Veteran Leaguer - LVRC

TOP TEN THINGS TO LOOK FORWHEN CHOOSING TEFLCOURSE1. How long is the course? – realistically anything under 120 hours can only beconsidered as an introduction and most employers who require a TEFL qualificationwill be looking at 120 hours or above2. Is the course face to face or online? – make sure that whatever courseyou do, it fits with your learning style and situation. If you find it difficult to bedisciplined and study at home then perhaps and on-line course isn’t for you!3. Does the course include any practice teaching? – although onlinecourses can give you a great foundation in the theory of language teaching, nothingcan replace actually standing up in front of a class and teaching, after all that’s whatthe job is about!4. Don’t just go for the cheapest! – although it’s tempting just to go for thecheapest course be careful. Cheap doesn’t always equal value and what’s the point ofspending even £50 if the course won’t help you teach and get a job. Do someresearch!5. Speak to your course provider before enrolling! – it’s amazing howmany people these days buy a TEFL course without having had any interaction withthe people that deliver the course. Don’t fall into this trap – speak first and work outwhether you feel they know what they’re talking about, after all they are meant to betraining you to get a job.6. Think about who you want to teach – if you want to teach younglearners then go for a course that includes this rather than having to shell out morecash to do an add-on module later on7. Does anyone ever fail the course? – a strange one really but ask yourselfthis, if no-one ever fails the course then is it certificate worth the paper it’s written on,or is it just that everyone doing the course is brilliant!8. Is the course accredited? – there are all sorts of weird and wonderfulaccrediting bodies out there and real way to understand what’s good and what’s not.However, a course which is accredited and checked is more likely to be of value thanone that isn’t!9. Do some research - have a look on-line to see what feedback there is aboutthe course you’re thinking of (but remember even great courses have the odd personmoaning about them!) and then see if it’s possible to be put in touch with someonewho has already done the course. It’s unlikely you’d choose any other productwithout a bit of research so why not your TEFL training course.

Announcements and AmendmentsLVRC Cyclo-CrossDarley Moor Sports CentreSunday 2nd January 2006Darley Moor is off the A515 just southof Ashbourne in Derbyshire, a flat,clean, wide, fast mix of tarmac, roughroads and grassland. The single, mixedcategory event starts at 1100 hours andlasts 40 minutes. Standard entry form,£6. Please enter in advance if possible.Prizes according to number of entriesfor each category. We hope for supportnot only from cross-riders, but also fromroadmen, who will benefit from awinter anaerobic interval session.Entries to:Tony Wilkins, 4 Hilton Park,Blidworth, MANSFIELD, NottinghamshireNG21 0PQTel: 01623-490693Please note change of addressFilmShowWheels within WheelsandRay Pascoe’s film of the2005 Tour de FranceSunday 29th January 20062.00 – 5.30 p.m.Riverside StudiosContact: Charlie Woods:0208-749-0013AGM2006is on 7th October 2006 in theVillage Hall, Napton, Warwickshire.Meeting begins 3.30 pmObjective of the LVRCThe provision of a programme of competitiveand social cycling events for maleand female members of 40 years of ageand overRegion 1Two flyers have been sent out with Veteran Leaguers during thelast year, with regard to the need in the Region of replacementsfor the following officers: Secretary, Treasurer, Quartermaster andEvents Co-ordinator. Following these flyers, a letter via Royal Mailwas sent to each Region 1 member.Subsequently there has been not a word from any member of theRegion. Therefore it is the intention of the existing committee towind up the Region from 31st March 2006, and to pass on theRegion’s funds to the National Executive, unless all these postsare filled by that date.Obituary: Charly GaulJUST AS WE went to press we learned of thedeath of Charly Gaul, arguably the greatestclimber the sport has ever seen. He died on6 th December, two days short of his 74 th birthday.The epithet ‘L’Ange de la montagne’ wasfirst applied to the cherub-faced Gaul byL’Equipe on 24 th May 1954, when he destroyeda class field over the Massif Centralto take the lead in the Tour of the Six Provinces,which he won. But despite his appearancethe little man was as hard as nailsand apparently impervious to the effects ofcold and wet weather.In 1955 he won the 253 km Tour stageover the Galibier by a staggering 13.47, jumpingfrom 37 th to 3 rd . Even Coppi had neverwon by such margins. In 1956 he won theGiro in a single stage, climbing to the summitfinish of Monte Bodone through a minusfive blizzard. 44 riders abandoned. In 1958,starting the stage over the Chartreuse 16 minutesbehind the confident race leaderRaphael Géminiani, he destroyed the entirefield in an icy downpour, finishing 7.50ahead of the second rider (Anquetil was at23 minutes) and moving into third place atonly 67 seconds. Gaul also won all threetime-trials. By contrast he was prostrated byLVRC ShopAll clothing soldout!!!!!! Only a fewsize 2 and size 3 jerseysand shorts left: £10eachPlease ring to checkavailabilityheat and sunstroke forced him to abandonthe 1957 Tour.Gaul could undoubtedly have won moreTours, but he was almost impossibly handicappedby the national team system underwhich it was run when he was at his mostdevastating. He never had the support of acomplete Luxembourg team. He won oneTour (ten stages, twice KOM), and was thirdtwice; two Giri (1956, 1959), includingeleven stages and the KOM; and a numberof lesser stage races and a string of nationalchampionships. But ‘Gaul was not a champion,’said Jean Bobet. ‘He was a natural phenomenon’.Charly Gaul, born 8 December 1932; died6 December 2005.Gaul in the 1955 Tour: he was thirdCloth badges £2.00Metal badges £3.00Jean Flear, 14A Water Lane,North Hykeham,Lincoln LN6 9QSTTelephone: 01522-687738Please make cheques payableto LVRCThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 3

