penyghent track

Photo: Wig Worland

Peaks pics

Above: There's a tall lanky Belgian in there somewhere.....

Above: Winkie finds a smoother line

Above and below: Rich up and down Penyghent

Photos: Wig Worland and Ian McVety

3 Peaks A supporters story

The Mists of Time

After what has seemed like a lifetime the day dawned cold damp and misty I was about to lose my 3 Peaks cherry (well as a supporter at least).

The fascination of this race I have to be honest as completely eluded me, why carry your bike surely the addition of wheels and pedals are so it can be ridden?

However Crossjunkie's enthusiasm is all consuming and a little infectious, certainly enough to draw me in as support crew. One Sunday morning Peaks training sufficiently burned my quads to banish all thoughts of actually taking part to the security box at the back of my brain that never should be opened!

So after studying the support crew instructions and sitting through a complete photographic account of the course and noting my instructions on PSI, Bottles, Bikes and where to position ones self I think I was as well prepared as could be expected.

Sunday and a 6am wake up seemed just a little to early for my body but after a good breakfast we were soon loaded up.

HCtB Support Bus

The early start paid off well allowing us to park not too far up the hill and allowing a gentle preamble to sign on, only a quick jog back up the hill for Alan to collect his survival bag and whistle!

The walk of the condemned Man

Once Alan was kitted up and ready I left him with half an hour to go to the start to make my way to Cold Cotes ready to meet him at the bottom of the decent bike and bottle in hand.
The marshals were absolutely first class and they had me parked up in prime position. I had packed ipod and cycling magazine to pass the time however fellow HCtB rider OtleyRich better half came bearing homemade cakes - its tough being support crew!! and the atmosphere around the transition ensured both stayed tucked inside my rucksack.
Some friendly banter with other support teams and I was off to secure my position on the road.
The stunning scenery was suddenly disturbed with a sharp whistle and the cry of riders as Jebby and Craig flew off the fell onto the road - the atmoshere was electric with cheers and shouts as riders came into view.
Like many I had mixed emotions as I waited for my rider to come off the fell, Rich closely followed by Winkie came through and looking at the timings Alan had worked out he should be arriving at any moment, a little worry started to creep in as thoughts turned to mechanicals or worse a fall.
Alan came into view and I could see no obvious problems a quick bottle exchange and "I'm good" confirmed all was well. A quick cheer as he disappeared down the road and then a jog up the road to the car to load the bike and sort the bottles ready for Ribblehead and I was off.
A quick sandwich and fruit on route and again well marshaled area saw me parked up with ease and a short walk with bike and bottles to the foot of the last steps.

Again it was a mixture of emotions as riders picked their route down the final section, riders were coming past bruised, blooded, mud covered and battered bikes, the race was beginning to flex its muscles.
The support was great every rider was cheered and encouraged as they went by, bikes, wheels, bottles, bananas and gels were transferred with professional calm and speed.
Relief as Alan made the decent looking good and a quick bike change and he was off heading towards the final climb looming ominously in the distance.
A steady drive to the final climb doing my best to make sure riders on the road had plenty of room and oncoming cars and bikes didn't cut too close - 2.5 tonnes of truck have there uses at times!
Pen y Gent is the straw that broke many a rider, watching various stages of fatigue as riders made their way was humbling to watch, again everyone got a cheer and words of encouragement from the people lining the route. Bikes and bodies were now looking battered.
Rich flew past and with a click of heels he disappeared down the hill, Winkie followed closely but was looking like he was running on empty.
Alan came down descending with a confidence not seen before - great to see. No mechanicals and no bottles required he was off down the hill for the final section to the finish.
Three Belgian's finished without injury or mechanical failures, a fantastic result to a truly amazing event.
A well deserved drink and food and it was off home to reflect on the day.
So will there be more Belgians at next years event??
My stance changed from never ever too a week before caught up in Alan's enthusiasm to well maybe once just to say I had done it. On the drive over I really felt the urge to be riding (was this just down to the fact it was my normal Sunday time to be out on the bike?).
At Ribblehead I found myself scouting lines, was the race starting to bite?
So a great effort and well done to those that took part truly impressive and to all the marshals a big thank you for making the event run so well and finally to all the support crews who aided their riders well done.
So here's to next year and the hope of seeing more Black and white Belgian shirts taking to the start.

