3 Peaks - we came, we rode, we were photographed

The 2010 3 Peaks race is well documented on honourary Belgian Dave Haygarth's (seen below) seminal Peaks blog so I won't repeat anything here. My own take on the whole rocky affair can be found here too.



Suffice to say there were lots of photographers and spectators out on Sunday, and lots of shots aimed at, shouts shouted toward and general love for, the Belgians. Dunc would have been proud to hear it all.....

So here is my own little selection of piccies of me (Alan), Rich Allen, G, Richard Knowles and Simon Fox - missing in the thick of it are Winkie who shunned a Belgian strip for some reason (tut tut) and Simon Nurse who rode in green but rocked the team windjacket after. We were aided and abetted by Mark Turner, Jo Hanglebads and Mark Bradley and Gemma Nurse. And probably others whom I didnt get to see on the day. A massive thank you to all the helpers as it really makes all the difference on a logistically complex event like this.

Going back to the images, superb shots in particular can be found from the Belgian friendly Cheryl King and Richard Seipp both of whom are represented below.

As he did in the race, winner Rob Jebb (1st shot below) leads us up the impossibly steep first climb and into the fun:

Dusted off the uncle John

Well dusted off the Uncle John got my Belgians top out of mothballs and ready to roll on Sunday really looking forward to the season,even though I can only ride Sundays.

Here come the Belgians Style Guide: Eurobike 2010

By now everybody should have had enough technical details from the Eurobike, so now a number-free approach:

Best catalogue was Eddy Merckx, more like a tribut to the cyclist himself. Also the booth was not too bad:

They tried to cash in on the success of Eddy quite heavely:

Including a wheel with listing of the most important wins:

So off I went to Lightwheight go get a wheel with all my victories , currently looks like this:

I've got the impression they even removed some spokes from the wheel...

Next company had even removed the super glue, so I guess the next bike will be supplied as a kit, which is a nice idea, imagine You could have a frame "Produced in Monaco", just order the kit, go to Monaco add some glue there! Picture below shows how to glue Your Cross frontend:

In case You do not like black, have yourself a nice Ghost bike, so in case you're getting run over your loved ones know what to do:

As I could not see a real crocodil I'm afraid it might just be a fake Lacoste...

Maybe looking for something more stylish, a breath of Modern art:

Of course design will have an impact on our 2011 summer team kit, here just a bit of inspiration for Duncan:

Scare them off with colour!!

BTW, watch out for the London Fashion Week Special

Tour of Romney Marsh

Being a new "Belgian" I thought I'd post about my recent ride in the colours. Well not in the kit, that's yet to arrive.

Four of us entered the Tour of Romney Marsh in the hope for some early winter training. The expectation was 100k in driving rain along exposed featureless muddy country roads, with a couple of short, but very sharp climbs.

However, Sunday dawned, sunny, warm but with a brisk 30kph southwesterly blowing. The terrain remained the same however requiring some team work, and working with other ,to make decent headway into the wind for the first 50k.

We set off and soon formed a comfortable group of 8, taking turns on the front and keeping the pace up at about 30kph. This clawed back most of those in front of us and soon the group had risen to about 15. Unfortunately, the same 8 seemed to be doing the work in the front.

There was only on thing for it! Get in the gutter, put your head down, push a big gear and hope lazy *&^%^$ at the back would drop off. The only problem here was the local farming community had decided it was a good weekend to cut the roadside black and hawthorn. Anyway we went for it, and the plan worked after about 5k, we were back to about 10 in the group with only a couple of wheelsuckers from London Dynamo still hanging on.

The final few k were done at one hell of a pace with the wind behind us and only a brief climb to come! Lympne Hill at 15% was a bit of a shock after the flat marshes! Having struggled up the climb we raced down hill to finish in 3hrs 30mins for the 104k, coming in 21-24.

No photos and no kit yet but hope to recounting some more rides in the coming months, including trips to France to enjoy the pleasures of Normandy in the rain and wind.

Whilst being a Southern softee, my challenge for this winter will be to train for the Hell of the North Cotswolds in April next year. It may sound as hard as hamster wrestling but we do have some tough hills down here, honest! I also might try some North Wales cross series events. My mate came in the series top 10 simply by entering every round last year!