Chairman’s Report for the year 2005Peter RyallsTHE CRISIS IN Region 6 highlighted in the lastLeaguer (now fortunately resolved) underlinesmy previous comments on the urgentneed for a younger generation of officials tolead us into the next decade.John Flear, our treasurer, who has given ussuch excellent service, advises that he willnot stand for re-election next year. We nowhave 12 months to find a replacement. Unlesswe have a treasurer the LVRC will notbe able to meet its legal obligations.Despite twelve months notice, we have stillto find a volunteer to take over from RayMinovi as editor of the Leaguer and publisherof the Hand book. Again a real crisis: nohandbook no racing.Less serious, I will definitely not seek reelectionbeyond 2007 AGM, this is amplenotice for willing candidates to come forwardand for the membership to decide on futureleadership.For the record and contrary to allegationsmade in a letter to the Leaguer, the ExecutiveCommittee, not the Chairman, decidedEditor’s ReportTHIS IS THE first year since I became Editor inwhich there will be only three and not fourissues of the Veteran Leaguer. My apologies.I continue to receive quite a lot of writtenmaterial, and the supply of photographs, andtheir quality, has been outstanding. Mythanks to all those who have contributedphotos, articles, race reports, book reviewsand anything else.Until September of this year costs were£1204 per issue, plus £900 for the Handbookand about £112 per issue for carriage,total £6164 for four issues. Not surprisinglyafter five years at the same price, the printerfinds it necessary to raise the cost of printingto £124 per issue, raising the annual cost toaround £6850 gross including carriage toregions. Advertising so far booked of will offsetthese rises. Carriage costs have remainedvirtually unchanged for the last six years. Theadvertising side is quite a lot of work, andneeds a separate advertising manager.My work as Editor is creative, satisfying andrewarding, but it carries with it a range ofextra activities which can be extremely timeconsuming and can only be regarded as unwelcomechores. These include: dealing withadvertising packing and posting taking extraLeaguers and Handbooks to the Post Office; sending off individual copies to people whohaven’t had theirs from their regional distributor;answering phone calls with complaintsand queries, many of which shouldbe addressed to other people, four or fivethat before any new championships wereapproved we needed evidence that therewas sufficient support and interest from themembership. Our doubts on this for proposedhill climb, grass track, and cyclo crosshave been justified. The membership, not theChairman, were so incensed by proposals forLVRC international teams funded from members’entry fees that they called an SGM toreject it.Finally, the Percy Stallard series has alwayshad the backing of the whole of the executiveCommittee. The executive, with one dissentingvoice, changed the format after thefirst year to 10 events, one for each region,with 5 to count. This was to give all regions achance to compete and to minimise theamount of travel for those deciding to contestthe whole series. The executive also decided,(one dissenting) that rules for organisersof Stallard events would be as per ourrules of racing. No special conditions wouldbe imposed, as this might be likely to deteralready reluctant organisers. Vtimes each day; searching websites for material,especially international racing for veterans;answering half a dozen letters a week;and so on.Numbers of members still apparently findit difficult to grasp that the Newsletter is distributedregionally and I don’t have anythingto do with it. Some of the distributors areexcellent, others less so. The last issue, 2/2005, was received by distributors on 28 thOctober. By 4 th November members in sixregions had received their Leaguers. On thedown side I’ve had complaints by phone ande-mail that issues of the Newsletter havebeen received by individuals up to eightweeks after they’ve been delivered to the regionaldistributor, in some cases not at all,and in some cases when no longer required.My wife and I have twice this year beenphoned by a widow wanting to know whyher deceased husband’s Veteran Leaguer isstill being delivered. However, I always pointout that, like myself, they are all volunteers,and if you think you can do better you shouldbecome one of them.The association should bear in mind whenfinding a successor that the LVRC currentlyincurs no costs in hardware or software. Iftyping and layout were done by the printer,around £800 would be added to the cost ofeach issue. I have pointed out before thatthe Newsletter doesn’t have to be in the existingformat and style. It could be much simplerand less expensive. VObituaryTim TealTIM TEAL, FOUNDER member of theLVRC and former treasurer of LVRCRegion 2, died on 22 nd November afterfighting a circulatory disorder formany years. He was 72.As a young man in the 1940s heshowed rebellious tendencies:warned by his club, Otley CC, to stopcompeting in BLRC road races, he persisted,and was asked to