Q2 2008 - Reading Cycling Club

Rob King in action at the Reading Track League (photo by Dennis Sackett)

HOLLAND WINDOWSCall 0118 931 3151IntroductionWell that’s the winter behind us and summer is just round the corner. What’s more, ifthe reliability trial is anything to go by then things can only get easier!Summer of course brings plenty of cycling opportunities, no more so than via our club’svaried calendar of events. Why not take a look through the calendar and see how youcan lend your support to the organisers of these various promotions?So anyway, here’s the next edition of Tailwind. There is plenty of content this time, somuch so that I’m going to have to save Steve Bale’s beans-on-toast recipe for a futureedition. Ah well, I don’t suppose you’ll all starve…Dave Ridge, Editortailwind@readingcyclingclub.comContentsCommittee - as the name suggests, your trusty committe.Wheel Wobbles - Steve Bale takes you on a wibbly-wobbly ride throughthe world of wheel wobbles and we learn ourselves a new word.The Great Beryl Burton - What skills does it take to be a great champion?‘Allsorts’ as Paul Taylor finds out.Calendar - All the clubs events and promotions.The Crockerdile Rocks! - Nick Crocker to be precise, and the first partof his epic Trans-Australian, spider-dodging, ‘roo-chasing adventure.New Kid on the (10 speed) Block - this time we get the low-down onclub 10 mile record holder, Mr Nick English.Windows for homes not PC’sMaintenance Classes - Find out what the monthly maintenance classesare all about from spanner-wielding Adrian Lawson.Membership renewals - The latest new additions to our club, plus news ofyour club’s ongoing commitment to First Aid training and a special offer for cutpriceBritish Cycling membership.Official Window Supplier to HisExcellency The Deli Lama

ommitteeCommitteeere they are again, your trusty committee. If you have a question then there’s a good chance one ofhese folk Here will have they the are answer. again, your trusty committee. If you have a question then there’sa good chance one of these folk will have the answer.Position Name PhoneChairman Adrian Lawson 0118 961 2900Clothing Trudi Sammons 0118 979 3221Clubruns Steve Thurgood 0118 375 7207Coach Greg Woodford 0118 926 5307Cyclocross Secretary Brian Bingham 0118 978 9004General Secretary Roy Booth 0118 926 4540Membership Ian Richardson 0118 948 4070Newsletter Editor Dave Ridge 07810 353697President John Barnes 0118 958 3741Press Secretary Rod MacFadyen 0118 948 1347Road Racing Stephen Bale 0118 961 2250Sportives John Hollands 0118 931 3151Time Trials Steve Ferry 0118 941 2575Track Adrian Lawson 0118 961 2900Treasurer Colin Bates 07788 740084Welfare Officer Roy Booth 0118 926 4540Women’s Riders’ Rep. Trudi Sammons 0118 979 3221TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS 2008CENTRAL REGIONPALMER PARK VELODROMEWOKINGHAM ROAD, READING, BERKSHIRE, RG6 1LF.3 RD June INDIVIDUAL PURSUIT HEATS & FINAL (9 Laps).Tuesday, 8.45pm. Entry closing date: 27 th May.T.B.A.Monday, 8.00pm.20km SCRATCH ENDURANCE.*Entry closing date:16 th June 500m SPRINT HEATS & FINAL.Monday, 7.30pm. Entry closing date: 9 th June.17 th June CLUB TEAM PURSUIT HEATS & FINAL (9Laps).Tuesday, 8.45pm. Entry closing date: 10 th June.21 st July CLUB TEAM (OLYMPIC) SPRINT HEATS & FINAL (11/2 Laps).Monday, 7.30pm. Teams of three riders. Entry closing date: 14 th July.8 th September WOMEN’S OMNIUM (SPRINT, PURSUIT & POINTS).Monday, 7.30pm. Entry closing date: 1 st September.Events on Mondays are held during the Reading Track Cycling League meetings.* The 20km Scratch Endurance will be integrated within a Track League race.ALL CHAMPIONSHIP’S, APART FROM THE WOMEN’S OMNIUM, ARE OPEN TO MALEAND FEMALE RIDERS.Entry fees: Individual:- £3 per event. Team:- £6 per event.Entries on British Cycling standard track entry form with fee to:-Colin Garnham, Central Region Track Secretary.2 Gravel Hill Crescent, Peppard Common,Henley on Thames, Oxon, RG9 5HE.Telephone:- 0118 972 2620.British Cycling licence points will be allocated to events in accordance with technicalregulations 6.4.1 (points band 5) and 6.4.6British Cycling Region medals will be awarded in accordance with tech. reg. 18.7.For eligibility to compete in a Regional championship please refer to British Cyclingtechnical regulations 18.3 for individual and 18.5 for team events.A championship may be cancelled if less than four entries are received.

