Author Topic: The Knutsford Great Race. (Ordinaries) (Read 27356 times)

Exit Stage Left · « **Reply #125 on:** 07 September, 2010, 12:39:53 am »

A short video of the event. A sort of test, to see if the various codecs can cope with the usual hand-held zoom-pans. There are 4 changes of format before it gets to you, so I'm keen to see how it degrades. 2 mins.

      YouTube
            - Knutsford Great Race


Best seen full screen in HD 720.

Charlotte · « **Reply #126 on:** 07 September, 2010, 08:09:26 am »

Quote from: Sergeant Pluck on 06 September, 2010, 10:34:09 pm

So what's it actually like riding one of these things? Do you feel like you are constantly on the verge of a faceplant? What are they like to corner on?

I don't know about racing an original 1880s machine, but I can tell you that a Summerfield MkV is a thing of sublime beauty to race. Having ridden Kat's (also repro) machine, I'm sure she feels the same way about her bike.

I had a sound advantage from the word go, I think. My penny was probably one of the lightest machines on the grid and it had a slightly smaller wheel than most (49" as opposed to a more usual 52" or so). This meant that it was more responsive to pedal power, whether into a corner when I wanted to scrub off speed, or out of one when I wanted to get on the beans.

Also, the original machines were racing on vintage-spec rubber. More modern bikes like Kat's and mine are equipped with hooked Velocity rims which means we can run cut-up Greentyres; which although abysmal on a 700c wheel, are surprisingly responsive on a penny.

Of course, none of this takes that much away from the feeling of ohmygodsImgoingtostackitagghhhh! that you regularly encounter when you're racing a high bike. The C of G isn't anywhere near a regular safety bicycle and you're always acutely aware of the way in which the slightest impedance to that big wheel is going to result in your centre of mass deciding that it's had enough of lagging behind and wants to get up front where all the action is.

When were were doing our warm up and course familiarization laps, I was astounded by the angles of dangle that the Czech was managing round those tight triangular corners. But after ten or twenty race-pace laps, I was getting the bike over like I'd never imagined I would and it all started coming together rather well. Like any other kind of crit racing, it's all in the corners and you've just got to find the edge of the tyres' grip and be sure you're riding within their envelope of safety. You've got to keep on getting round people and you've got to stay aggressive all the time or you're not going to be competitive.

Penny racing is a total, total rush. I'm not going to wait another ten years to do it again.

clarion · « **Reply #127 on:** 07 September, 2010, 08:57:19 am »

Coventry? Tazzie?

alexb · « **Reply #128 on:** 07 September, 2010, 10:00:23 am »

My kids loved the video. Why isn't Penny racing part of the Olympics build up, it would be brilliant. Hyde Park or one of the other central London parks would be an excellent venue.

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #129 on:** 07 September, 2010, 10:12:22 am »

Congratulations, ladies, on a fine ride.

andygates · « **Reply #130 on:** 07 September, 2010, 10:13:14 am »

Quote from: alexb on 07 September, 2010, 10:00:23 am

My kids loved the video. Why isn't Penny racing part of the Olympics build up, it would be brilliant. Hyde Park or one of the other central London parks would be an excellent venue.

If anyone's a BCU member and a cycling Games Maker [tm], PLEASE get on the blower and suggest this.

alexb · « **Reply #131 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:22:06 am »

Quote from: andygates on 06 September, 2010, 09:17:18 pm

Ah, finally, I knew someone would have the good photos of Charlotte!

cornering B&W by baileyzanda, on Flickr

That's 'shopped surely?
Combine that lean angle with those scary floppy spokes and I get "teh fear" just sitting here!

clarion · « **Reply #132 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:25:14 am »

I don't know if that particular shot is 'shopped, but I can confirm those lean angles were happening.

mrcharly-YHT · « **Reply #133 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:36:39 am »

Quote from: andygates on 07 September, 2010, 10:13:14 am

Quote from: alexb on 07 September, 2010, 10:00:23 am
My kids loved the video. Why isn't Penny racing part of the Olympics build up, it would be brilliant. Hyde Park or one of the other central London parks would be an excellent venue.

If anyone's a BCU member and a cycling Games Maker [tm], PLEASE get on the blower and suggest this.

Do it by email, and include that photo of Charlotte hammering the corner.

Big crowd in background, cool clothing, knarly-looking bike (I *love* those bars).

Hilldodger · « **Reply #134 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:40:46 am »

Well done Charlotte and Kat.

Of course, you realise you've ruined your handicap for Coventry and will now have to start in Rugby

jogler · « **Reply #135 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:43:34 am »

They'd still win

Hilldodger · « **Reply #136 on:** 07 September, 2010, 11:52:58 am »

Of course they COULD and I, as main event organiser, am open to bribery

fruitcake · « **Reply #137 on:** 07 September, 2010, 01:06:35 pm »

Quote from: alexb on 07 September, 2010, 11:22:06 am

Quote from: andygates on 06 September, 2010, 09:17:18 pm
Ah, finally, I knew someone would have the good photos of Charlotte!

cornering B&W by baileyzanda, on Flickr

That's 'shopped surely?
Combine that lean angle with those scary floppy spokes and I get "teh fear" just sitting here!

