Clarion Sportive

[clarion]

Yup.  I don't know what to think of this - bandwagon-jumping, stomping on heritage, fashion-victim or enterprising taking of opportunity.

Anyway

Link

[Pingu]

You want watch that West Lothian Clarion lot 

[Wowbagger]

You want watch that West Lothian Clarion lot 

The MacLarion?

[Rapples]

You want watch that West Lothian Clarion lot 

I hate West Lothian Clarions 

[valkyrie]

Declares An Interest: I'm a West Lothian Clarion member and I'm involved in the organisation of the Sportive.

For the Clarion Easter meet we want to put on lots of entertainment (cycling or otherwise) for members who'll have travelled a long way for the weekend. So there's whisky tastings, ceilidhs etc in the evening and bike rides during the day. For variety we need some social rides, a short event and a longer event. The short event is a hill climb and the longer event could have been called a sportive, a reliability trial or an audax. Whatever you call it it's a 100km ride around some nice roads on a Sunday morning. It's a good route and as the point of the Clarion is to encourage cycling we want people to come out and ride it. It's a simple fact that more people will enter Sportives that Audaxes or anything else you might call a bike ride. I think it's just because more people understand what a Sportive is.

[valkyrie]

and if you rush out and buy this week's comic you can read all about West Lothian Clarion and the history of the Clarion. And a bit about the Sportive.

[clarion]

Cool. 

West Lothian Clarion are impressively active, and the lack of smileys in my OP means it might be misread.

I'm not sure if West Lothian are more on the Fenland/Heanor or the Brighton/Bolton end of things politically.  But they've done a grand job so far

[valkyrie]

I'm not sure if West Lothian are more on the Fenland/Heanor or the Brighton/Bolton end of things politically. 

err - neither am I. West Lothian is a cycling club, proud to be part of the National Clarion but with no political affiliations or activities. Please explain the Fenland/Heanor to Brighton/Bolton spectrum, might come in handy at Easter!

[clarion]

I find that odd.  Yes, it's a cycling club, but what's the point of joining the Clarion, with its history and associations, if all you want is a 'non-political' cycling club?    Still, all are welcome.

[clarion]

The article in Cycling Weekly is a good and very positive one of a thriving club

[Jules]

I find that odd.  Yes, it's a cycling club, but what's the point of joining the Clarion, with its history and associations, if all you want is a 'non-political' cycling club?    Still, all are welcome.

I guess it's a bit like being a non-theist Quaker

[valkyrie]

what's the point of joining the Clarion, with its history and associations, if all you want is a 'non-political' cycling club? 

 - 'cos it's my local cycling club! Which seems to me the most obvious reason for joining any cycling club. Outside the major conurbations of Glasgow, Edinburgh and Kirriemuir there isn't a lot of choice of local club. I'm quite intrigued as to how you make a cycling club political. Do people who wish to join have to be vetted for their political views?

[clarion]

You may be interested in the history of how the club was formed, and subsequent activity.  Dennis Pye's book, Fellowship Is Life, is a great introduction.

[ElCampesino]

Well explained Valkyrie (I too have to declare an interest).

Sportives are the flavour of the months and it is a fact that they attract more riders than Audaxes(?) – see John M’s Kinross Sportive on Easter Saturday. 

I am not a huge fan of the Sportive movement myself but as Neil says, most cyclists know what a Sportive is and are prepared to pay for the privilege of riding one. Still, it will be a excellent event and you all know you want to ride it (good value for money, too)  Roll up, roll up!

As to the political orientation of the West Lothian Clarion, we are proud to be part of the long history of the National Clarion and enjoy the company of riders from other sections but like the rest of the Clarion are non-political. There are still some older members who remain true to the socialist and working class roots and principles of the club but on the whole this is not the reason why members join these days.

In the past, members had to be socialists to join but this requirement has long been dropped. Many new members are probably (and sadly?) not even aware of the political history of the Clarion.

So, we just want to ride our bikes in good company, encourage more people, including children, to cycle, participate in events and give something back to cycling in Scotland by organising a few things ourselves. 
And hell, it works.

EC

[MercuryKev]

Well explained Valkyrie (I too have to declare an interest).

Sportives are the flavour of the months and it is a fact that they attract more riders than Audaxes(?) – see John M’s Kinross Sportive on Easter Saturday. 

I am not a huge fan of the Sportive movement myself but as Neil says, most cyclists know what a Sportive is and are prepared to pay for the privilege of riding one. Still, it will be a excellent event and you all know you want to ride it (good value for money, too)  Roll up, roll up!

As to the political orientation of the West Lothian Clarion, we are proud to be part of the long history of the National Clarion and enjoy the company of riders from other sections but like the rest of the Clarion are non-political. There are still some older members who remain true to the socialist and working class roots and principles of the club but on the whole this is not the reason why members join these days.

In the past, members had to be socialists to join but this requirement has long been dropped. Many new members are probably (and sadly?) not even aware of the political history of the Clarion.

So, we just want to ride our bikes in good company, encourage more people, including children, to cycle, participate in events and give something back to cycling in Scotland by organising a few things ourselves. 
And hell, it works.

EC

Very well said.  Makes me wish that you'd get round to opening up an East Lothian Clarion chapter

[eck]

what's the point of joining the Clarion, with its history and associations, if all you want is a 'non-political' cycling club? 

 - 'cos it's my local cycling club! Which seems to me the most obvious reason for joining any cycling club. Outside the major conurbations of Glasgow, Edinburgh and Kirriemuir there isn't a lot of choice of local club. I'm quite intrigued as to how you make a cycling club political. Do people who wish to join have to be vetted for their political views?

As well as the two established clubs, we also have Kirrie Vélo (runs to the pub a speciality) but Kirrie Clarion has a certain ring to it. 
Oh, wait, we have too wide a choice of clubs here as it is. 

Well done chaps.

[valkyrie]

Just home from manning the Aberfoyle Feeding Station and it seems that the Clarion's first ever sportive was a real success. Just over a hundred started (we made the limit 100 but let some of the far travelled Clarionista join late) and I think only 1 DNF, a poor bloke who had 3 punctures and ran out of tubes/will to live.

Route was Cambusbarron out to Loch Venacher/Duke's Pass/Aberfoyle/Drymen/Fintry/Carron Valley/Cambusbarron. Lots of it would be familiar to those of you who have done Y L G's Canny Mans 200. So you'll appreciate that all the riders enjoyed the scenery, but most were suprised that the Pipe Track was actually a harder climb that the Duke's. The state of some of the roads was pretty poor, but aside from that it seemed a decent route for a 100km. I was worried that Aberfoyle on Easter Sunday would be busy with folk taking their grannies out for car trips round the trossachs but it seemed reasonably quiet.