Shipley Hall

The first race of my first full season of Cross didn't go quite as I had planned. I'd agreed to travel down to the race with a couple of club mates who hadn't raced before. Due to logistical problems (one of their other halves) they ended up being 40 minutes late to pick me up and so eventually we pulled up into the car park twenty minutes before the race was due to start. After rapid registration my warm up consisted of just about managing to get into the starting box with only a couple of minutes to spare. Apparently 143 riders started the race which was a fantastic turnout.

Before too loo long the whistle blew and we were off. Having seen very little of the course before hand the first lap was a learning experience. The course was one of two halves. The first half being mainly uphill with a gravel section and then a longer drag upto the singletrack section. Once through the singletrack it was then back onto the grass for a snaking flat and downhill route back to the finishing line.

Unfortunately the lack of warmup meant that it took a couple of laps to get going by which time I was towards the back of the field and I pretty much stayed there. Towards the end I closed up on a group of riders but my attempts to get past them were foiled when I had to pull over to let some of the leaders past in the singletrack!

Although I was a little disappoined it was at least an improvement on last season where I failed to finish my first race. The next race is in a fortnights time and this time I shall be travelling down by myself and with better preparation hopefully I can pull myself further up the field.

Pictures of Belgians needed......

Hello fellas. I've just written an article for Boneshaker magazine, an excellent magazine covering the community aspects of cycling (link here - http://bit.ly/d4wFr8 ). The article itself is about cross; why cross is the best form of cycling and why any sane(?) person should immediately buy themselves some fat 700cc tyres etc. etc.

It's very artistic mag and James the Editor is very keen for some good cross pics. Does anyone fancy contributing a couple? I've passed on one of me in the 3 peaks, but it's a bit low res and they quite like interesting B&W shots and photo's that are bit good (i.e. nothing that I have ever, or will ever take with a camera!). They are a not for profit enterprise but will credit the photographer.

Following on the thread from below.......I hope to catch up with a couple of you at the 3 peaks next weekend. Whilst the start sheet says 'Cardiff JIF', my heart says 'Belgian!'. I'll be wearing that green jersey you can see above (I'm the one on the far left, practising my Whernside lift) and travelling up with 4 other Cardiff JIF lads. They are all aware that I have a secret alter-ego and even tolerate me wearing my awesome HCTB kit when out training. See you on start line (Incidentally Mrs Nurse - a fellow HCTB - will pop up somewhere the course armed with innertubes, food, water and the like; probably by Ribblehead)

3 Peaks Cyclocross Preview - 26 September

In case you hadn't noticed, at the heart of 'Belgian' identity is the winter discipline of cyclocross. If, as a new Belgian you aren't already riding cross, then you will be soon, by osmosis, peer pressure or sheer curiousity down to the fact that the rest of us bang on about it so much. As an old hand, then you know what you are in for already.

However, masquerading less as the Cinderella, and more the Ugly Sister of the cyclocross world is the 3 Peaks Cyclocross, a unique annual event occupying a very Northern (as in England) niche and representing a very different part of the cross world. It is staged in the Yorkshire Dales National Park every year at the end of September and so they say, is the toughest and biggest Cyclo-Cross event in the UK. I wouldn't argue with that as such.

Here are the stats:
Total distance: 61kms (38 miles)
Road: 28kms (45mins - 1hr 5mins)
Unsurfaced: 33kms (2hrs 15mins - 4hrs 40mins)
Unrideable: 6kms - 8kms (dependent on individual ability & prevailing conditions)
Total climbing: 1524m (5000ft)

Hidden in there is some scary and rocky terrain, an allegedly neutralised bunch start of 500 riders on narrow roads behind a car, and a whole world of pain. Oh and 3 bloody great mountains, not Peaks - Ingleborough, Whernside Penyghent.

Yes it is that steep! (Pic:Wig Worland)

There is of course a merry, nay select, band of Belgians competing this year - Alan (Crossjunkie), Winkie Thin, Richard Knowles, Richard Allen and Simon Fox. Jez Hastings is also riding as his Team Wiggle alter ego but we all know he is Belgian through and through.... Most have ridden before, none I suspect are undertaking it lightly. Spare a thought too for their pit crews who face a GB rally style driving experience hotfooting from rendezvous to rendezvous with spare bikes, wheels and bottles. This is a cross race after all......