leave. Undaunted,he joined other pioneer Yorkshireroadmen and in 1947 formed theAiredale Olympic, competing successfullyover the tough Yorkshire coursesthroughout his teens and twenties.Tim had the ability to generate cyclinginterests among his friends, andin the early 1980s he gathered togetherold club-mates and re-formedthe Airedale. At a time when almostthe only racing open to veterans wastime-trialling, he became aware of developmentsin the Midlands for veterans’road racing, and led the Yorkshirevets southwards.To begin with Tim promoted eventsunder the VCRA banner, and was latera founder member of TLI and theLVRC. He was very proud of his LVRCnumber, 007, a very apt association.But in the 90s his health deterioratedand his left leg had to be amputatedbelow the knee. He made several attemptsto get back on his bike, evenfitting a tricycle conversion kit to it.Despite his disabilities his interest remainedstrong, and he correspondedregularly with Percy and with DaveOrford, maintaining his lifelong interestin the sport and helping in the YorkshireLVRC road races.When Region 2 found itself withouta treasurer, Tim came forward to fillthe gap. Sadly, however, he couldn’twin the race against his deterioratinghealth, and his other leg had to go.His funeral in his home town ofGuiseley was well-attended by manyveteran roadmen and clubmates payingtheir last respects to a man whohad contributed so much in our Regionto the sport he loved.He leaves a wife, Joyce, who sharedhis highs and lows for 49 years, twosons Kevin and Howard (also an LVRCmember), a daughter Adele, and sevengrandchildren.Page 4 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

No earthquakein Newton Regis2005 AnnualGeneral MeetingFollowing the pattern announced at last year’s AGM, the meeting votedfor a £2 increase in subscriptions, preferring small annual increments tolarge increases at less frequent intervals. This rise again anticipates a furtherincrease in our insurance premium, and for this reason the meetingdecided that all of the £2 would go to central funds. The Executive Committeehave the power to make adjustments when the association hasmore information about costs.ApologiesJohn and Jenny Downing, John ArcherAttendance,: 34Minutes for the 2004 AGMThe minutes were accepted. Proposed:Bill Ollis; seconded: Pete Wilson. Agreedunanimously.ReportsChairman, Peter Ryalls; Treasurer, JohnFlear; Results Co-ordinator, Tom McCall;Newsletter Editor & Coaching Secretary,Ray Minovi; Secretary Pete Wilsonreported that he was carrying out secretarialduties as usual and had nothingfurther to add. See Reports, pages 4.Treasurer John Flear reported a healthyyear. Full accounts will appear in the nextissue of the Veteran Leaguer.Stock Controller, Jean Flear said thatreducing the price of oversize (6 and &)jerseys and shorts had resulted in rapidsales. In fact all clothing stocks, except forchampionship jerseys, were virtuallyexhausted. In view of poor sales in the lasttwo years (except when heavily reduced inorder to clear) the meeting decided not toreplace the clothing.Editor Ray Minovi repeated his wish toretire from the post. While the job of editoris usually creative and satisfying, it hasaccumulated around it a mass of menialtasks and activities which are immenselytime-consuming. He would produce onemore issue and the Handbook and urgedthe Committee to find a replacement assoon as possible.There were still problems of distribution insome areas. Anyone experiencing difficultiesshould contact their Regional distributor.2005 advertising revenue so farreceived so (now £755). This will go a longway towards offsetting the rise in printingcosts of £124 per issue, the first rise in fiveyears. £715 is booked for 2006, and heurged the Committee to appoint an advertisingmanager or agent.Results Co-ordinator Tom McCall assuredmembers that although some results arelate, they will all appear. Coveragethroughout the year in the national mediahad been no more than adequate, but hewould keep trying.Election of OfficersAll positions were elected unopposed.Chairman: Peter RyallsSecretary: Peter WilsonTreasurer: John FlearCoaching Secretary: Ray MinoviRegistrar: Colin DooleyStock Controller: Jean FlearEvents Co-ordinator: Barrie Mitchell.Results Co-ordinator: Tom McCallProposals and discussionThe age of veterans naturally continues torise. Bill Ollis reported that there are atlease twelve Over-75s in Region 9. Theproposal that the LVRC create a newCategory H for these riders was thereforewelcomed and agreed unanimously.The Percy Stallard Series will still consistof ten events, the best five to count. Intheory this means one event per region,so that all riders have an opportunity ofgetting in five events without excessivetravelling.Main PointsV Annual Subscription goesup to £1414V Tri-bars back in for time-trials, but not stageracesV £1000 to David RaynerFundV New H category for theOver-75sV LVRC’s 20th AnniversaryHandicap race andSocial Events nextOctoberV AGM on 7th October 2006V Clothing stocks exhausted:will not be replacedVNo replacement editoras yetHowever, all Stallard events will beexpected to consist of three races: AB, CD,and EFGH. Stallards are unlikely to beawarded unless organisers can put on threeraces. A specific guide to the specialrequirements will be supplied to organisers.Race judges will be delighted to learnthat points are reduced from six for thewinner down to one for sixth place. It waspointed out during the discussion that insome events there are in fact fewer than sixriders in some categories.The use of tri-bars in time-trials is to bepermitted, though not in time-trials whichform part of stage races.Rule of Racing number 25 was altered toremove an anomaly: in future foreign ridersriding in LVRC events will pay only thenormal entry fee for entering on the line.This is in line with practice on the mainlandof Europe.The Annual General Meeting for 2006on 7th October will take place in thecontext of the LVRC’s 20th Anniversary.Details have yet to be finalised, but themost likely pattern is a revival of the FallingLeaves Autumn Handicap on the Saturdaymorning, AGM at 3.30 pm, and a meal ofsome kind and prize presentation at about6.30 pm. On Sunday there will be ridesand excursions. The event centres on thevillage of Napton, Warwickshire, and willbe organised by Mick Ives and BarrieMitchell. VThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 5