SpeedWobbles(aka ‘The Tank Slapper’) By Steve BaleI own a lot of bikes and in my collectionthere is one with an engine. In motorcyclinga ‘tank slapper’ is one of the mostfeared riding incidents and bikes that areprone to them quickly get a bad reputation.The tank slapper term is derivedfrom the fact that the handlebars oscillateso wildly the bar-ends hit the fuel tank.Two incidents have prompted me towrite this article, and thankfully neitherinvolved myself. The first was witnessingPaul Orritt crash at the 1999 Isle ofMan TT races and the second wasLloyd McInally’s crash at a road racelast year. Both riders were victims of aspeed wobble, a phenomenon where anundesirable oscillation at the front endof the bike causes the handlebars toviolently shake from side to side which, ifleft, will throw the rider off.Feet out – now that’s got to be a bad sign!For a very graphic illustration of what I’mtalking about look up ‘Paul Orritt’ on theinternet and you should come across avideo of his crash, a moment of my lifeI will never forget. Racers at the Isle ofMan tend not to survive 150mph crashes.Thankfully Paul did.So what is going on and why do bicyclesbehave this way sometimes?Speed wobbles occur because the frontwheel is free to turn about its steering axiswhile at the same time the whole bike canmove from side to side along a horizontalaxis with the pivot points being the frontand rear wheels in contact with the road.When you ride the bike is moving fromside to side as well as the wheel rotatingaround the axle. This means the wheel isin ‘nutation’.‘Rotation’ is an object spinning around afixed axis while ‘nutation’ means the axis(or axle in the case of a wheel) is alsomoving as the object is spinning. Think ofthe Earth’s axis and its seasonal wobbleand then project that thought of theEarth’s axis to your front wheel and thinkhow the movement at the poles would affectthings. (Mavic) Cosmic man!This nutation is a constant and naturaloccurrence caused by the movementof the rider pedalling, side winds,bumps in the road, etc. Under normalcircumstances you will never noticethis because all sorts of things dampthe effects out, principally the fact thatyou, and more importantly your frontwheel, are objects in motion and youwill continue on your trajectories unlessanother force says otherwise. You alsoconstantly damp the nutation with yourhands on the handlebars keeping it undercontrol. However, very occasionallysituation normal is suspended andcircumstances conspire to work againstyou. At a critical speed, the front wheelnutation frequency matches the frequencyof the bike and rider either sustainingor amplifying the nutation. “Hang on”, Ihear you say, where did this frequencystuff come from? Well you, your frame,its stiffness, its geometry, its weight, yourweight, your position, in fact everythingabout you and your bike combines to giveyou, the cycling unit, a latent resonantfrequency. The classic resonant frequencyexample is that of glass resonatingwhen the fat lady sings. In terms of thisdiscourse when your frequency matchesthat of your ever wobbling front wheelsuddenly you’re wobbling together.Rotation (R), Precession (P) and Nutation (N)of the EarthNow you’re having a wobble, usually forno immediately apparent reason. Duringa high speed shimmy the front wheel isnot just fluttering back and forth about itssteering axis but is also moving side toside in the horizontal plane shaking thehead tube violently from side to side; therider’s weight on the saddle provides ananchor point, the rear wheel on the roadis another making a pivot point for thefront end of the bike to move from. Thesituation can now go one of two ways:better or worse. Let’s look at the worsescenario so as to better explain the betterone.In the worst case scenario the rider isexacerbating the problem. Faced withhandlebars that have a mind of their ownthe rider grips them hard to take controlback or use the brakes. By holding thebars tightly the rider is now connected ineven more harmony and thrown side toside (remember the poles/your axle). Thisextra, larger mass moving side to sidewith a high centre of gravity amplifies theproblem and a crash is becoming almostinevitable. With motorcycles, where thebike’s mass is greater than the rider’s,the rider is likely to lose the fight and bethrown off. Once the motorbike is free ofits pesky rider the bike may well stop itsoscillation and continue on upright in astraight line. For the bicycle rider gravitywill do its stuff and once you have beenthrown to one side beyond the point of noreturn you’re going down and taking yourbike with you.So now we know not to grip the bars witha death grip (easier said than done) whatare the do’s and don’ts to get us to a betterposition.Don’t panic and do relax your grip.Pressing your knee against the top tubewill often stop a shimmy; in doing soyou have damped the shaking top tubethrough the muscles and tissues in youleg without actually connecting the leg tothe top tube. This is also a clue that therider needs to be holding the handlebarslightly so that you are damping thenutation rather than being connected to itby grasping the handlebars tightly. Applythe brakes and you’re gripping the barsso try not to. However as you’re likelyto be hurtling down a hill at 40mph youprobably don’t have a choice! A delicatetouch is required and remember it is theconnection between you and the bikethat is causing the shimmy and the moreconnected you are the worse it will get.Also lift your weight from the saddlewithout actually standing up. This willtransfer your weight to the pedals whichare a much lower and further forwardpoint of contact. Keep one pedal downand most of your weight on that pedalswitching pedals as you corner keepingthe lower pedal on the outside. This willmake the point of contact between youand the bike very low, but also off centreof the frame.And what about your bike? Is it to blame?Is it dangerous? Well, as with motorcy-

cles, some bicycles will be more prone tothis phenomenon than others simply bynature of their materials and geometriesbut theoretically this can happen to anybike and it just takes the right combinationof factors to occur. Unfortunately forus the most common time and place todiscover this combination is at 40mphdown a steep hill. Talk to Lloyd aboutthat one! There is also a lot of lore outthere about bikes and speed wobbleswith fingers pointed at loose or tightheadsets, old and flexible frames, largeframes, steep steering geometries, andjust about all other components. A lot ofthese theories will hold water, but nonein isolation will cause a speed wobble.On motorcycles, especially the sportsmodels with short wheel bases and steepsteering angles, steering dampers are fitted.These are telescopic shock absorberlike devices that slow the steering downwith hydraulic damping. Basically thesteering is impeded from any violent sideto side motion.One thing I should say about speedwobbles on bicycles is that they are rare,and I can’t recall any serious wobblethat I’ve had. Now on my motorcycleit is a slightly different story. While I’venever had a tank slapper, it is completelynormal for the bike to shake its head atme under acceleration, or having cresteda bridge or hill at speed. The enginepower is enough to regularly lift the frontwheel allowing it to clearly demonstrateits nutation. Once planted back onthe road the wobble subsides as it isdamped. This is all completely normal asyou will see on any motorcycle racing onTV, particularly road racing (Isle of ManTT) where the surface is not race-tracksmooth. On two wheels, powered orunpowered, experience tells you what’sright and wrong and nothing beatsmiles under the belt to know how a bikehandles and how you need to handle it.Riding down steep hills is fun!Lloyd’sStoryIt all happened in the Bluestone RoadRace near Banbury last year. Steve Bale,Brian Bingham and a couple of othersfrom RCC rode it. We set off OK and acouple of miles after the start is a 13%descent. This was my first proper roadrace for a while but no bother, I just gotdown on the drops as the speed rose.Things started off as a slight tap-tap-tapcoming through the bars, which rapidlyamplified to a real bang-bang-bang andhuge flap-flap-flap. It felt like the frontwheel had developed a 6 inch buckle.This was made worse because as theroad descended our speed increased to40mph+.I was in the middle of the bunch towardsthe left and was fighting hard to holdthe bike upright – I couldn’t look down,or dare touch the brakes to reduce thespeed because of the gradient, andabout 100 yards ahead was a left handbend. So it was either hit the tarmac(which would seriously hurt and take aload of other riders off), or just at thatpoint the grass verge looked rather inviting- so I threw the bike over onto the leftas the lesser of the two evils.I hit the ground fairly hard, the bike disappearingbetween my legs. I slid alongfor 50 yards or so, but luckily there wasnothing solid in the grass and I jumpedstraight back up. I expected to see forkssnapped at least but the bike wasn’t toobad - levers bent in, saddle trashed, etc.My helmet was cracked across all the anchorpoints and I had a big bump/grazeon my head.How did it happen? From what I’ve reada lack of torsional stiffness in an oldframe and possibly something minor thattriggered the initial resonance/wobble.The rapid increase in speed as we descendedcaused the rapid amplification in the wobble, and my gripping the bars harderand harder just made it all worse.Examining my bike after the race I noticed a substantial rip in the tyre sidewall; thiscould have been caused by the crash, but was possibly what started the wobble. Tyreblows out, starts wobble, I’m gripping the bars tightly and as we all whoosh up to wellover 40mph and this makes the wobble massive and uncontrollable. The tyre mightwell have been flat before I jumped off - but it’s difficult to be certain.All in all very scary! I’ve since got a new bike mainly because I just couldn’t trust the oldone anymore. I’m still building up confidence to really let go on the downhills though.Lloyd McInally + bike + half of Oxfordshire on his handlebars.