Rich descending Penyghent, the big dark lump in the background (pic: Wig Worland)



Alan in original black kit ascending Simon Fell/Ingleborough (pic:Wig Worland)


Heightened anticipation, nervousness and obsession are common traits among all Peaks entrants at this time of year, with just a week and a half to go till what is usually for most the biggest race of the year. And probably the hardest too. Most do Peaks specific training which often involves variations on a theme of carrying a bike up rough 45 degree slopes for endless periods of time.

Friend and honorary Belgian, Dave Haygarth runs a great 3 Peaks blog with all things Peak related contained within. Check it out for more insights into this unique race even if you have no intention of riding, just marvelling at the stupidity of riding up and down mountains on cross bikes. Better still, come along on that last Sunday in September and support your intrepid band of Belgians at Ribblehead or even better, half way up Penyghent when a friendly shout or bottle of water won't go amiss. That said, by that point we will probably all be looking for a wandering Vetinary with a bolt gun to end our suffering........

Yorkshire Cross Round 1

Yorkshire Cross League Round 1 - Oakworth School

Rich Allen, Mark Turner and Mark Bradley rode, Alan took photos and barracked good naturedly.

Cross is in the house!

Rich





Mark T



Post race

The Cumberland Challenge

First of all, an apology. I've not been posting, e-mailing or even reading much lately. I blame Oscar, our 4 1/2 month old Labrador. I aim to rectify the situation in the coming months. So in that spirit...

I rode the Cumberland Challenge last weekend, my first proper event in Belgian's colours. The Challenge is a 105 mile sportif across north Cumbria, Northumberland and a brief foray into Scotland just before you turn for home. Credit for the photos goes to mybibnumber.com who will be getting some cash!

Write up will follow in full (with Photos) over the weekend. Theres some crackers of me going all Boonen on Alston High Street (Cobbled 1 in 5!)

Cross technique - getting on

Over the recent Bank Holiday I ran a cross skills session in Burnley, attended by Belgians and friends of Belgians, and it was a timely reminder of the need to get specific with your specificities as the new season looms large in the calendar.

Mark T, Adam L, Eleanor, Richard K, myself and a good few others including a clutch of kids either re-acquainted ourselves or discovered from scratch why cross is so accessible to get into and yet so engrossing to master.

A number of others have also recently contacted me for help with the jumpy on bit of cross so here, by way of public service announcement, are some crossjunkie nuggets of gold..........

Difficulties mounting are totally common to us all, at least to start with. I assume dear reader that you are right handed and are getting on from the left. Otherwise reverse these tips. Alternatively, get really flash and become ambi-jumpstrous! Find a smooth patch of grass/football playing field and prepare to look like a loon while you practice the following....

There are 2 tips to bear in mind at all times:

Visualise and practice landing on the inside of your thigh - your right thigh if you are getting on from the left side of the bike. As you get better, you will get more accurate and closer to any vulnerable areas(!) but you still land just on that part where your groin is. You actually don't need to jump at all if you get used to sliding onto the saddle gently.

Always think about your right foot coming smoothly down and onto the right pedal. Follow the arc your foot makes as you swing your leg over and push down through the air till you make contact with the pedal. It does help if you are getting off the right way, right foot behind your left and then a twist of the ankle to unclip. This keeps the pedals roughly where you want them to be - right pedal forward.



Break it down as follows, starting these exercises at walking pace and building up speed from there:

1. Walk along side the bike and practice rotating your hips and swinging the right leg over and onto the saddle, landing on the right inner thigh and sliding slightly onto the saddle to get central. Just do it walking speed for now, but think about that right foot coming over the back of the bike and onto the pedal. Don't jump yet, that comes later. Get smooth at this before going onto step 2. Do it with hands in middle of bars and hands on hoods. Practice over and over. It's like a hurdler movement in many ways - all hips, not height.

2. Jog along side the bike. Do the same but with a very small hop off the left foot. No height, more a gentle udge onto the saddle. Think right foot down onto the right pedal. Try different hand positions too.You should be able to hop gently over and onto the saddle without a big leap. Try to dial out the stuttering of the left foot we all go through, by learning in stage 1 exactly how little you have to jump.

3. When you are smoother and more confident, build up the speed. Even flat out, the top guys hardly jump, just nudge up and over.

Though I can do it in my sleep nowadays, I still do technical drills once a week or more to make sure that they are absolutely rock solid in my mind and muscles for when I am gasping for breath and under pressure in a race. Whatever level you are racing at, it is worth it for the satisfaction alone, of a perfectly executed mount.



See you in the mud somewhere.