Sub Note
if you do not intend to ever do this race do not go as support to a rider as the there is definitely something about the event that seeps into you, whether it is the mist shrouded hills in the morning, the stunning landscape or the atmosphere from start to finish I can assure you it will draw you in.

3 Peaks Belgian style

3 Peaks, 3 Belgians, 3 finishers.

Rich led the way with a 'need to come back next year and try harder' - 4hrs 1 min. So close to that elusive sub 4hr time.......

Winkie came in seeing double after bonking with 4hrs 5 min - get the pies in next time......

Alan ' oh not cramp again on Whernside' with 4hrs 18 min. Need some tonic water or something to avoid lock leg......

Big thanks to Mark and Jo(Belgianette) for helping out on the day with soothing words, bikes and food. Plus beer.

Report and photos anyone?

Two Words...

To all racing tomorrows 3 peaks cyclocross, both Belgians and beyond the team, just two words...

Bon Courage!

To Do...

Final 'Peaks prep:
1) Fit replacement ergo lever.
2) Build spare wheel set (!)
3) Find and fit front cable hanger to 'old' cross bike.
4) Polish the 'Dorothy' shoes.
5) Put Herb Alpert's 'Bean Bag' on CD for a bit of comic inspiration.

Built the wheels last night, Open Pros on Ambrosio Zenith hubs & DT comp spokes, just need a final bit of equalisation of the spoke tensions. Hope the ergo lever arrives! Tomorrow should be an easy spin out to 'Buffers' cafe with Nick as a last shake down. See you all at the start in Helwith Bridge :-)

Otleyrich

interlude

I was about to comment that it had all gone a bit quiet in terms of posting on the Belgian front, and then what do you know? The proverbial threesome of public transport....... welcome Jez from Outer Hebrideecestershire!

We Belgians may have been quiet on the racing front (except a for mechanically challenged Rich) but preparations are at fever pitch for this coming weekend for a good chunk of us.

Only cave dwellers will have failed to notice it is 3 Peaks weekend - my own build up was looking good a fortnight ago but has degenerated into cold avoidance on 3 tactical fronts (1 work, 2 at home) and the usual ill-timed domestic crisis. Taper week? More like splutter to a halt week. No matter, the form is in their somewhere, if the viruses don't get to it first..........



Anyways, my secret weapon for Penyghent, the final Peak, was unveiled this week - big fat 34mm FMB tubs, all wrapped in lurvely latex and puncture proofed by yet more kinky rubber, glued on 36 hole trad alloy rims with a dinner plate cassette. They are my only hope against a brutally rocky track and a very suspect and timid downhill technique. Penyghent is a puncture paradise (for tube manufacturers at least) so I hope to avoid being a hapless victim and make it down with a modicum of speed and style.

There are 3 of us riding - Winkie, Rich and myself with Mark SportsArt and possibly Duncan and Gee(?) aiding and abetting. Spare a thought though for Gary who won't be toeing the startline due to an unco-operative back.

Come up and cheer us on - it's a great day out in cracking countryside. The running Belgian will be run ragged on Sunday..........

now this is just showing off

all dressed up and nowhere to go.....

when you can't do a cross race

this was me in team colours not coming last at the bute cycling festival riding with the fat boy ( he is behind the camera) yes we were racing!!!!

The veldrijder's new clothes...

A post not necessarily for existing team members, they've got their shirts and are busy abusing them riding, training, carrying... and falling off (don't' let the Shimanoists get you down Rich!) but a Post maybe of use to aspiring Belgians.

Once we'd (Crossjunkie & Here Come..) decided we had a viable idea for a team, we needed a shirt to nail our colours to. After a few false starts on the trail of the jersey with quality, order numbers and the actual design (my ever changing design mind) playing their hand, we located a manufacturer ridiculously close to our stomping grounds.

