go faster on a faster day on a faster course but then so could other riders and the status quo is maintained
Paul Alderson put in some pretty solid rides to end up breaking into the top 40 for the first time, 39th (24.029mph Av.) and I feel the club is to be congratulated in having two riders in the top 40 for the first time in our history. Not many clubs have two 'home grown' riders capable of this and in the results week in and week out Jon Thomas got his fair share of attention and put in some sterling rides especially his PB in the the API '50' only 11 seconds behind Paul's best to become the 3rd fastest SWRC rider ever at the distance, all of us currently riding we should have a crack at the National team in that event next year.
With the VTTA Veterans BAR (Welcome Paul!) I moved into the top ten (from 12th last year) for 7th with +6.394 the winner again 55 year old Ken Platts (Cambridge CC) +8.414 with 51 year old Cammish 2nd here too +8.281 these two were well out infront but as if to reinforce the increasing competitive nature of this competition 26 riders had a + 5 mph, last year only seventeen. I'm still well off the pace On Standard but still up from 58th to 33rd. On straight out time I was placed 5th 6.25.20 from the winner 42 year old Barry (Baz) Charlton (Lyme RC) 6.04.59 my 50.46 making me the 2nd fastest 25 miler over 40 in the country.
On the track I said a Masters medal but I was too caught up riding '100's to fit those in so the LVRC Gold/Silver while not as competitive late in the season. still the times I posted would have got me in the top four at the Masters (6th in Europe) so plenty to go on for next year. I had hoped to win a 2nd Cat Road Race but this proved beyond my capabilities (both physically and tactically) the best chance I had was in the LVRC Nationals when I was up with the leaders but as with every other RR I had a bad attack of cramp and lost my chance. Busted down to 3rd for the coming season I should be more competitive.
I should have said to win an 'Open' TT which was one of my targets from the year before that never quite materialised (2nd Congleton '50') but this year I achieved that elusive goal, in the N Mids & Herts '100'(13th July) and It was touch and go as I had doggy gears and had to get off and manhandle them at 40 miles knowing that I could not use them in the more challenging second half of the ride. Level with an 'Unknown' rider Andy Stuart (VC St. Raphael) with 10 miles to go I pulled out 30 seconds for my second open win over a quarter of a century after my first, Alan was there getting all excited and I was glad to share it with him as there are too many times when I have done a good ride only to miss out and have that lonely drive home with the thought in my head as to how I could have made my effort on the day be the difference and win the day. On top of that I missed out in a 2 Up bu a single second and another of the '100's by 36 seconds (instant karma or what!)
Targets for next Year? I'm not telling but apart from having a go at the team '50' at the Nationals the VTTA National record for a 47 year old is 1.44.00, that would be something!

SWRC have a new National Champion

I know I said the Hillingdon was my last event of the year but I had entered the inaugural LVRC National Track Championships at Newport this weekend
Good thing I did my geraniums as we had 3 inches of snow on Tuesday (first time in October in Leicester since 1937) so I had a couple of slippery rides to work in full winter mode. Having watched our Boys & Girls 'doing the business' at the Manchester World Cup on Friday evening I was ready all excited about the prospect for my first competitive outing on the boards since I broke my collar bone (Ouch!) a week before the National Champs at dear old derelict (now not then) Saffron Lane in 1992.

Alan, just back from a week walking in NW Italy (hardly ideal preparation) and I took ourselves along to Newport Velodrome to have a bit of end of season fun. Only to find riders just back from the World Masters Track in Sidney and others taking it very seriously, I cannot lie I had done a session on the turbo on Thursday to try out my 'fixed' TT bike as I had not ridden it since the 12 hour (used as a spare with gears). Adrian (Shaftsbury CC) was there with us all in the same age group (45-49) these two have a bit of history together as Adrian said to me last week "I've got a pair of 'Barelli' pedals with Alan's paint on somewhere at home", old scores were set aside for the weekend and we set about a plan to get bodies on the podium at every opportunity