The Great Beryl Burtonby Paul TaylorTowards the end of last year, by accidentI stumbled across the name Beryl Burton.At the time I was reading about the preeminenttime triallist Michael Hutchinson,who since 1999 had amassed 28 nationalchampionships. One of the footnotes readthat the only rider to win more titles wasBeryl Burton, Beryl had won 97.Now I’m sure there are distinguishedmembers of the club that will be morethan aware of Beryl and her achievements,but at 33, I am perhaps a littleyoung to have known about her when shewas racing. So if I hadn’t heard of her, Ifigured that there would be others thathadn’t and you deserve to know about heramazing cycling achievements.Now and again there are sporting championsthat push their sports to previouslyunimaginable levels. Superstars that tearup the rules and move the goal posts sofar, that commentators believe they willnever be bettered. Names such as Fangioand Ali are classic examples of these “superchampions”. These are so much morethan winners, there is an otherworldlyaura around them, they are simply a classapart, they are “greats”. These greats areso interwoven into the rich tapestry oftheir respective sports that they actuallyhelped make their sport what it is today. Incycling we have Coppi and Merckx, legendsthat will never be forgotten as longas cycling exists, but where is Burton?Almost nowhere and fading fast. What anabsolute travesty this is, she was a great.So am I mad to consider a British amateurcyclist to rank alongside Eddy Merckx asa cycling great? Maybe I am, and for sureI didn’t start out thinking this way. Ok, 97national titles, eh? Without question thisis one hell of an achievement, but spenda bit of time thinking about it, apply a littlereason and hey presto you can somehowbreak this down and understand how itcould be done. So, it is a niche sport,women are the minority in the sport,and go back 40 years and these factorswere probably multiplied. So as mightilyimpressive as it is, I could just about seehow it could be done. Problem is I thenstarted reading how she did it.It all started in 1955 when a 17-year-oldBeryl was introduced to cycling by hernew husband. Two years later she wassecond in the 100 mile national time trialand by 1959 she was national championand almost unbeatable. Over the next 25years she dominated, amassing a winningtally that is beyond belief. 97 Nationaltitles, twice World Road race champion,five times world pursuit champion plus ahat full of placings. Beryl’s total winningtally was 122 in National and Internationalevents. Added to this she broke 50 cyclingrecords. She was record holder in 10m,25m, 30m, 50m, 100m and 12 hr timetrials, with all her final records lasting atleast 20 years.Man EaterThese are records of a champion, butgood enough to be a great? As impressiveas say, Sergei Bubka’s 35 polevault world records? Ed Moses remainingunbeaten for 122 400-metre hurdlesfinals? Or Michael Schumacher’s 91 F1victories? My initial view was no, butthen I started digging a little deeper intothe record books and I changed my viewcompletely. The reason? Well the measurementof Beryl’s success is incorrect.It is incorrect because the measurementis “women’s titles” and Beryl was notracing women, she was racing anybodyand everybody. She was 25 times (1959– 1983) Best British All Round women’stime trial champion (BBAR), or to put itanother way, she won it 22 times morethan the second most successful woman.But that is nothing compared to the factthat of these 25 wins, 13 of them werefaster than the fastest man. In fact in twoof the 13 she had a combined speed inall events that was 1.2mph faster thanthe next fastest person in the UK. By myreckoning, she would have cycled 8 milesfurther over the same given time as thefastest man in those years.And then there is the Beryl Burton folklore.In 1967 she was racing in a 12hrtest. The men’s record was set in thisevent at 276.52 miles by Mike McNamara.McNamara beat the then current men’srecord by an impressive 5 miles. McNamarawas also Beryl’s 2 minute man, andafter 10 hours in the saddle she caughthim. In doing so she shouted “LiquoriceAll Sort, Mac?” to which he replied “Ta,love” and promptly eat the sweet. Shewent on to win the event with a distanceof 277.25 miles, a record that still standstoday more than 40 years on.Chinks in the armourAlthough Beryl’s records may never bebeaten, she was not the perfect racer. Itis without question that she should havewon more world road race championships.The problem was she would leada race out with the competition stickingto her wheel until the sprint finish, similarto Paula Radcliff when she was runningon the track. Whether this was naivety,arrogance, or simply not the Burton wayis hard to say. But like Radcliff, over longdistances, when she could inflict maximumpain and suffering, the competitionwould be simply blown apart, such washer brutal strength.On top the poor tactics, her mentalstrength and “at all costs” winning focusmeant she only took 3 months off duringher pregnancy with daughter Denise andher will to win saw her refuse to shake thehand of the national road race championof 1976. She was pipped to the win andwas far from happy. You may think this isunderstandable, but when it is your owndaughter? Yes, the 1976 winner was oneDenise Burton.Whatever makes “greats”, great Beryl hadit in spades. In fact if the Olympics had includedwomen’s cycling in Beryl’s heydayI have no doubt that she would have beenmultiple Olympic champion, probablymade a Dame and be written into thehistory books for ever. That didn’t happen,but her records speak for themselves, andthe way they were achieved meant Berylwas a super champion, and in my viewshe was one of the greatest.

