So very epic...

Ben, originally uploaded by blauwgras2.

A late November slump in motivation led to us heading off in search of inspiation. Dawn's Crack on Saturday, ride to the train station where the posse is assembling. Load bikes onto Dave's wagon and hot-foot it down the the Chunnel. Make a bee-line for Koksijde and prepare for much cold wetness. Obviously it's the same when you watch the best at any sport but to see just how fast the lead group of 4 or 5 went through the sand or up the bridge compared to the best our country has to offer is simply astounding. Even Sven's dismount seems mind -blowingly fast!

Phil Jones got some good pics.

Next on the intinerary was to head to downtown Ghent for a spot of nourishment before hitting the velodrome for the penultimate night of the Ghent 6 Day. Keisse was once again in fine form, sporting that beautiful gold and white Merckx but mid-race tactics apparently led to fireworks on the boards and a saw a shift in allegiance from the other riders on the track. We pretended like we knew what was going on but in reality, just soaked in the atmosphere and sat mesmorised the precision ballet that is 6 Day the Madison racing.

We drank far too much Primus which led to some of us having second thoughts as we stood in the carpark with our bikes the next morning. The wind blew and the rain lashed and several last minute clothing changes were made out of the boot of the car, but to no avail. We headed off, guided by Rapha Condor spanner Andy, accompanied by Jon Cannings and an assorted crew of eager-beavers, followed by Kristof the photographer.

We got wet and cold (again) and were epic, several times. We hit the Molenberg and some other sections of Flanders Pave while Kristof ambushed us at different locations. The results are, I think you'll agree, stunning.

I have a chill.

Penshurst Off Road Club

Biblical weather on the drive down to Penshurst delayed my arrival as my little car aquaplaned (when it wasn't at a standstill) it's way down the roads. Massive queues at sign-on left me with time enough just to get numbered up, on my bike and ride up to the start...

Penshurst Off Road Club is, as the name suggests, a MTB venue with the emphasis on downhill/freeride. The 'cross' course runs off down one of the descents, wends it's way up and down a bit and then comes back up another downhill. If Andy's blog is to be believed then this is actually closer to an original cross course than we have grown used to.

On the plus side, a nice pic from John M of londoncyclesport.com

Lining up for my first race in new Rapha Condor kit, I felt pretty good and as we rolled away from the start I slotted into 3rd place. Laziness has meant that I haven't been stretching as much as I should do of late, which for an old cripple like me is critical -especially when it comes to trying to race unwarmed-up!
I tried my hardest to try my hardest while staying out of the red, but the relative low-speed mud-work made this nigh-on impossible. Mountain bikers had a whale of a time while I got progressively down-hearted, cold, bored and fed up! At one point coming to a complete standstill at the bottom of the climb, only to be forced into riding again by a push -thanks Alex.

Managed to summon the willpower to roll round the final lap with enough pace to ride away from people threatening to put me into the teens but for the second week running, left for home wishing I'd just stayed in bed!

Revolution 25, National Trophy Mallory Park.

Saturday night we took some bikes up to Revolution at the Manchester Velodrome. Condor Cycles is sponsoring the Rollers team. In the absence of Chris Newton, Geraint Thomas stepped in as captain for the evening.


Dean raced on the new Condor Lavoro Track frame.

Future Stars


Pretty excited to have 6-Day legend Iljo Keisse on our team!

Bored of whining about the trophy. Here are some pictures we took -should tell you all you need to know.



Jetwash: order of the day.



Having tied and soldered the rear spokes earlier in the year meant that the rear mech didn't cause any damage to the spokes, which was nice...

Face says it all.

Iceman cometh...

Every time i tried to put in the smallest of efforts last week, my legs just overloaded with Lactic Acid as well as feeling like someones was grabbing a handful of Hamstring... Didn't train, just went for a run which only compounded the issue! I'm hoping this is just the effects of racing twice in a weekend and that I'll come back stronger in time for the next Trophy this weekend. It's about time I actually put in a reasonable performance!
Sunday was real cold. Maybe it's because I'm a skinny wretch that it seemingly affects me more than others; I dunno. It didn't seem to bother anyone else but from the moment we first charged through one of the deep puddles and the freezing water splashed over my knees, I seemed to go backawrds.

I was holding onto 7th place, riding with Mick Bell while all around us struggled to stay upright but at 40mins I blew and had nothing left. Maybe it's because my body was working extra hard to try and function at the same rate in the cold? Who knows...roubaix skinsuits, that's the key! The Rhino's were sublime!

116 To Sea

Went to the Private View of Joe McGorty's photography as it appears in issue 3 of The Ride Journal on Friday night. Up in the badlands of Dalston there was some great stuff, centering around the annual Dunwich Dynamo.

The Ride Journal turned up at work today as well -pretty nice, worth checking out as there's a nice looking feature on 'cross.

www.joemcgorty.com

Krink Mini Cooper

Anyone remember the Sheone/Brooklyn Machine Works collaboration??

The Doppio

Inter-Area Cyclocross Championships

My first. However, London never fielded a B Team before and as the gridding is done based upon last year's positioning it meant life was simple for us: at the back!

With a 70-odd field as near to that of a National Trophy event, we were always going to be at something of a disadvantage. Conditions on the drive up to Leicester were foul. Driving rain and wind left the course fearfully slippery but by the time the Vets and Women had raced, the ground had compacted a bit and the sun showed its face in time for the Senior start.

The Dugasts were an absolute revelation! I experimented with the bite-point on our practise lap when Andy said "How are the new tubs?" to which I replied "They feel REALLY grippy" -shortly later he rounded the bend to find me sprawling around in the mud. They genuinely are though! Around the slippery, muddy, off-camber twists and turns you can turn in faster and get on the power significantly sooner. When they do start to go, it's predictable and you can get it back, unlike my Gommitalias which, once they're sliding...

Anyway I rode stayed on the gas in a measured effort -feeling the previous evening's exertions and managed to make some inroads into the field in front of me. I managed to cross the line at the head of the B Team, allowing the final member of the A-Team to finish in front of me in case I inadvertantly robbed them of any points.

Legs are absolutely screaming in agony now but I look forward to reaping the rewards of a double weekend.

Pic:Joolze Dymond -how's that for a cacophony of kits??

Rollapaluza Halloween Cross -trapped in a box by a cockney nutjob!

I'm a sucker for fancy dress and opportunities to combine it with racing are few and far between! Sadly, so is the opportunity to race in front of baying crowds but Saturday night's Halloween Cross provided both of the above. It turns out that sticking a giant Polo over your eye and marrying a wig with a helmet not only deprives you of all depth perception but serves you with a cracking headache.

Still, I was first fancy dress over the line and missed out on top 10 by one place. In fairness, I wasn't giving it my all as I had yet to ride in the Inter Area Championships the next day. Despite my handicap, I still managed to do some damage to plenty of non fancy-dressers -weaklings!



Andy W and I having our photo taken for the local paper.

A carnival atmosphere that most organisers struggle to recreate made it an ideal event to bring loved ones to in order to give them a glimse of why we love it so. One friend's other half said it great because "It wasn't just f*ckers talking about sprockets!"

Pics by Chris Bracewell and Bianca Levy