Plotters Corner

First up the 16km (60 laps) Points race, I decided to put the opposition on the back foot by wearing old kit while Alan had the new. I went on the attack (best form of defence) after the first sprint (every 10 laps) with some stout blocking from Alan and Adrian and a bit of nifty leg work from yours truly I got half a lap, 2 sets of
sprint wins and 15 laps later I sat up not able to stay away on my own any longer. While I was getting myself together Ian Fagan (Paramount RT) an Ex Pro and a useful 'trackie' I had targeted as a likely winner went away with another and quickly got half a lap, he then dropped his companion and bridges the lap on his own to wild applause from the track center, Damn! I thought there goes the win. I managed to get points in the last two sprints 2nd & 3rd to consolidate my position in second place Steve Clayton our representative at the Worlds (Lichfield CCC) 3rd

We left the sprinters on the track at 7 O'clock to finish their programme while we headed to the Holiday Inn for post race analysis and some grub from the buffet. Adrian had brought some old cycling's and the Skol 6 Day programme from 1978 when he and Alan rode the schoolboy omnium. Maurice Burton was riding (with Paul Medhurst) and there was an advert for 'newly opened' DeVer cycles in Streatham (I think It's called synchronicity) Alan found a result in a 1976 edition of the 'comic' with Parky's all plus Steve Gowar winning the WLCA Team Pursuit in 5.17 (for 4000m on Herne Hill) not bad considering Alan was only 13 years old at the time.
I had to be at the track for 8.30 on Sunday to prepare for the Pursuit so the others tucked into a cooked breakfast while I made do with cereal in an effort to not be overcome by my first Pursuit since 1982


I worked out a schedule at breakfast with Alan, 3.40 a bit ambitious (I found out later) but I had no idea what riders do these days. Fagan had not signed on, no bike apparently but that did not stop other riders just bolting on aero bars but I was not the only one to have a dedicated bike and a couple of 'solid' front wheels came out Oh! I thought this is serious, to my surprise I was fastest qualifier albeit by a mere two tenths of a second 3.49.86, I felt that I had been pedalling too fast on my 92" gear and on schedule at half way I could not maintain the high cadence of 120 revs (bit different from my usual 88) so I put my gear up 2" for the final
Felt more comfortable at 112-115 revs although still went out a bit fast at the start, the result was never in doubt, I was up 2 seconds in the first lap and then 4 seconds up at half way. I had my man in sight for the final kilometer but did not quite manage to catch him as I went 4 seconds faster 3.45.88 while he went 4 slower. In fact I was the only rider in the finals to go faster in the second ride only a couple of hours after the first my powers of recovery obviously good. Incidental my opponent in the final Steve Bent (Ludlow CC) one of the Highgate/Hendon riders that beat us in the GHS in 1976 I wrote about several weeks ago. 3rd Paul Lilley (Fenland Cl.)3.54.19


Top Spot

The remaining event the 15km Scratch always a bit of a lottery, the 'A' race had been a bit of a procession with a 'wind up' for the last KM and then a bunch sprint, I was getting to know the 'form' riders, Fagan was in there with Clayton and Doug Pinkerton (Halesowen C&AC) who had all sat out the Pursuit series. We had a bit of a plan for Alan and Adrian to try and get away after I had done a bit of 'softening up' in the opening 20 laps but once I lit the touchpaper it was just attack after attack and the bunch blown to pieces by half way with the above three myself and Adrian to make a lead group of five and we lapped the field. Alan pulled out after being up with the leaders but not able to keep in the front split. I decided it wasn't hard enough and attacked several more times and Fagan had a good go at dislodging us but nobody was shifted although Pinkerton not working by now and I told Adrian to only do short turns as he was our best hope for the finish. My legs were beginning to give out and I found myself at the back at the bell as it got a bit confusing with back markers and the lap board. In the end it was all five of us across the track at the line with Clayton getting it and Adrian 2nd over the long way with some impressive speed only back to racing this year and done half a dozen league meetings at Welwyn. Fagan 3rd Myself 4th (Almost doing a 'Wiggins' with Gold Silver & Bronze) I was satisfied with my weekend tally an 'age related champ' at 3000m and 12 Hrs. not a bad spread


Points race Winner the elusive Mr Fagan!