CalendarThe calendar overleaf will help you keep track of what’s coming along in future months.All the club’s own events and promotions are included as far ahead as details areknown, and these are colour-coded for ease of reference.BurtonFactsTen things you possibly didn’t know about the greatwoman:1. Burton held down a full time job as a rhubarb picker (it’s grown in the dark in greatbig sheds).2. A French writer once observed: "If Beryl Burton had been born in France, then Joanof Arc would have had to settle for second place."3. Burton and daughter Denise were both selected to represent Great Britain in the1972 world championships.4. The pair also set a ladies’ 10 mile tandem record in 1982 of 21 minutes, 25seconds.5. Burton won the 1967 World Road Race championship in Belgium on the same dayas Graham Webb won the men’s event; two World Road Champions in the sameday for Britain!6. After setting her 12hour record, it is said that Burton got up extra early the next dayto clean the family car because she was worried that husband Charlie would betired.7. Burton was invited to France to compete in the 1967 Gran Prix des Nations, untilthen the domain of male professional riders. Burton finished within a minute of thelast male rider.8. In 1968 Burton set a women's 100-mile record of 3 hours and 55 minutes – at thetime the fourth fastest ride by any rider, male or female.9. Burton won 122 National Championships across various disciplines (time trial, trackand road race), including the British Womens' Best All Rounder competition 25consecutive years.10. Burton was born Beryl Charnock on 12th May 1937 in Leeds and died of heartfailure during a training ride shortly before her 59th birthday. A memorial gardenhas been established in her home town of Morley.Club Runs• Leaders are always needed – contact Steve Thurgood if you want to lead.• Please check the website for latest listings to see which runs need leaders.• 8a.m. starts are included to allow a longer ride and to avoid some of the increasinglyaggressive Sunday morning traffic, so check the list before turning out on a Sundayat the usual time!• New Rider Runs: These are led by Mark Lyford, take place on the last Sunday ofeach month and go to the same destination as the medium run.• On a regular basis - and as café stops allow - fast & medium runs will be scheduledfor the same destination.Club Time TrialsThese are in full swing from the end of March right through to the end of August. Weuse a variety of different courses, so whether you are out to set a new personal bestor are challenging for glory in the Dave Finch series, there should be something foreveryone. Steve Ferry can tell you more.Palmer ParkThe regular Tuesday night track sessions for road bikes continue throughout the summerat Palmer Park from 20:15 to 22:00hrs.The Thursday session is given over to trackbikes. Either session will set you back £3.20 a time.Evening chain gangs…These are run on an informal basis during the summer months, usually on a Thursdaynight. Keep your ears peeled for more info.…Saturday ridesThese are also informal with riders meeting at 8.30a.m. outside A.W.Cycles, HenleyRoad, Caversham. Distance and pace both depend on who shows up!Committee meetingsThese are held on first Wednesday of each month at the New Hope Centre, York Road,RG1 8DU at 20:00. All club members are welcome to attend the meetings and contributeto the running of the club. If you would like more information about committeeactivities, please contact Roy Booth.