News from theRegionsRegion 2OUR AGM WAS held on 12 th October atOtley C.C. clubroom. All officials otherthan Treasurer were re-elected. PatrickDouglas from Mercury RT volunteeredto be our new Treasurer, so welcomePatrick and many thanks. Patrick is at 52Spennithorne Avenue, West Park, LeedsLS16 6JA Tel: 0113 2676200.It is with regret that I report the deathof our previous treasurer Tim Teal whodied on 23 rd November. Tim was a stalwartof the LVRC, one of the foundingmembers of our region, and will be sadlymissed.The local racing calendar looks promising,with a twentieth anniversary seriesto be run. Helpers are needed at allevents. Organisers are needed evenmore. May I remind anyone consideringrunning an event that free LVRCmembership is offered.Local riders have had wins, BernardGarnett, Mick Holmes, John Ford, andmany more have had placings. BrianSunter won road events also but his winsin the time-trial world were awesome,beating people half his age! Region Tworiders have also competed in eventsabroad, as far afield as Majorca, Austria,Belgium and in Canada Derek Smithwon a fistful of medals on the track. Itwill be good to see Ian Moore and DerekSmith (the younger) back in the bunchnext year after both suffered illnesses in2005.Please be aware that bikes have beenstolen this year from Gargrave Café andMalcy Robinson’s new Pinarello wentfrom the Cavendish Pavilion at BoltonAbbey.Ian Moore reports that the Gargraveruns were well attended this summer.Please note times for winter are 10.30a.m.,both Tuesday and Thursday.Derek Browne from Halifax Imps runsan historic/classic bike display under thename of the BYGONE BIKE CLUB andwill be showing all sorts of memorabiliaon Sunday 9 th April at Wadehouse CommunityCentre, Shelf, Halifax (oppositeInterface factory). Just some of the itemson display will be Cyril Cartwright’sCarlton Flyer track bike, which he loanedto Tom Simpson to ride at the MelbourneCommonwealth Games; Ken Russell’sTour of Britain winning bike; DesRobinson’s (Brian’s brother) 1949 Isle ofMan International winning bike. Derekalso welcomes any items from your cellars/lofts/atticsthat could be auctionedon the day, proceeds to the Dave RaynerFund. Contact Derek on 01274 674693.That’s all for 2005. Hope everyonehas/had a Merry Christmas and bestsporting wishes for the New Year.Dave HamiltonRegion 4WITH THE LEAGUE’S 20 th anniversary inmind Region 4 is to make its four roadraces into a league with cash prizes forthe first three in each age category, bestthree of four performances to count.First race will be the first of the NewcastleRC 2001 Staffordshire Oatcakepromotions, followed by Golden’s Oldies,which is being switched to theWorleston circuit near Nantwich; thenthe Woodbank Trophy, both in Augustand finally the second Oatcake event.The intention is not to rival the PercyStallard Series, but Region 4 officialsdecided at their AGM that they wantedto do something different to mark theanniversary. Chairman Dave Watson isagain planning to run his winter tracktraining sessions at Manchester Velodrome.Dates to be announced later.In an effort to find new organisers,officials will be prepared to offer helpand advice to anyone prepared to puttheir heads above the parapet and organiseany new events. Events coordinatorNev Ashman said: ’We needyoung vets to come forward to organise.It does not take too much time toput events on, even for those who workand jealously guard their cycling time.We will hold their hands to get newevents on the calendar.’Dave Riley and his Manchester Velo‘Old Tuggos’ are to put on their increasinglypopular hilly Gran Fondos. In thefour years since Dave began promotingthey have raised more than £18,000 forManchester’s Christie Hospital inmemory of his brother Spud Riley.The first event is the Polka Dot Challengeover 100 or 72 miles on June 4 thtaking in some of the legendary climbsfrom the past in the Peak District whichattract riders from all over the country –560 rode in 2005.The Spud Riley event over 100 and54 miles on more rural roads attracted280 riders in 2005. Both have the sameformat with feeding stations and controlsand cost £15 to enter. Dave said:’ Everyoneseems to want to ride these toughroads and the climbs they have only readabout. So all LVRC members will get awarm welcome.’ Details of the eventson www.polkadotchallenge.co.ukJim Golden (01782-624631)Region 5Best wishes for a speedy recover to ColinAbdy, victim of a vast pile-up while racingin Australia – five helicopters ferriedthe victims to hospital. Colin sufferedbroken ribs and a punctured lung, brokencollarbone, and two fractures to thepelvis, but by the end of November hewas out of intensive care.Region 6MEMBERS WILL BE pleased to know thatthe notice in the Veteran Leaguer, plus aflyer in the regional copy, produced apositive flood of volunteers – six orseven, anyway – and the Region nowhas a Registrar and Treasurer. They areRegistrar: Peter Varian, 18 RedstoneFarm Road, Hall Green, BirminghamB28 9NT. Tel: 0121-777-2826Treasurer: Steve Martin, 8 Upper HollandRoad, Sutton Coldfield, W. MidsB72 1SU. Tel: 0121-355-2832John Callaghan will be organising anew road race, the Mark Ide Memorial,on 30th July on the Woodbury Hill Circuit.Details in Handbook in due course,together with complete details of regionalofficers.Region 7AT THE END of next season, on 1st October,when the major road race competitionsare over, Martin Hackley will run a25-mile age-related sporting time trial on1st October 2006 in Warwickshire area.Normal TT rules (tri-bars permitted) willapply. Martin hopes to ‘re-introduce acycling discipline that has not had a greatdeal of focus within the LVRC of late’.Contact Martin on 01788 522395.Page 6 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

Region 9A RECORD NUMBER of events is plannedfor 2006 on road, circuit and track.Thursday nights (start at 6.00 p.m.) willsee a summer series, planned by StanTurner, at Eastway. Peter Wilson’sWelwyn track series will alternate withBill Butterworth’s Hillingdon series onWednesday nights.Tuesday nights will see regular racingat North Weald under an unmentionableorganisation. Trevor Maddern’s ‘Lastof the Summer Wine’ series will takeover at Eastway from August.Eastway again on Sundays, if a roadrace is not taking place in the Region.An inter-regions (9 and 10) White JerseySeries will also take place, with elevenroad events starting with a prologue timetrialon Good Friday.Two LVRC National Championshipsare also planned: Pete Wilson’s NationalCrits Champs at Eastway for Cats A – H;and Terry Devine’s National Road RaceChampionships on the Viper circuit forcategories E – H.Welcome new promoters VC Dealhave planned a race at the newBetteshanger circuit, near Deal, on 8 thOctober, and a new road race atTenterden.Crikey! A chap will have to study hisHandbook jolly hard if he’s not to turnup at the wrong place on the wrong day.Make the most of next year’s racing atEastway as we will lose the circuit at theback end of the year. The replacementat Ramney Marsh, Waltham Cross, is tocome into play (we are promised) theday after Eastway closes. Do pigs fly?Whatever happens, I’m one who thinkswe should wholeheartedly embrace thisoffer and help to get it up and runningas soon as possible.An event well worth another mentionis the Merchant Bankers’ Club that meetsthroughout the year on Wednesdays atEastway from about midday onwards.Everyone is welcome, not just vets -–althoughwe do make up most of the numbers– to have a ride on traffic-free roadsas fast and as hard as you like, a hotshower at the end, tea, biscuits, an occasionaljam doughnut, and maybe arace video. A brilliant way to get somemiles in and listen to and join in withlarge amounts of rubbish – all for £2.60a throw.A plea from Trevor Maddern from hiseyrie at Ciclos Uno, also known as‘Auntie Wainwright’s’ is for riders withlast year’s race numbers to keep themfor 2006 as you are registered onKnocker Shields’ big silver computer.Now where the hell is mine?Dave Wright has everyone’s sincerestbest wishes as he starts a course oftherapy. Dave, you will return Lance-like.Sid Lovatt is reported to be in full trainingthroughout the winter. Be afraid. Bevery afraid.Finally a massive vote of thanks to youRay, should you carry out his threat tostep down as Editor. Your efforts havebeen tremendous and much appreciatedby everyone in Region 9 as much, I’msure, as they have been in every otherregion. The VL delivery was always eagerlyawaited and read with enthusiasmby all.Richard Wall VPoint of ViewTom McCallWELL, IT HAD to come – even an old diehardlike me has to move on sometime.No, I am not aiming to retire, what I amtalking about, is a real time move intothe 21 st Century. I have finally taken themomentous step of upgrading my ageingcomputer equipment, and I am actuallynow on the Internet. This means that Inow also have an e-mail address. It istomcat9@blueyonder.co.uk There arefour main reasons why I am now on thenet:1. A company that I do business withwill only now deal through theInternet.2. I can now get access to all the websites I want instead of askingfriends for help.3. As a bonus, I now have digital TVthrough the cable.4. It will stop Don Parry asking mewhy I am not on the net everytime I see him! Please don’t floodme with congratulations or spurioustopics – remember to keep tospecifics if you have to contactme!Ignoring for one moment the excellentseason-long promotional efforts of TrevorMaddern at Eastway, Bill Butterworth atHillingdon, and Terry Devine at NorthWeald, region 9 has a growing list of promotions.New events have appeared, butthe region has been enlivened by the inauguralYellow Jersey Series, with 8rounds at intervals during the year. Themain force behind the series is SteveWatson, who has recreated a conceptoriginally devised by Barry Packman,whose Vetarace series ran successfully fora number of years.The Yellow Jersey Series has seen agood entry for every round, with threenew events run as qualifying rounds. YellowJerseys are worn by each group leaderin each race, and the whole concept hasbeen embraced enthusiastically by all theriders. Following the original spirit of theVetarace series where riders are encouragedto help with the promotions, manydo offer their services. As the events aresplit between morning and afternoon,some will ride one event, and help inanother. A season-end social was alsoheld, with a buffet and get-together.I think the message is clear: if you canget people involved in a series of eventswith GCs and jerseys, it generates its ownenthusiasm. The