The TT Thread

[rob]

Struggled both days to get my HR high enough.   This may just come with experience.

Are you warming up sufficiently? Ideally you'd manage a few seconds at target effort level. But you do need a lot of time to do this properly.

It's a nice problem to have - more common is going too high in the first 4 miles ...

Rode to and from both events - mostly zone 2 for an hour-ish*.    There was then a bit of sitting around and faffing before riding to the start.   Should probably have done a few sprints to get my HR up.

TBH I'm training for the longer events so going so well (for me) over the shorter distances is encouraging.



* I was offered a lift by another competitor who was 'surprised' I was riding 25 miles home after a 10.

[Karla]

I won myself a tenner today, for being fastest in my category - some sort of handicap based on start time.  This was on a flat course and my time was 24:31, well over a minute down on my PB.  That should tell you what sort of (blustery, rainy, cold) March winds were blowing.  Furthermore, I'd had an attack of the 6P deficit when running for the train, so was riding in summer kit.  I was freezing by the end!

This was the first ever open TT promoted by Bolsover & District CC, and they did a stonking job of it.  140 riders of all ages including an impressive number fielded by the promoting club, lots of cake and fast return of results.  Their next event is on June 28th, you should try it.

[Doh!  24:31 not 23:41]

[EMnut]

I did my first time trail (Didcot Phoenix, Hilly Harwell 11 miles), and it struck me that this could be one of the most inclusive forms of cycling there is? There was no flashy sponsorship or anything remotely commercial about it. No one upmanship on bikes or kit (full aero bikes, and borrowed from garage specials did not seem to matter).

I invited my daughters boyfriend to come along, and next week I will try and get my other son in law and maybe my step-daughter along too. Hopefully the rest of the family can watch too if they want, and for the 11 mile Hilly Harwell course, they would not have hang around too long.

Next week I might do a faster time on my same bike, and then there would be an improvement, but it really does not matter what bike I use, I'm only racing against myself.

Yep it was hard, a series of deflating moments, being over-taken within the first 2 miles, the last hill and sprint with nothing left, I am not sure if fun is the right word. But with all the commercialisation of cycling now, it is so nice to see something so grassroots, and run by enthusiasts for the love of it.

[drossall]

It could be, but for some reason it isn't. You're right, for decades it was the traditional induction to cycle racing. You don't need to understand bunch racing. It doesn't really matter what bike you have. Clubs can be (but are not always) very friendly and welcoming, and provide lots of advice.

Most importantly, it doesn't matter if you get hammered because, next week, you come back and compete against your own best time, so everyone can get something out of it.

There were always arguments about whether it's a good introduction for those who want to go on to road racing, because it requires different skills but, at a basic level, it's a pretty obvious way in.

Sadly, it's struggling to attract new riders, possibly because, in this age when image matters, it's a low key, non-glitzy sport and, as you say, grass roots by its nature.

[marcusjb]

I, for one, look forward to experiencing it all this year.

I've now put my name down to enter a 100 mile TT in late May - but as mentioned below, I will do some of the Westerley CC Hillingdon TTs on Wednesday nights as those kick off soon.

Things have gone maybe not as well as I hoped in some ways - February was a washout and my mileage was well down on previous years.

But things seem to be okay on pace - I am lapping Richmond Park substantially faster on fixed than I could do on gears at the same time last year (and from Strava I can see I am throwing away way over a minute on the two descents being on fixed).  Still using the fixed bike quite a bit for shorter training efforts.  Comfort/distance on the geared bike seem pretty good on the aero bars as well.

I've an issue that half my intended support team may become unavailable - so that will throw a small spanner in the works - nothing insurmountable though.  Worst comes to the worst, I leave the saddlebag on. 
 

[mattc]

It could be, but for some reason it isn't.

It isn't what?!?

[rob]

Did the Sydenham Wheelers 25 yesterday - 1:03:19.   Please with that as it's 7 minutes faster than my PB from when I was 17.

I'm quite enjoying TTs this year.    It's a whole different set of faces but all seem pretty friendly.    It's quite competitive at the sharp end, but for everyone else it's about PBs and Vets Standards.    I'm doing a couple more 25s and then ramping the distances up in May to prep for the 24.

New bike runs very well and I'm now able to hold the position for 3/4 hrs.   The core strength work over the Winter has made a big difference.


Rob

[drossall]

It isn't what?!?

... one of the most inclusive forms of cycling there is...

[mattc]

This suggests it is very inclusive to me:

There was no flashy sponsorship or anything remotely commercial about it. No one-upmanship on bikes or kit (full aero bikes, and borrowed from garage specials did not seem to matter).

(Are we talking at cross-purposes? Care to offer a different defn of "inclusive", drossall?    )

[drossall]

Probably. When I read inclusive, I think of something that attracts all ages and types. What I see happening is that open TTs in particular are becoming mostly the preserve of older riders.

It's not a criticism of the way that they are run - as we've said, it's a grass roots sport and, at least in principle, all are welcome. However, it doesn't seem that all are coming.