Date Event Details Leader/OrgainserDistance/SpeedCourse/LocationTue 01 Apr Club TT Waltham Steve Ferry 10 HCC234 18:30Wed 02 Apr Meeting Maintenance Class - Steering Adrian Lawson - New Hope Centre 19:00Wed 02 Apr Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Sun 06 Apr Club Run LASHAM - Avenue Nurseries Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 06 Apr Club Run BEACONS BOTTOM - Studley Green GC Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 08 Apr Club TT Twyford Steve Ferry 10 HCC132 18:30Sun 13 Apr Club Run HUNGERFORD - Tutti Pole Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 13 Apr Club Run FARNHAM - Forest Lodge GC Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 15 Apr Club TT Heckfield - Dave Finch 1 Steve Ferry 10.9 HCC216b 18:30Sun 20 Apr Club Run NUNEHAM COURTNAY - Nottcutts GC Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 20 Apr Club Run TBC Graeme Hoyle Medium Market Place 08:00Tue 22 Apr Club TT Waltham Steve Ferry 10 HCC234 18:45Sun 27 Apr Road Race Reading C.C./A.W.CyclesSpring Road RacesColin Bates 120km80kmStartWoodcote 09:4510:15Sun 27 Apr Club Run THATCHAM - Wyevale GC Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 27 Apr Club Run THATCHAM - Wyevale GC Medium Market Place 09:00Sun 27 Apr Club Run THATCHAM - Wyevale GC New riders Market Place 09:00Tue 29 Apr Club TT Bucklebury - Dave Finch 2 Steve Ferry 15.7 HCC201b 18:45Sun 04 May Club Run PRESTWOOD - Hildreths GC Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 04 May Club Run WATERPERRY - Gardens Café Medium Market Place 09:00Mon 05 May Coaching Meet the Coach Greg Woodford - Palmer Park(in the bar)Tue 06 May Club TT Swallowfield - see note below Steve Ferry 10 TBA 19:15Wed 07 May Meeting Maintenance Class - Pedals & Shoes Adrian Lawson - New Hope Centre 19:00Wed 07 May Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Sun 11 May Club Run FARNHAM - Forest Lodge GC Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 11 May Club Run HUNGERFORD - Tutti Pole Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 13 May Club TT Twyford - Dave Finch 3 Steve Ferry 10 HCC132 19:00Sun 18 May Club Run POPHAM - Airfield Café Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 18 May Club Run HARWELL - Q Gardens Tea Room Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 20 May Club TT Aldermaston Steve Ferry 10 H10/1 19:30Sun 25 May Club Run BENSON - Riverside Café Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 25 May Club Run BENSON - Riverside Café Medium Market Place 09:00Sun 25 May Club Run BENSON - Riverside Café New riders Market Place 09:00Tue 27 May Club TT Heckfield - Dave Finch 4 Steve Ferry 10.9 HCC216b 19:15Sun 01 Jun Club Run WATERPERRY - Gardens Café Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 01 Jun Club Run LASHAM - Avenue Nurseries Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 03 Jun Club TT Aldermaston Steve Ferry 10 H10/1 19:30Wed 04 Jun Meeting Maintenance Class - Saddles,seatposts bars & stems Adrian Lawson - New Hope Centre 19:00Wed 04 Jun Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Sun 08 Jun Club Run MARLBOROUGH - Polly's Tea Rooms Fast Market Place 08:00Sun 08 Jun Club Run WENDOVER - Wyevale GC Trevor Warwick Medium Market Place 08:00Tue 10 Jun Club TT Aldermaston - Club '10' Champs Steve Ferry 10 H10/1 19:30Thu 12 Jun Club TT Interclub TT -v- North Hants RCThe 'Away' leg, at Heckfield19:00Steve Ferry 22 HCC216b 19:00Sun 15 Jun Open TT Reading CC Open '50', Aldermaston Barry Quick 50 H50/1a 07:00Sun 15 Jun Club Run HARWELL - Q Gardens Tea Room Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 15 Jun Club Run POPHAM - Airfield Café Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 17 Jun Club TT Aldermaston Steve Ferry 25 H25/1 19:30Sun 22 Jun Club Run RCC CHICHESTER ('Longest Day') Nick Crocker Special Market Place 08:00Sun 22 Jun Club Run FRILFORD - Millets Farm Café Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 22 Jun Club Run FRILFORD - Millets Farm Café Medium Market Place 09:00Tue 24 Jun Club TT Aldermaston - Club '25' Champs Steve Ferry 25 H25/1 19:30Sat 28 Jun Sportive Wiltshire Workout (2700m ascent) John Hollands 200km TBA TBABerkshire Quickie (1000m.ascent) John Hollands 100km TBA TBASun 29 Jun Club Run HUNGERFORD - Highclose Farm Shop Fast Market Place 09:00Sun 29 Jun Club Run FARNHAM ROYAL - GC, The Orangery Medium Market Place 09:00Sun 29 Jun Club Run FARNHAM ROYAL - GC, The Orangery New riders Market Place 09:00Tue 01 Jul Club TT Interclub TT -v- North Hants RCThe 'Home' leg, at EwshotSteve Ferry 10 HCC175 19:30Wed 02 Jul Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Mon 07 Jul Coaching Meet the Coach Greg Woodford - Palmer Park 19:00(in the bar)Tue 08 Jul Club TT Aldermaston Steve Ferry 25 H25/1 19:30Tue 15 Jul Club TT Bucklebury - Dave Finch 5 Steve Ferry 15.7 HCC201b 19:00Tue 22 Jul Club TT Swallowfield - see note below Steve Ferry 10 TBA 19:15Tue 29 Jul Club TT Heckfield - Dave Finch 6 Steve Ferry 10.9 HCC216b 19:15Tue 05 Aug Club TT Aldermaston Steve Ferry 10 H10/1 19:30Wed 06 Aug Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Tue 12 Aug Club TT Bucklebury - Dave Finch 7 Steve Ferry 15.7 HCC201b 19:00Sun 17 Aug Open TT Clive Pugh Memorial '25', Aldermaston Dave Ridge 25 H1/25 08:00Tue 19 Aug Club TT Swallowfield - see note below Steve Ferry 10 TBA 19:15Tue 26 Aug Club TT Twyford - Dave Finch 8 Steve Ferry 10 HCC132 18:45Wed 03 Sep Meeting Committee Meeting Roy Booth - New Hope Centre 20:00Sun 07 Sep Open TT Colin Roberts Memorial '10', Aldermaston Rod MacFadyen 10 H10/1 08:00Sun 21 Sep Club TT Britwell - Club Hill Climb Steve Ferry 1 HCC021 10:30Sun 21 Sep Club TT Dolesden Lane - Club Hill Climb Steve Ferry 1 HCC023 12:00Sun 28 Sep Open TT Open Hill Climb - Streatley Stewart House 1 HHC005 12:00Sun 28 Sep Road Race Reading CC / League of Veteran Racing CyclistsRoad RacesAPRILMAYJUNEJULYAUGUSTSEPTEMBERFred Hale TBA Stoke Row TBANOVEMBERSun 23 Nov CycloCross Bill Higson Memorial Cyclo Cross Brian Bingham TBA TBA TBANote: TTs on the Swallowfield course may be affected by road works and may be held elsewhere. Check for futher updates nearer the time.

Did you know that youcan advertiseYOURBUSINESSin this magazine?Published quarterly, and with very reasonable rates, youradvert could be seen by the whole clubContact the Editor for detailstailwind@readingcyclingclub.com