other underlying messageis that without promoters, therewould be no events. We all like to haveevents to ride in, and we grumble if thereis not a convenient event within reach.There are a lot of good people out therethat keep our sport going with their regularpromotions. But some others need tostart feeling a little more charitable aboutwhat we stand for. How about some ofyou younger vets putting a bit back intothis great sport of ours. Ask yourself whatyou could do to keep the continuity going.A group of you could get togetherand get something going in your regionalong the lines of the Yellow Jersey Seriesin region 9. October would be a goodtime for new events – many of us wouldlike to keep racing at that time – food forthought?Overhead at a race HQ post-race argument– ‘You don’t know who I’ve riddenwith’! VThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 7

You can be a time-triallist, a roadman, or just a nosey parker – whatever floats your boat – but you’llalways learn something at the ABCC’s annual conference. The Editor, who was there, reports …Annual Conference of the Association of British Cycling CoachesPedal Power 2005CIRCUMSTANCES DICTATED THAT thisyear’s guests included threetime-trial champions and an exroad-racechampion and successful veteranroadman with 35 years’ experienceof wheel-building.Three years ago Ruth Eyles was ayoung woman who’d tried racing on theroad without success (‘I don’t honestlythink I was fit enough’) and didn’t enjoyit much. It’s difficult to break into women’sroad racing in Britain: all the bestriders turn up for all of them, and youspend more time travelling than training.Ruth did a few club time trials andthey were OK, but she saw her cyclingfuture more in touring than racing. Andwhat neither she nor anyone else wouldhave predicted, ever, is that by the endof 2005 she’s Women’s 50-mile and100-mile Champion, and Best All-Rounder. In 2003, following a spell ofhard riding, Ruth nocked five minutesoff her 50-mile time and the light cameon: ‘It’s true! Training works!’ And thenin 2005 a lighter workload meant lesstiredness and a remarkable season.There’s no doubt at all that your dailyjob takes it out of you. They used to saythat in order to get to the top in cyclingyou had to be ruthless. Not any more.Carole Gandy was Ruth’s predecessorin the carrying-all-before her stakes,last year’s 100-mile champion, Best All-Rounder, and the oldest BAR winnerever, of either sex. She started out asquash player and coach, and her husbandbought her a bike to get her to stayhome more. I know, but that’s what itsays here. So another natural athlete andgames player who was so terrified on herfirst run on the new bike that she wentdownhill on the pavement with thebrakes on and now knocks out lots ofmiles – 13,500 last year – gym work,the rowing machine, weights. She pickedher coach, Dave Lloyd, out of an articlein Cycling Weekly with a pin. It all soundsreassuringly old-fashioned.Before lunch the ABCC devoted half anhour to the routine of its AGM. If youweren’t a member you went out andwalked round the museum and didn’teven notice. And the museum really is aknockout. Even if you’re personally notmad about motor cars, seeing a century’sworth assembled like that is almostexciting, and if you’re as old as me youcan remember when Singer Gazelleswere actually what people drove. Andwho can forget the Austin A40, no matterhow hard we try. It’s another way ofre-living your youth. Whether you actuallywant to do that may depend on whatkind of a youth it was, of course. But aswell as all the motor transport, here inthe middle of Coventry there’s whatmust be the largest and finest collectionof historical bicycles in the country, inthe city where the Safety Bicycle finallyevolved.Five years ago I published RogerIddles’ training schedules and methodsunder the title ‘Be very Afraid’. TheLVRC ‘E’ Category National Championhimself describes his high-intensity intervalsas ‘hurtful distressing and frightening’.He’s 61 now, the first rider over 60to beat twenty minutes for a 10-miletime-trial, which is, if anything, evenmore frightening. But he’s gearing lowernow, down from 57/11 to 55/11. Youcan do the maths yourself: 36 miles anhour on a 55 x 11 (135 inches) is a veryrespectable 90 rpm. The increased cadencehas something to do with losingweight over the last couple of years,more road racing, time-trials on lumpycourses which sometimes call for a smallchainring (no, really), and winter trainingon the 39 x 16. Perhaps surprisinglyRoger prefers non-standard courses likethe Beacon’s Mini-mountain trial, whichhas been around quite a long time andhas gone on improving with time, has abit of everything – lumps in the rightplaces, and elegant and beautiful sceneryto go with it – a sort of Joanna Lumleyof a course. What’s not to like?Pete Matthews (L) & ABCC co-ordinatorJim Sampson (photo Ray Minovi)Pete Matthews may lay claim tobeing the most famous wheel-builder inthe country and possibly the most experienced.He could write a book about it,but he’s afraid that someone would buyone copy, pass it round, and he’d endup with no more than a fiver for all hiswork. When he lived over his shop – ‘Ihad eleven brothers and sisters, didn’tknow what it was to sleep alone until Igot married’ – he would train and thensit up to midnight experimenting withhow many blank spaces he could leavein a wheel in order to save on spokes.How can you pull the rim in if there isn’ta spoke there? Pete’s built every kind ofwheel from 12 to 40 spokes, aluminiumor carbon, sprint or clincher, and is nowinto magnesium, lighter and strongerthan aluminium alloy. You heard it herefirst. Choose your wheels to suit yourabilities and the demands of the event.And what’s this about 180 lbs in yourtyres? Robert Millar, who ought to know,used to put 100 lbs in the front, 110 inthe rear tyre. Pete builds frames too. Likemany of us, he sees a future for steel:TI’s new 953 tube-set makes up into a 1kg frame. You heard it here first. Readybuiltwheels: everyone’s into buyingthem now, but there’s a maintenanceproblem, and when anything breaks youhave to send them away and pay a fortune.The wheel builder isn’t redundantyet, and he’s due a comeback. Everything,naturally, comes full circle: whatgoes around comes around. Nowhere isthis more true than of wheels. You heardit here first. VPage 8 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

