Last week
Last session, due to the continued growth of the Go Ride program we have decided to split the group into 3; Atherton, Boardman and Cavendish. The groups are named after high achieving british riders (google the names if you are not familiar!). I worked with the Athertons whilst James worked with the Boardmans and Cavendishes. The groups rode slightly different routes to start with, meeting together afterwards to work on start stands and look at the importance of gear selection on sprinting. The Athertons also worked on descending as part of their ride, with Ryan demonstrating convincingly how far back he can get his weight on a descent! We ended the session with some short sprint races, which used all their new skills on gear selection and the resulting benefits from leading into that first corner!
Rider of the week
Beth, Bo and Libby won rider of the week for some great work. Beth’s natural balance gave her the win on the longest start stand and she would probably still be there now if we hadn’t stopped the competition.
Race update
Well down to Lottie and Ryan, who competed in the cc Ashwell races on 14th Jan, both finishing in the middle of the field (and thanks to Andy Wylde for updating the forum. It is fantastic to see more and more riders having a go at racing (and finding they are enjoying it!)
The last eastern league cyclocross race of the season is this coming Sunday at Mistley Cross. If you have been umming and ahhing about having a go, this is your last chance! More details on http://www.easterncross.org.uk.
If cyclocross is not your bag, then you could think about trying the the Mud Sweat and Gears series (http://www.mudsweatgears.blogspot.com), the season kicking off on 1 April 2012.
Again held in the Eastern region, this has more of a mountain bike race feel and is a lot of fun. Like the cyclocross, it is fully inclusive and many people just turn up and have a go – last year I recall one rider even had her dolly on the back of the bike (obviously with matching handlebar tassles). The other great thing about Mud Sweat and Gears is that they tend to have 1 hour Go Ride sessions immediately before so you get to practice useful skills immediately before the race. This is a great way into racing informally to see if you like it and you will probably make new friends in the process.
Please let me know if you are competing in any events and I will post here and on the website through the new St Ives CC forum which all club members have access to.
Next session
We will meet just the other side of the zipwire from the cafe, since that gives us some protection from the elements. Please remember to bring a water based drink and a helmet. If this is your first time with James or myself, we will also need a signed parental consent form, copies of which I always have.
We will continue to hold these sessions on the first and third Saturday of the month. Therefore, the proposed dates for the remainder of this term are as follows:
4, 25 February 2012
3, 17 March 2012
Please note that the second February date has been moved back by a week to avoid half term. Please find attached a flyer for the remaining Spring term sessions so feel free to pass around or give to friends!
Club kit
For those people who are (or become members), you are able to buy club branded kit as seen on the website. In addition to adult kit that has been available previously, we are expecting to place an initial order for children’s kit in the coming weeks. Pricing will be dependent upon how many garments we order irrespective of size, obviously cheaper as we increase numbers. If you are interested, let me know and I can then give you pricing before anyone commits.
And finally…
Thanks to everyone for getting there on time last time – it does make a big difference, especially for those who get there early and then have to try and keep warm!