I’ve cycled around Europe, I’ve cycledacross the U.S. and I’ve even cycledround New Zealand – twice! But thesetrips were far less daunting than myAussie adventure; however this waspart of the attraction.The journey from the UK to Perth wasless worrisome than anticipated and Ienjoyed my short stay there; it wascycle-friendly and cheap. The weatherwas rather warm and pleasantcompared to the January of Englandthat I’d left behind. Perth served itspurpose well and within three days Iwas ready to set forth.I used public transport to cross thesuburbs and city and chose Fremantleon the coast as my setting off point. Iwas fiercely protective of my bicycle andequipment, and was totally dedicated;my whole being inextricably linked to thefully functioning form of the machinebeneath me.The first day comprised busy roads andurban sprawl, the only light relief beingthe many ‘Satterley’ housingdevelopments. My fear and paranoia ofinsects drove me to sleep in a nearlyfinished garage on one of their newhousing estates. I didn’t sleep a wink.Insects: cuddlyThe second day continued south onHighway 1, getting to grips with hightemperatures and revolting coffee. Icontinually surveyed the ground forman-eating spiders as I sped along, myparanoia palpable (thanks to DanClipstone for that, he’d given me a fewmental images that were gnawing awayat my psyche). By evening I was wellaway from Perth and was making myway through coastal towns. Thecountryside was fairly pleasant, and withnumerous trees for cover I decided tocamp in the wild.Home sweet homeMy fear of discovery by humans oranimals was very strong and many anevening would see me surreptitiouslydart off into the undergrowth looking forthe perfect place to pitch my tent. Iwouldn’t usually relax until midnight or1a.m., listening out for anything andeverything, observing the various antspecies and hoping I wasn’t allergic toany of the big bastards’ bites!Slowly I came to enjoy the peace, quietand total privacy of wild camping. It alsotook me quite a while to adapt to thetough, basic lifestyle in what – for me -was an alien environment.I was following the south west coast ofWestern Australia to give myself time toacclimatise to the heat and to toughenmyself up before the really challengingpart of the trip. The terrain was rollingand pleasant, dominated by trees of onekind or another. Viticulture (winemakingto you and me) and a relativelyabundant population meant good roadsand towns reminiscent of the Americanmid-west.On leaving one of the larger coastaltowns one evening I was looking forsomewhere to camp wild as the sunsank rapidly towards the horizon (onedoesn’t want to be grubbing around inthe dark out here!). As I did so, I spied alarge kangaroo in the ditch by a fenceand wondered what my 13mph arrivalwould cause him to do. Unbeknown tome, a car was approaching from theother direction around a large sweepingbend at about 60mph. My presencestartled the 80kg creature and itbounded across the road into the pathof this fast moving car. Once I’dascertained that nothing was going to hitme, I shut my eyes...The car and the ‘roo were both ‘totalled’.A woman got out screaming followed byfour semi-drunk blokes. I went back tothem, aware that they might want to killme. As nobody was hurt (exceptSkippy’s Dad) I shot off; I still had to findsomewhere to camp urgently.Next morning at a deserted school,while getting some water from anexterior sink, I felt as if I was beingobserved - I was. A large frog peered upthrough the sink outlet at me. There wasonly one thing to do. I talked to him as ifhe was one of the ‘inmates’ of theresidential home that I used to work in.It cheered me up no end, although thelittle sod would not stay still long enoughfor me to photograph him.Leaving the large town of Albany on thesouth coast it is 2,500km to Whyalla, thenext large town with 30,000 residents.With only three towns of any size on theroute, and with the gaps getting larger,my fear of the distances was growing.Nick’s odysseyThe wind could be - and was - anabsolute bastard. From Jeramungup toEsparance it is 190miles, but it took me17 excruciating hours with bush firesbillowing in the distance, powered bythe diabolical headwinds. The constantonslaught and the resulting tension inmy body made it quite difficult to get offthe bicycle which I had to do, so that Icould jump about for five minutes toloosen up.My arrival at Esparance, the lastsignificant town before the Nullarbor,marked a low point. My fear of campinghad abated but the last two days hadbeen as bad, if not worse, than anything

I had ever experienced before on a bike:unrelenting total bloody purgatory! Asfar as I could see, I had not even startedthe really tough bit yet. God was Idepressed! So I wrote to two clubstalwarts, moaning relentlessly.Water – stock up when you can. Nickcarried up to 10litres at a time.A couple more OK days took me to thelittle town of Norseman. Along the way Iheard about the exploits of variouscyclists who had crossed the Nullarborbefore me; from the insanely focusedand dehydrated Japanese to an off-dutyAustralian policeman who wore darkclothing (and who according to someladies in a café store had little time foranyone). His death by collision with a‘road train’ six months previously mayhave actually helped me in raisingawareness of cyclists to road traindrivers.So it turned out that one of my principalfears - that of being mowed down by a120tonnes of truck moving at 70mph -was not an issue. Many road traindrivers turned out to be surprisinglyconsiderate, although if two were goingto pass in opposite directions in myvicinity I would get well off the road.Pretty much all freight of any descriptionin Australia moves by road.Road Train!!!Norseman was somewhere that I haddreamed of for many a year and toarrive at this special place was a littledepressing. The odd dog, an aboriginekid and lots of dirt – where were thefanfares?! I stayed at the most strangehostel run by two guys; it was empty,but I was treated well and ate hugeamounts of food.Designer accommodation, Norseman styleI managed to get reasonably sorted outand fairly well supplied with fuel, foodand water but I was very lonely andscared. I was due to leave Norsemanthe next morning, but would I have tothe bottle to step forth and tackle theNullarbor plain?Yes. The next morning I was on theroad by 8am and felt overwhelmingrelief to finally be on my way down thisspecial road. The signpost letting meknow it was ‘only’ 1986km to Adelaide.[Wishy Wishy? I’ve no idea either…]The first three days of the Nullarborwere pretty good, it was cool (although itcan get into the high 40°s very easily)and the winds were generally in myfavour. It was not as bad as I hadexpected and I was enjoying it as muchas I could, spending 8 hours per day inthe saddle with nothing to look at butmileposts and the occasional dead ‘roo.When the road changed direction by acouple of degrees I was always pleasedto see round it. I’ve always beenbewitched by horizons and this roadgave some really good views.After three days I reached Cocklebiddyroadhouse (a garage/service station). Isat down excitedly and knocked offeight postcards to various friends andfamily, just letting them know how greatI was feeling. I’d covered 800kmrelatively painlessly and had taken asignificant bite out of one of the world’smost lonely roads and I didn’t feel anymore insane than when I had started.That night, as I cycled along searchingfor a campsite, minding my ownbusiness and feeling just a little smug atmy achievements that day, a police carappeared with two officers and theypulled me over. I’ve only been pulledover about three times in thirty years soI was a little concerned. The road waswide with only a few vehicles per hourand visibility being measured in miles.They said they’d had people ring themconcerned with my safety because Iwas not wearing a cycle helmet, whichare compulsory on Australia. Theyissued me with an ‘on the spot’ fine inabout as patronising a manner as anyhuman being could possibly muster.The wind, insects and sun can all beyour enemy, but I didn’t realize that thepolice where as well. Patronising,bureaucratic little gits! I was as angry asI’d ever been. I could hardly sleep…“Pommy fella, no helmet? Yeah, got him onradar now…”How did our intrepid traveler recoverfrom this set back? Find out in thenext exciting instalment!