Our shirts are supplied by Shutt VR a northern manufacturer of fine sportswool based jerseys. We wanted a team shirt that we wanted to wear rather than had to wear out of obligation to a club and Shutt seemed to fit this bill. Once we'd gone through a friendly ordering/design process and waited a short while for them to arrive (we ordered quite a few) we breathed a sigh of relief that our hunch about the kit had paid off.

In a nutshell they're great shirts.

I've ridden and raced in it and am completely happy with the fabric ( a merino, polyester mix), the cut (fits great, the sleeve length is spot on) and the pocket arrangement (3 rear, middle with velcro and reflective tab). Our logo has been reproduced without any issues, is dye sublimated to the white band and won't ever rub or peel off. The running Belgian is a happy veldrijder!

So for anyone out there interested to join our growing team the process is very simple. Buying a shirt gets you on the team and gives you opportunity to add your story to the blog. Our shirts are priced at £50 (plus postage) which we think is a pretty good price for a high quality fabric and jersey. The design isn't bad either (okay, putting the trumpet away now). So if you're interested...drop Team Here Come the Belgians an email and we can take it from there.

Then ride, race and tell us a story.

Oops

A week to go for the Three Peaks and I just had to do a little 'last race'. Obviously I took it easy, it was dry, nothing technical etc. So how the heck did I wash out taking grass corner too quick? One lever down I still had a fun race but now need to replace it prior to the 'Peaks :-( At least Here Come The Belgians and the 'Dorothy' shoes got a mention ;-)


-- Otleyrich's iPhone

life on foot aka Peaks training

Travelling incognito, it was the bike that gave this Belgian away.....

Its time for the Gallery

A right pair of Uncles

Fail to prepare, Prepare to race... Northwich.

Or should that title read the joy of intervals.

Let me expand. My initial thought on seeing the Northwich race early in the calendar was one of anticipation and focused excitement. The previous year's pre-race food consumption had me facing the man with the hammer whilst the wide variety of mud on the course had me reaching for the ejector button.

Would this year's race be a drier, better fuelled, better trained for affair?

Lets look at my previous week's intervals...
Wednesday: 1 A.M bike building (yes, 1 in the morning)
Thursday: 11.40 P.M bike building
Friday: Rest day - entertaining friends via the beer & curry program
Saturday : 10.40 P.M bike finished!

So as you can see, not ideal race prep. I managed 20 minutes on the old frame prior to stripping and cleaning and rebuilding into an 'Oom Johan'. Any intention to be competitive was reformated to 'go out and see what happens' .

Sunday morning arrives and I was confronted by a girlfriend with food poisoning and a puppy with diarrhea. Having finally put the household on an even keel I throw the bike on the roof and get to the race with 20 minutes to spare. To say I felt stress is putting it mildy - although I'd resigned myself to arriving as the whistle blew and everyone disappeared around the first corner. At least I'd arrived, signed on, managed a 100 yard warmup...then as I adjust my wheels everyone lines up ready to start. I was so close to being left home alone.

So the whistle blows and my stress disappears. I'd absolved myself from all the previous weeks and hours of stress and just got into a groove. I really enjoyed myself. I felt a semblance of flow, stuck every remount and felt pretty good throughout. I even managed to put the hammer down and put a half lap burst in to better the gent I'd been battling with throughout the second half of the race.

So in summary I had a great time. We had a great team vibe and I'm gutted Mark punctured as he was looking at a decent finish, expect a few sets of spare Belgian wheels in the pits over the forthcoming races. I'm a fan of the Northwich course and can't wait for next year already, I have a feeling I'll be better prepared.

So now for the real intervals and time to learn a bit of race craft.

Tyre pressure sidenote.
I threw averything in the car and forgot my trackpump. I arrived without time to use it even if I'd had it. I had wheels with tyres on and just had to get on with it. I checked my pressure tonight and I looked like 40 something on the front and 30 something in the rear (psi). In clinchers.