LVRC Public LiabilityInsuranceFor the over 40s this is withoutdoubt the best value on themarket. It covers members forboth social and competitivecycling at all times in UK and allEuropean countries exceptSwitzerland. Limit of Indemnity:five million pounds. All free withLVRC membership!However, as the name implies,this insurance is public liabilityonly. If you want personal cover,you’ll have to arrange your own.ASSOCIATIONOF BRITISHCYCLING COACHESWant to be aCyclingCoach?The ABCC has for over 30 yearsprovided coach education for alldisciplines, and now offers youthe opportunity to become aqualified coach.You can qualify in as little as 10weeks, either by distancelearning or through a fast-trackcourse, followed by a period ofpractical experience supportedby a senior coach – the ABCChas over 450 registeredcoaches.For its qualified coaches theABCC provides full insurancecover, regular issues of CycleCoaching News, and its annualcoaches’ conference, PedalPower.For details of ABCC Coursescontact:Jim Sampson,19 Forbes Avenue, Beverley HighRoad, Hull HU6 7AJTelephone: 01482-857774E-mail:jsampson@jsampson.karoo.co.ukCycling in ProvenceDelightful sunny climateWonderful traffic-free routesStunning sceneryIdeal base for tackling Mont VentouxExcellent standard of accommodationOne week packages available from £85per person, per week, includes 7 nightsaccommodationGroups of 2 to 40 people accommodatedCall Colin or Helen on 0161 928 4965or visit www.propertyprovencal.comRio FrioCyclingWith year-round sunshine and quiet,well-maintained roads, Southern Spain isthe place for cyclists of all standards toget in some serious training or just torediscover the joy of cycling withoutlayers of foul-weather gear!At Rio Frio we provide great vehiclesupportedcycling routes, with on-siteworkshop facilities and sports therapy,just a short drive from Malaga airport,but a million miles from busy roads!Holidays & TrainingCamps in Southern SpainGive us a call, drop us a line,or visit our website for furtherdetails.Mel & Marie RichardsPhone/Fax:(UK) 0870 068 8173(Spain) 0034 958 348 973E-Mail: info@rio-frio.comWebsite: www.rio-frio.comThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 9

DEFG road race ChampionshipsThe Championships were run off on a hot daywith brilliant sunshine. The HQ was a picturepostcard pub, and there were five Police motorcyclesin attendance. The course is a hardone with plenty of ups and downs, and the punishingterrain took its toll on each race.John Dowell prevailed over Roger Smith, withBryn Davies taking third.1. John Dowell; 2. Roger Smith; 3. Bryn Davies;4. Ron Chitty.D racePinfold’s strength tellsRoger Jackaman took the second lap prime fromMike Parker, who was to be at the head of affairsthroughout. Parker had ultimately to submit to thestrength of Clive Pinfold, whose solo win by 30seconds entitled him to keep the Mike WilsonMemorial Trophy for a third consecutive year. Everpresent Allan Ramsay claimed third place soonafter Parker had crossed the line.1. Clive Pinfold; 2. Mike Parker; 3. Allan Ramsay;4. Dave Rutherford; 5. Terry Devine; 6. GordonSmith; 7. David Williams; 8. Oliver McPherson;9. Alan Clarke; 10. Barrie MitchellAbove: Roger Iddles finally wins a vetsroad race championship – on his own asusual; below: D Champion Clive Pinfoldadjusts his cap. Left Mike Parker, rightAllan Ramsay. (Barrington Day)E raceIddles: solitary splendourThe eventual front runners were all involved inthe prime on the second lap, which was taken byBrian Sunter from Roger Iddles, Tony Woodcock,John McMillan and Andy Hicks. However, RogerIddles commenced his wearing down processsoon after, till only Tony Woodcock could holdhis pace. Ultimately, Tony had to give best, andRoger rode away in solitary splendour to finishover one minute clear, with departing championJohn McMillan taking third.1. Roger Iddles; 2. Tony Woodcock; 3. JohnMcMillan; 4. Brian Sunter; 5. Bob McDonald; 6.Dan Nickolay; 7. Bill McCombe; 8. John Leitch;9. Andy Hicks; 10. John Duckworth.F raceIves writes his own rulesMick Ives ‘won’ on his own; although there wascontroversy. The local Police insist on a groupstart, so the organisers had devised a systemwhereby each group would drop back on the roadand ride in a neutralised state until a suitable gaphad opened on the race in front. Their respectivelead car would then move away so that racingcould commence. However, Ives overtook thelead car and commenced his race before the others,and he was gone and not seen again, in theprocess catching the E race. For this infringement,the organisers disqualified him from the prime,which went to Brian Dacey, but strangely allowedthe race result to stand. Brian Dacey won thesecond race to take Silver, and Bronze went toHugh McGuire.1. Mick Ives; 2. Brian Dacey; 3. Hugh McGuire;4. Paul Gresham; 5. Ken Haddon; 6. ArnoldRussell; 7. Roly Crayford; 8. Pete Wilson; 9. RoySavery; 10. Pete Lickorish.G raceDowell prevailsAbove: The E category podium – L to R:Tony Woodcock, Roger Iddles, JohnMcMillan; below: Iddles and trophy.Below: Mick Ives’ F Cat win was shadowedby controversy. 