NickEnglish - Meet the Member2007 witnessed the arrival on the clubtime trialling scene of former Olympicoarsman, Nick English. Nick’s 2007season speaks for itself including anew club record at 10 miles. Tailwindcaught up with Nick to find out moreSignificant others?I got married in August to Liz.It’s generally known that you’re an exrower,but there’s more to it than thatsurely?Well I started rowing when I was studyingat University. After that I worked my wayinto the British team and competed atseveral world championships, winning abronze in the lightweight pairs at Seville in2002. The highlight was competing in the2004 Athens Olympics.What made you start cycling?It is in the blood, my grandfather ranmany tours to the Alps in the postwaryears and I wanted to start racing when Iretired from rowing..So how did your rowing backgroundhelp in your transition to being acompetitive cyclist?My fitness from rowing was a great helpand they are both aerobic leg-basedsports. The competitive aspects are alsosimilar.So it must have been an easytransition to make?Reasonably easy! It was frustrating attimes, as think you should be goingfaster than you are but there’s a lot moreto cycling than going fast. Road racingespecially is a bit of a dark art, timetrialling is a bit more straightforward.Any previous clubs?Only rowing clubs - plenty of those, andthe tandem club!You mainly competed in time trialsin 2007, what plans do you have for2008? Do you think you could transferyour TT speed over to other road ortrack events?I will mainly be doing time trials againalthough I’d like to try and do a fewevents at national level.I did a few road races last year and gotenough points get a 3rd category racinglicence. I may do some more this year,but provided the time trials are going wellI’ll concentrate on them.You achieved some great things in2007, what would you rank as yourmost satisfying result?It would have to be setting my ‘10’ P.B. of19:57. Recording a sub 20-min ‘10’ in myfirst season was very satisfying.What other club records do you havein your sights? Did you know that theclub ‘25’ record is currently 52:09?Yes, I thought that I might be able tomove my PB a bit closer to that! It’scertainly one of my targets for short tomedium term. Saying that, I’m morecasual towards time trialling than rowing.I just do races and enjoy them, Rowingwas my job.Then of course there are thetandem records. Will you and Liz bethreatening any of those?Well as it happens we are doing an open‘10’ at Andover in a few weeks so we’llsee how things go. Liz and I recorded23:43 in a club ‘10’ at Waltham StLawrence last year and we have tri barsnow so I’m hoping we’ll go a couple ofminutes quickerWho is your favourite pro orinspiration?It would have to be Miguel Indurain,not for his time trialing ability but hisperformances in the mountains. Theyweren’t his speciality but he’d just matchthe other riders and keep grinding awayuntil they were dropped.What bikes do you ride?A Giant MCR TT bike, Look KG 281 Roadbike, Orbit America converted to fixed,Dawes Galaxy twin tandem and a Trek1200 as a commuter/winter bikeWhat was your worst ever day on thebike?Riding in Scotland in the rain, withoutenough clothesWhat is your cycling grub of choice?CakeWhat bit of cycling kit could you notlive without?Drop handlebarsWhich climb would you most like tostruggle up given the chance?Mt WashingtonNick’s Year, 2007Club ‘10’ Champion (22:00)Club ‘25’ Champion (55:18)Dave Finch Series – Overall winnerFastest 10-mile TT (19:57)Fastest 25-mile TT (54:29)Fastest 50-mile TT (1:55:25)Short Distance TT BAR(Average speed 27.61 mph)Many thank to Nick, and best of luck for aspeedy 2008.[Photos courtesy of Dennis Sackett]

MaintenanceClassesBy Adrian LawsonFor some reason several of you asked me to run classes on bike maintenance, and forsome reason I agreed. Odd, because what do I know?So I read and re read the brilliant Sheldon Brown website, until all I needed to knowhad been stored up top. Hopefully I could remember it all in bite-sized chunks andshare it with those of you who know less about bike fettling than me. Which surprisinglyis more than half a dozen, or so it seems.Actually I have been fixing bikes for years and years, and have a very enjoyable littlehobby servicing bikes on the big charity bike rides, and looking after a fleet of tandemsused by people with learning difficulties. In addition I have built my own bikes, my kids’bikes, and lots of my friend’s bikes.The programme is quite simple. Pick a subject that gives most people trouble and gothrough it using a practical example. Then wait in the New Hope Centre on the appointednight and when a club mate with a suspect bike turns up, pounce, offer to do aservice on the area of that evening’s theme and let them watch, tears in their eyes, aswe rip the bike to bits and have a laugh trying to work out which bits go where.First night Adam Perry turned up with a slightly buckled wheel, and wheels were thesubject for that night, so we unbuckled it and when it was sort of true we all took turnsat it. Poor Adam went home safe in the knowledge that he knew what to do. Good jobtoo, as his wheel was now like a crisp.The second session was on gears, and fortunately Russell Barton arrived with an antiquatedMTB, with 8 speed gears, 7 speed shifters and what appeared at first sight tobe the regular abuse of a frequent commuter.So we duly ripped out the cables, fitted new ones and re adjusted the gears until all ranas it should. Amazingly the 7 speed shifters became 8 speed in the course of the session,and Russell went home with one more click than he arrived with.The latest session was on brakes, and the President arrived on a bike with brakeswhich had not long been serviced. But as everyone else arrived without a bike we (I)grabbed his and before he could react I had the pads out of the rear calliper. They wereworn down to beyond the wear limit. So we fitted new ones and found that his cablewas slipping, so we fixed that and then the outer cable …. Oh you know, every thing Itouched became loose in my hands.So the whole hour was spent getting the brakes at both ends working as they should,and John set off into the dark after the meeting to ride home.I haven’t seen him since, has anyone else?If you are interested in practising bike maintenance skills why not come along to oneof the sessions? If you bring your bike along and it becomes the subject of the lessonyou get all the bits we use for free. Just be tolerant if it doesn’t work at the end of thesession! (no really, it will be better, honestly)Sessions are held in the New Hope Centre, York Road, RG1 8DU. Check clubcalendar for dates and subjects.MembershipMattersMembershipMattersReading Cycling Club extends a warm welcome the following new members:Martin Cairns from Sonning Common.Martin is a regular commuter and ridesfor pleasure on both road and mountain.Martin is a former member ofCorinium CC in Cirencester.Lukas Webb from Wokingham.Lukas has been out on several club runsin recent months and is an experiencedsportive rider.Ian Blatchford from Twyford.Ian was a competitive cyclist as a juniorand has completed several Ironmantriathlons!!Previously a member of Maidenhead, Ianis keen to start racing again and keep ontop of his fitness. He is interested in bothroad racing and time trials in 2008.Stuart Gibbons from Hook.Stuart rides 110+ miles per week throughthe summer months.He has been seen out on the Sundayclub run a few times already this year.Stuart has completed various sportiveevents and a total of 5 sprint and Olympicdistance triathlons. He is keen to ridemore club runs and start racing both roadand time trials in 2008.Richard Keenlyside from Wokingham.Richard plans to join the club runsand participate in both time trials andtrack in 2008.Formally a member of Middridge CRT,Richard was very active as a junior androde time trials at a national level. Hehas also competed on the track inManchester.James Rutherford from Manchester.James joins Reading as a second claimmember.James is a seasoned cyclist havingcompeted in the world masters on thetrack and on the road.Currently a 2nd cat road racer with SIS,James is looking to improve on hisalready impressive TT times of 22-12 and59-50. He also plans to compete in theTour of the North in 2008.David Ivory from Winnersh.David re-joins RCC this year and plans toride a number of sportive events.David is an ex mountain bike expert and2nd cat road racer. Welcome backDavid.Neil Smith from Earley.Neil is joining RCC to take part in clubruns and sportive events.He is an experienced cyclist having spent11 years with Gravesend CC riding TT,road and track.Liz English from Caversham.Liz joins RCC as a novice to the cyclingclub scene but is no stranger to riding atpace. Liz has demonstrated to the clubthroughout the winter that she can keeppace with her speedy husband, Nick, withtremendous ease.Stella Segesdy from Winnersh.Stella joins RCC upon recommendationfrom AW Cycles. Detail of Stella’s cyclingexperience has yet to be obtained.