I wonder if I can get any lower...Maybe have to forget the pump more often.

NW Cross League Northwich

The first race of the season and the first outing for HCtB happened on Sunday.
With anticipation we had been following the weather forecast all week and watching the rain fall heavy from the skies (well it did in Burnley at least), a change of tyre was required as deep mud was expected.
So a quick email to sound out best tyre choice and crossjunkie comes up trumps with challenger grifo as top clincher suggestion (tubs were his obvious first recommendation!!). With out haste a pair were ordered and duly arrived on Friday.

A pair of school boys

Friday evening was spent at first cleaning and stripping off any unnecessary bits from the bike and fitting new tyres to my cross wheels. As I was standing admiring my bike crossjunkie appears at the front door bike in hand, a brief spot of joint admiration of machinery took place before the crackberry's appeared for photo shoot (images to follow when it lets me download them). So for half an hour or so we move bikes round place them on things to gt the right shot. Will we ever grow up???

The race

Sunday morning arrives with fine but dull weather bikes and gear loaded we set off early to make sure we get registered and numbers sorted etc and allow us to check out the course.
A couple of laps under our wheels and the course was dialled in - but where was all the deep mud??
Promising rain clouds gathered but deposited not a drop we ended up with a warm dry race.
My aim was to get round after having a week of feeling like my legs had turned to lead, but once the first lap was completed I felt good and started picking my way through the field, 5 laps to go and I was sat with a small group feeling pretty strong, my new aim was to sit with these guys until two laps out and ramp up the effort and hopefully picked up a few more places.
Lap 4 and there was suddenly a very lose feeling coming from the rear wheel a quick check revealed a puncture - there were several places on the course that had broken glass.
So that was the end of my race as I don't have any spare wheels.
However it was great to watch Alan flying and see Duncan & Mark finish all with smiles on their faces.
So for the next race a spare set of wheels will be in the pits just in case. The grifos were fantastic I was very pleased with the cornering and traction through the mud.
It was also great to get some many positive comments on the shirts and frame stickers (Dunc all credit), lets hope that at the next race we can have a few more shirts in the pack!!!!

NW Cross League Race, Northwich

Somewhat crossjunkie-centric report from the 1st NW Cross League race at Pignut Hill, Northwich over on:

http://crossjunkie.blogspot.com/

Anyone else got their take on the days activities?

something's brewing

What's Duncan brewing up now?

(T)Wiggo's favourite Belgie brew may be Delerium Tremens but for how long.............

Cross On!!

Cross season roars into life this weekend in the Northwest. Weaver Valley CC based in Northwich will be hosting (in my opinion) a truly fantastic eurostyle course. Expect to see a few Belgian jerseys in the mix with myself, Crossjunkie and the the two Mark's making an appearance (bike building and tyre fitting woes aside).

So what will we be riding? Oom Johan's my friend.

So by all means come and say hello, grab a beer mat and follow the shopping list.

Belgians are GO!

After some long distance collective planning, email traffic, chin stroking, coffee drinking and hard work on a certain graphic designer's part, we are proud to announce that 5 Belgians got it together sufficiently to launch Team Here Come the Belgians, with a celebratory ride resplendent in team strip, last Sunday over the Ronde van Oost Lancashire route. 4 other Belgians (guys and gals) were with us in spirit as they pursued other commitments.

Those nice men over at Shutt have sorted us out with a cracking merino sportswool jersey (review later):

We are now stickered, beer matted and even Uncle John frame decaled up to the hilt with Duncan's iconographic illustrations and designs.

More importantly, we went out round East Lancashire's (and whisper it, Yorkshire's) finest roads and cobbles, had a great ride, a good laugh and found more than just a little companionship from a disparate but connected bunch of individuals (ride report and photos coming).

The cross season starts next weekend so expect to see a bunch of Belgians at a NW race near you. Better still, come and join us wherever you are, UK or Worldwide and ride, race and report in person or in spirit.

More over on Here Come the Belgians as well as crossjunkie (at least when he gets his act together).