That lean angle is as it was.

Exit Stage Left · « **Reply #138 on:** 07 September, 2010, 01:19:34 pm »

I did some research on Josef Zimovcak. Who was disqualified from the race.
Google

This was from 2007, about him completing the course of the Vuelta, 24 hours ahead of the race.

Quote

Josef Zimovcak - a 50 year old Czech postman - is crazy about cycling. He has taken part in the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia but not on an expensive bike with gears. Josef Zimovcak rides an old-fashioned penny-farthing, where one wheel is much bigger than the other and keeping balance is an art. During the Tour de France two years ago Zimovcak almost had to quit after a bad fall on a mountain stage left him with a broken rib and jaw, but got back in the saddle, riding most days until around midnight and rising at six every morning. He says that when things got rough he thought about how he would buy an ice-cream when he finally got to Paris. The Giro d'Italia he gave up a few kilometres before the finishing line after a tragic accident when a motorbike collided with his accompanying vehicle. Zimovcak said that under the circumstances he could not finish the race and was later awarded a prize by the Czech Fair Play Sports Association. Now he wants to tackle the third European "Grand Tour" the Spanish Vuelta - a gruelling 3,240 km race through the Pyrenean Mountains. Like in the other races Zimovcak will be riding 24 hours head of the other contestants. He'll be starting on September 1st and if all goes according to plan he should cross the finishing line in Madrid on September 25th

bobb · « **Reply #139 on:** 07 September, 2010, 01:23:52 pm »

Sounds like a top man. Shame he got DQ'd.

"Josef The Czech" sounds like a character from an East End gangster movie!

Charlotte · « **Reply #140 on:** 07 September, 2010, 01:37:07 pm »

Zimovcak is one hell of a rider. In the last half hour, I had him on my wheel for about four laps. I knew that they were my last laps because Andy had told me he was pulling me into the pits to let Kat sprint out the finish, so I was giving it everything I had.

By the time I was on my last lap, I was horribly anaerobic and gasping for breath. Zimovcak was just sitting there on my wheel, getting a draft and looking like he was taking a break (which I suppose he probably was).

In any other race, his overtaking would just have been called "spirited". In a penny race, it was definitely dangerous and I'm not surprised he got DQ'd. I'd love to know how many laps he got, though. I'd guess at least five more than the winner.

clarion · « **Reply #141 on:** 07 September, 2010, 02:19:31 pm »

Josef actually looked mightily pissed off that you'd passed him, and he didn't have anything left to overtake with.

A hell of a rider, but very aggressive. Although I wasn't close to the crash, I saw some manoeuvres which were rather marginal.

Exit Stage Left · « **Reply #142 on:** 07 September, 2010, 02:32:24 pm »

Quote from: Charlotte on 07 September, 2010, 01:37:07 pm

Zimovcak is one hell of a rider. In the last half hour, I had him on my wheel for about four laps. I knew that they were my last laps because Andy had told me he was pulling me into the pits to let Kat sprint out the finish, so I was giving it everything I had.

By the time I was on my last lap, I was horribly anaerobic and gasping for breath. Zimovcak was just sitting there on my wheel, getting a draft and looking like he was taking a break (which I suppose he probably was).

In any other race, his overtaking would just have been called "spirited". In a penny race, it was definitely dangerous and I'm not surprised he got DQ'd. I'd love to know how many laps he got, though. I'd guess at least five more than the winner.

His lap times are at the bottom of the results, it's also clear from the results that one rider in your team was lapping with the leaders, and the other about 10 seconds more per lap, the US riders were hampered by mechanical problems, spoke breakages, as they had picked up their machines in the UK prior to the event, so no shakedown time. Jim Brailsford rode an 54 inch 1887 New Rapid, and Josef rode a 1997 54 inch bike, unbranded. I've put a video with interviews up.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/Mo-byQlY4ak&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/Mo-byQlY4ak&rel=1</a>

Hilldodger · « **Reply #143 on:** 07 September, 2010, 03:49:48 pm »

Quote from: andygates on 07 September, 2010, 10:13:14 am

Quote from: alexb on 07 September, 2010, 10:00:23 am
My kids loved the video. Why isn't Penny racing part of the Olympics build up, it would be brilliant. Hyde Park or one of the other central London parks would be an excellent venue.

If anyone's a BCU member and a cycling Games Maker [tm], PLEASE get on the blower and suggest this.

A Penny race WAS going to be part of the Tour de France events in 07 and we were putting plans together but the organisers got scared and cancelled.