We've been describing some events that do attract a wider range, but I'm not sure whether it's generally true.

[mattc]

Ah, gotcha.

That sort of fits what one YACFer  said to me after a first 'serious' year on her bike: that the club events were as friendly as any sport she'd done, but the "Opens" were much less so.

(I've only done Opens at 12hour and longer - half of which were National Champs - so probably don't have a representative experience!)

And you missed the key thing - the magazines aren't covering/promoting TTs 

[drossall]

I'm not sure whether opens are unfriendly. The entry process is a bit arcane and the events are low profile, but you'd normally join a club and they'd get you past those things. Going to your first few with club mates is best anyway. You wouldn't really enter an open badminton competition without going through a club first, I'd imagine.

Don't get me started on the comic. If you took that seriously, these days, you'd do three years' hard training, spend £2000 on equipment, modify your diet considerably and then spend 15 minutes warming up, before even riding down to the shops. I appreciate the fitness market, but for the newcomer it all seems so serious and inaccessible compared to when I started. I get depressed every time I read it

[EMnut]

I suppose I should clarify what i meant by inclusive

I'm lucky that many members of my family enjoy cycling, but finding things we can do together is not easy. One of my sons in law is a Professional cyclist, one a fast team rider who has done well in Cat 3 races, my daughter has done a triathlon and dragged me along on Sportifs, and then there is me, the carthorse.

With the TT we can all go off and race at own relative paces, yet still take part in the same event. The duration of the a 10 mile TT is not so long, not a whole day out (difficult with young kids), so it works in that sense too. And its cheap, and we are not well off, so that is good too.

But I also meant in contrast to a Sportif, there were not tons of sponsors ramming products down our throats like energy gels and all that stuff. No silly entry fees, some events charge fifty quid plus, juts to ride a bikeThere were none of the business you get at some Sportifs with people on crazy expensive bikes, thinking  themselves as the next Wiggo, no formalities. and no snobbery, and I'm not saying that all people that do Sportifs are like this, but there is an element that is.

I was 'team mechanic' for a triathlon last year, and was very impressed with how friendly that was, and how people were not really bothered by kit, and how everyone seemed to be having fun.

I do know people like Matt and other DPCCers, so that is how I found out about the TT event. But I'd agree that if events were better advertised, there might be more takers.

The magazines will probably never really push it. Their agenda is to sell stuff, and get advertising space, and the Sportif rider is what they aim at. Most of us here probably know that you can race on a very modest bike, and that have the latest kit probably does not make such a huge difference.

[Dibdib]

That's what I like about them too - although I've only ever done club 10s, not opens.

It's just simple, unpretentious racing. Turn up on anything, give them four quid, roll to the start, and turn yourself inside out for ten miles. Nobody seems to care that I'm slow, or that I turned up on a cx/touring bike (I did take the rack off). Then get your time, come back next week and try to beat it.

[drossall]

In one club's sporting 10 series that I rode, there was a rider on a hand-cycle. Pretty respectable times too. Those hills must have hurt...

[EMnut]

Long Hanborough is not a million miles from Abingdon. Which club do that TT? Actually more to the point is there a good website for finding what is on locally. I'm hoping to do a few more with the family

[mattc]

I do know people like Matt and other DPCCers, so that is how I found out about the TT event. But I'd agree that if events were better advertised, there might be more takers.

The magazines will probably never really push it. Their agenda is to sell stuff, and get advertising space, and the Sportif rider is what they aim at. Most of us here probably know that you can race on a very modest bike, and that have the latest kit probably does not make such a huge difference.

If you want proper advertising, the entry fees would have to pay for it.

Awareness is a funny thing. Your club is at least 4 years old? It was formed about 6 miles from DPCC (your nearest TT club) and barely further from Oranj's club (who also hold weekly TTs). The races have been on those club websites. There is enough overlap between the clubs' riders/memberships, so You and Your Members MUST know about the TTs. And yet in all that time you may be the first to actually ride one. Why is that?

[David Martin]

Our club's first TT of the year on Sunday morning. A 3-lap hilly TT around Long Hanborough for which I was doing the signage and timekeeping. Everyone wants lap times of course, and some riders are coming through on their second laps when the last rider of the field has barely got off the line. Starting my season's timekeeping off with an event that's ten times more difficult to time than a standard out-and-back 10 or 25 when I've yet to get my stopwatch-fu under control is hard work. I had to have a lie down in the sunshine in the afternoon!

Oh and yes, a little circuit race like this (it's similar to the Harwell Hilly, I think, our lap was 7.9 miles) is ideal for anyone that wants to have a go, or just watch, we also had a couple of first-timers.

Seekrit projekt #2. A timing device that not only records the times but also snaps a pic of the rider as they pass so you can correlate rider and time.

How accurate is a DS1307 RTC?

..d

[Cudzoziemiec]

That's what I like about them too - although I've only ever done club 10s, not opens.

It's just simple, unpretentious racing. Turn up on anything, give them four quid, roll to the start, and turn yourself inside out for ten miles. Nobody seems to care that I'm slow, or that I turned up on a cx/touring bike (I did take the rack off). Then get your time, come back next week and try to beat it.

