I've got the 'Winter (Turbo) Blues'

Alan & I managed a couple of rides on the 'fixed' over the Xmas period, we went out on Xmas morning, me thinking for a lap of the park with nowt but a bottle of water and ended up at Windsor watching the police guards and the tourists. It was a plesant enough ride but the traffic was getting bad as we headed home for lunch with 60 miles in our legs

Old style


New style

Rode along the old Hampton and Thorpe '10' courses we both first started racing on back in the 70's, a strange ride down memory lane, Alan on his 'new' Pearson Touche and me on an old Allin probably got raced along these very roads



Just passed my 20th turbo session of the winter (since November) and the signs are there that I'm going a bit stir crazy. It's roughly two a week and although I only do an hour that last few minutes is beginning to wear a bit thin. I know it's all the rage and with the current patterns of weather making road riding nigh on impossible it's the only way to make a bit of effort (safely). I have it set up at work which is a bit annoying when you want to do a spontaneous session between Corrie and Eastenders, thankfully I've not had the urge yet and I feel that's the way it will stay at a safe distance Last night I had to curtail my session to 5 minutes as I had my very first turbo puncture, not prepared to change it I did a bit of stretching and came home, I didn't feel up to it anyway

Instrument of torture!
Special adaption unit

Went up to Manchester for LVRC track session the first Saturday of the year, trouble was it was between 7-11 in the evening so not back to Leicester until after one o'clock and I was so knackered I could only manage two hours on the road the next day

I got in a couple of tough back to back long rides mid January when Fiona & I went over to Essex, I rode most of the way (to Harlow) 100 miles and then 80 miles the next day with the Shaftsbury CC, only three others turned up and we battered ourselves in the wind and rain and I thought to myself "What am I doing here?" I knew the signs were not good as we rode over to the meeting point at Mountnessing so as we waited for the last man to turn up I took my food out of their (plastic) bags and put them inside my overshoes, it held off the rain for the first hour, but that was all. We all had mudguards and fought all day to stay off the back wheel of the person who didn't have the 'extra' mud flap



I took a weekend off at the end of January to visit friends in Devon and although I took my bike I only went out for a cursory two hours on the Saturday as my heart was not in it. I do not get on with the hills in winter and It didn't help matters that it was windy as well. After falling off five times in December and January I have managed to avoid doing so in the recent cold snap by staying on the main roads which is not pleasant but it just has to be done and I have not missed any of my twice weekly long rides but as the need for speed approaches a bit of better weather please!

STOP PRESS After quitting yesterdays turbo session I was full of riding on the way to work this morning, managed a magnificent 19 mph on my 72" over the wet but thankfully not icy roads, only the second time I've ridden to work in the last 10 days. Only downside was my pedal falling apart at the end of the road, I'd changed the bearing yesterday and not put it back together correctly Doh! Looking forward to the weekend, Yipeeeeeeee!

Early transport dilemma

Brother Alan helps me sort out my new TT bike in the garden before I whisk him off to Wimbledon for a game of tennis with his friend Bjorn
The innovative triple disc for extra stability as I had not yet mastered the solo, I do not seem to have sorted out my aero position but I think having to carry Alan in the tipper was potentially cramping my style



Alan very soon moved on to four wheels as the mountain bike had not yet been invented with a limited edition open top Freddie Grubb, note a biscuit in each hand in anticipation of the mobile phone and satnav

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