Simon Potter from Twyford.Simon joins RCC upon recommendationfrom AW Cycles. Detail of Simon’scycling experience has yet to beobtained.Stuart Moisey from Emmer Green.Stuart joins RCC as a former member ofDidcot Phoenix. He is a keen leisurerider that has taken part in the occasionalTT and sportive event.Darren Parker from Reading.Darren was formerly a member of RCCand joins us again in 2008 as a secondclaim member. Riding for Python RT asfirst claim, Darren is a familiar face tothose riding with the fast group on aSunday. As a very experienced andaccomplished rider, aside from being firstup the hill on Sunday, Darren plans tocompete in local time trials.Andrea Mica from ReadingAndrea is new to the cycling club scenebut has immediately made an impressionby being the most reliable club rider in2008!I put it down to the fact he rides to workas the reason for being so punctualduring his first club outing. Andrea islooking to ride a 300k this summer andmaybe the odd time trial.RCC time keepers should request he tellsyou his finish time when signing on ;-)Peter Devery from SonningPeter is an experienced club rider andmember of the CTC who has picked uphis road training again over the lastcouple of years.A good BMX rider as a kid, Peter, is nowlooking forward to the less adrenalinefueled, albeit challenging, world ofsportive riding.Membership UpdateHere’s a snapshot of the membership status at the start of 2008 (week ending Feb 29 th ):Count ofMembershipAPPLICATIONSMembership Total APPLICATION TotalHonorary 4 New Member 13Junior 2 Renewal 146Juvenile 1 Grand Total 159Life 3Non-racing 28Second Claim 9 Non RenewalSenior 112 Membership TotalGrand Total 159 Juvenile 1Non-racing 9Second Claim 4Count of Female /Male Senior 37Female / Male Total Grand Total 51Female 11Male 148Grand Total 159FirstAidThe RCC committee is pleased to report that it intends to maintain a totalof 10% of the club membership trained in first aid.It is considered to be one of the benefits of RCC club membership thatwe have trained people participating in club activities that could be onhand during any unfortunateaccidents while out on the road.Further, as a club member you can volunteer toreceive valuable first aid training, at no personalexpense other than your spare time during adesignated evening or weekend, with a highlyqualified instructor.It has been a few years since RCC last offered firstaid training to volunteering club members and thecommittee have agreed to run another round oftraining in the first half of 2008.If you regularly take part in club activities and areinterested in receiving the first aid training thenplease let me know without delay. Places will belimited and awarded on a first come first servedbasis.The date for the training has yet to be fixed, however, depending on the level of interestand people’s availability it will likely be held on a Wednesday evening or a Saturdayafternoon in mid-late April. The venue will be in Reading.Finally...-?Did you know that first time British Cycling membership applications can be made at adiscounted rate through being a member of a cycling club? A total of 20 Bronzememberships are available for free to first timeapplicants from Reading Cycling Club. First time Silverand Gold memberships can also be purchased at adiscounted rate under the same scheme.For further details see the BC websitewww.britishcycling.org.uk. The special application formcan be downloaded or completed on-line.Ian RichardsonRCC Membership,membership@readingcyclingclub.comCourse ProgrammeTo give you a taster of the type of trainingon offer, the South Central AmbulanceService NHS Trust training coursecurrently being considered contains thefollowing material:• Aims of First Aid• First Aid Equipment• Scene & Casualty Assessment• Asphyxiation & Hypoxia• Basic Life Support• Care of the Unconscious Sportsman• Recovery Position• Head and Spinal Trauma• Injuries to the Face• Fractures, Dislocations,Soft-tissue InjuriesBenefits include• Personal Accident Insurance• 3rd Party Public LiabilityInsurance• Legal Advice & Support• Provisional Racing Licence• British Cycling AffinityBenefits• Access to Training &Coaching• Weekly e-mail Newsletter

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