Do people do TTs with mudguards and saddlebags? I sometimes fancy having a go at a short, local one - I fully expect the timekeeper to have gone home before I finish - but can't be arsed to take all that stuff off my bike.

[drossall]

If they care, find another club to try it with.

That said, because the aim is to beat your previous best time, then if you enjoy it you're pretty-soon going to feel that you can be bothered to remove them.

[tatanab]

Do people do TTs with mudguards and saddlebags?

Yes, you could ask for an early start and leave your bag in the timekeeper's car or with a club mate.

Inclusive?  I think that grass roots/club level time trialling is less so than when I started in 1969.  It was not unusual for impoverished teenagers to ride very basic machines.  My first timetrial was on a Raleigh roadster frame with 27" wheels shoehorned in, 83" fixed and all steel equipment.  I did 28:45.  These days, at my local evening events there is more carbon than after a forest fire, many TT specific bikes, and the riders do not seem to be going much quicker than the fast men all those years ago.  There is only one person who shows up with a steel framed bike - complete with mudguards.  In my youth almost everybody cycled to local races, now all but a very small handful drive there which causes a problem for the organiser.  Rose tinted spectacles perhaps.

[EMnut]

to answer Matts question about why did I not try a TT

I'm not really into 'racing' in the sense of the pub and MTBing were far more interesting places to be when I was in my yoot and bike racing would not have been on my radar. I did the Cape Argus a few times on an MTB, and once borrowed a road bike. But I don't drive and consider a bike as a car foremost, so do ride a lot.

So now I'm middle aged, and go and watch my family take part in events where they spin along at 30mph, and watch in admiration and with great pride, I'll let them do that, and not feel too much regret that I did not do this when I was their age.

I did a couple of Sportifs, but they are not for me, as they are not really racing like the Hillingdon circuits are,
So mentally I'd never consider myself a racer

But then this year I thought I'd try some new things, I rode an Audax (or should I say failed an Audax), rode a tandem for the first time, got back into Mountain biking, and then due to a brag about overtaking Road bikers when I was riding my MTB, Matt rightly threw down the gauntlet to do a TT, And what the hell, you only live once.

Of course now I've done it once, I get it. I get the does not matter what you ride, racing against yourself, and informality. I'll do it again when I can, but I'm short on time to commit to anything now.

As to the other riders from Freewheeling, watch this space, I've had a couple of interested parties for the Cholsey event, although it clashes with another ride, we might be along this sunday. Others just want to do the same old, same old, and will never try it. But by doing it myself, I'm hoping that people might think, if he can do it, so can I

[mattc]

to answer Matts question about why did I not try a TT

Actually that's not what I asked!
But thanks for an interesting answer 

[mattc]

Inclusive?  I think that grass roots/club level time trialling is less so than when I started in 1969.  It was not unusual for impoverished teenagers to ride very basic machines.  My first timetrial was on a Raleigh roadster frame with 27" wheels shoehorned in, 83" fixed and all steel equipment.  I did 28:45.  These days, at my local evening events there is more carbon than after a forest fire, many TT specific bikes, and the riders do not seem to be going much quicker than the fast men all those years ago.  There is only one person who shows up with a steel framed bike - complete with mudguards.  In my youth almost everybody cycled to local races, now all but a very small handful drive there which causes a problem for the organiser.  Rose tinted spectacles perhaps.

I'd agree with your observations. The bling quotient is bound to increase as cycling creeps further into the wealthier classes; and folks drive to ALL cycling events these days, local TTs may actually have less drivers!
But are expensive bikes a problem? Not really, certainly not if you're welcomed on your steel commuter. Only a few people are in the position that buying a TT-specific bike is the difference between winning and not.

Perhaps "inclusive" is not the best word? It's not the same as diverse. This isn't my specialist area, so of course I went to Wiki...
Oddly they had nothing about bike racing, but they had this:

Inclusion is a term used by people with disabilities and other disability rights advocates for the idea that all people should freely, openly and without pity accommodate any person with a disability without restrictions or limitations of any kind[citation needed].

That seems to be about accommodating everyone - it's not about whether they actually turn up!

[drossall]

These days, at my local evening events there is more carbon than after a forest fire...

I still say go along and try, and be prepared to try somewhere else if they look down at you for riding a wooden trainer bike. Cycling clubs are like everything else - they come in all shapes and sizes, and it doesn't necessarily follow that what you've seen at one will be what you see elsewhere. Some clubs are out and out racing teams, taking it very seriously.

I'm not sure it would work if all were the same - I've seen youngsters join family clubs, get the bug, and go off to more race-oriented ones but, if there weren't a range of clubs, how would we keep their interest? Would grass-roots football survive without higher-level clubs to motivate the keen fan and talented player alike? Or could the Premier League be there without the grass roots?

But there's no point in complaining that you went along to Chelsea and they looked funny at you when you stood their in old trainers and asked if you could have a kick about. You probably couldn't even do that with the first team of your local club.