2nd Brian Dacey,3rd Hugh McGuire (Barrington Day)NATIONAL A/B/C ROAD RACE CHAMPION-SHIPS; Congleton; Cheshire - 28th AugustA - 1. Russell Bazeley; 2. Andy Eagers; 3.Robert Blackburn; 4. Steve Marrows; 5. MarkWestwood; 6. Richard Binks; 7. DaveCompston; 8. Brian Austin; 9. MarkHammersley; 10. Bill Belcher.B - 1. Keith Lilley; 2. Callum Gough; 3. MacMcGready; 4. Simon Day; 5. Keith Jones; 6.Terry Wood; 7. Robert Mclean; 8. SteveWakefield;9. Steve Wharton; 10. Paul Lilley.C - 1. Dave Cuming; 2. Pete Greenwood; 3.Brian Davison; 4. Graham Brown; 5. SteveJolley; 6. Joe Williams; 7. Ron Hewes; 8. SteveMacklin;9. Martin Russell; 10. Graham Cuming.Russell Bazley was awarded the WoodbankTrophy as the winner of the fastest race.Page 10 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

Results August — October 2005Twickenham RRCobham, Surrey 7 AugustA - 1. Gus de Castro; 2. Dave Larcombe; 3.Mark BremnerB - 1. Martin Hulbert; 2. Rob Cranstone; 3.Pete ConnellyC - 1. Mick McManus; 2. Dave Griffiths; 3.Keith BonifaceD - 1. Alan Clarke; 2. Terry Devine; 3. KeithBrooksE - 1. Sid Lovatt; 2. John McMillan; 3. DaveFlemingF - 1. Arnold Russell; 2. Pete Wilson; 3. DaveFriendG - 1. Trevor FenwickEdgware RC Circuit of Mentmore 14AugustPercy Stallard series Round 8A - 1. Steve Marrows(10); 2. Paul Stubbs(9);3. Chris Badell(8); 4. Gary Fry(7); 5. RolandTilley(6); 6. Andy Barnes(5); 7. A.Cox(4); 8.Sean Kilroy(3); 9. Jeff Baird(2); 10. JulianCann(1pt).B - 1. Keith Lilley(10); 2. Steven Thomas(9);3. Martin Hulbert(8); 4. Barry Ford(7); 5. PaulLilley(6); 6. Paul Freeman(5); 7. SteveWharton(4).C - 1. Ron Hewes(10); 2. Chris Davis(9); 3.Joe Williams(8); 4. Ralph Keeler(7); 5. AndrewBarnes(6); 6. Steve Macklin(5); 7. DaveTerry(4); 8. Graham Owen(3); 9. ChrisKenyon(2).D - 1. Dave Griffiths(10); 2. Alan Clarke(9);=3. Barrie Mitchell(8); =3. Terry Devine(8); 5.Don Parry(6); 6. Martin Hackley(5); 7. BillButterworth(4); 8. Keith Brooks(3); 9. DaveWoods(2); 10. Mike Dawson(1)E - 1. Tony Woodcock (10); 2. Sid Lovatt(9); 3.Bob Richards(8); =4. Tom McCall(7); =4. BobMcDonald(7); =6. Don Nickolay(5); =6. BillRains(5); 8. John Duckworth(3); 9. AndyHicks(2); 10. John Leitch(1)F - 1. Mick Ives(10); 2. Brian Dacey(9); 3.Geoff Mindham(8); 4. Ken Haddon(7); 5.Arnold Russell(6)G - 1. Roger Smith(10); 2. John Dowell(9); 3.Barrie Bodenham(8); 4. Trevor Fenwick(7)La Fleche WaltonneLutterworth; Leics 21 AugustRace 1 A/B 1. Andy Eagers(A); 2. AndrewMorgan(A); 3. Mc McGready(B);4. MarkFrancis(B); 5. Martin Webster(A); 6. ColinGriffiths(B); 7. Robert Blackburn(A); 8. PeterTaylor(B); 9. Marcus Walker(B);10. PaulWebster(A)A - 1. Andy Eagers; 2. Andrew Morgan; 3.Martin Webster.B - 1. Mac McGready; 2. Mark Francis; 3.Colin Griffiths.Race 2 C/D 1. Dave Scargill(C); 2. PeteTrotman(C); 3. Joe Rowe(C);4. Garry Hill(C); 5.Phil Etches(D); 6. Kris Doms(C); 7. GrahameBrown(C);8. Dave Woods(D); 9. TonyWilkins(C); 10. Dave Holmes(D).C - 1. Dave Scargill; 2. Pete Trotman; 3. JoeRowe.D - 1. Phil Etches; 2. Dave Woods; 3. DaveHolmes.Race 3 E/F/G 1. Geoff Mindham(F); 2. TonyTaylor(E); 3. Bob Richards(E);4. LanceRavenhill(E); 5. Vic Barnett(E); 6. MalcolmRobinson(E); 7. Eric King(F); 8. GeorgeBennett(F).E - 1. Tony Taylor; 2. Bob Richards; 3. LanceRavenhill.F - 1. Geoff Mindham; 2. Eric King; 3. GeorgeBennett.G - 1. John Flear.North Bucks RRTowcester, 28 AugustRace 1 A/B 1. Gary Fry(A); 2. ColinGriffiths(B); 3. Chris Badell(A); 4. PaulStewart(A); 5. Barry Ford(B); 6. JohnBeckett(A); 7. Mark Garrett(A);8. PaterTaylor(B); 9. Simon Cook(A); 10. Ian Gould(A).A - 1. Gary Fry; 2. Chris Badell; 3. PaulStewartB - 1. Colin Griffiths; 2. Barry Ford; 3. PeterTaylorRace 2 C/D 1. Eddie Adkins(D); 2. PeteTrotman(C); 3. Don Parry(D); 4. Dave Bond(C);5. Terry Devine(D); 6. Ralph Keeler(C); 7.M.Lane(C);8. Neil Ingles(D); 9. MartinHackley(D); 10. Dave Woods(D).C - 1. Pete Trotman; 2. Dave Bond; 3. RalphKeeler.D - 1. Eddie Adkins; 2. Don Parry; 3. TerryDevine.Race 3 E/F 1. Mick Ives (F); 2. Sid Lovatt(E);3. Geoff Mindham(F); 4. Shay Giles(E); 5. BobRichards (E); 6. Dave Birch(E); 7. ArnoldRussell (F); 8. Dan Nickolay(E); 9. Pete Wilson(F); 10. Tom McCall(E).E - 1. Sid Lovatt; 2. Shay Giles; 3. Dave Birch.F - 1. Mick Ives; 2. Geoff Mindham; 3. ArnoldRussell.Hardly Athletic Handicap RRNr Bristol 28 August1. Ian Fagan(B); 2. Roger Iddles(E); 3. EdDemery (D); 4. Michael Ford(A); 5. Phil Bayton(C); 6. Chris Davis(C); 7. Mike Parker (D); 8.Clive Pinfold (D); 9. Lew Gardiner (D); 10. MikeCarty(C).The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 11Brigante RR Boroughbridge, 28 AugustRace 1 A/B 1. Garry Hill (A); 2. Carl Saint (A);3. Dave Metcalf(A); 4. John Hopper (A); 5.Simon Wright (A); 6. Andy Moss (A); 7. DaveGoodall (B); 8. Dave Hudson (B); 9. MartinSladdin (A); 10. Stephen Singleton(B)A - 1. Garry Hill; 2. Carl Saint; 3. Dave MetcalfB - 1. D. Goodall; 2. D. Hudson; 3. S. SingletonRace 2 C/D 1. Phil Rose (C); 2. Mick Holmes(D); 3. Steve Horsey(C);4. Dave Maughan (D);5. Steve Davies (C); 6. Andrew Donaldson(C);7. Alistair Cameron (C); 8. Dave Scargill(C); 9. Dave Hargreaves (D);10. Allan Ramsay(D).C - 1. P. Rose; 2. S. Horsey; 3. Steve DaviesD - 1. M. Holmes; 2. D. Maughan; 3. D.HargreavesRace 3 E/F/G 1. John Ford (E); 2. BernardGarnett(E); 3. Malcolm Robinson(E);4. JackWright(E); 5. Bob McDonald(E); 6. JackWatson (F).E - 1. J. Ford; 2. B. Garnett; 3. M. RobinsonF - 1. Jack Watson.Southend Wh Holiday Crits, 29 August,incorporating Region 9 Crit ChampsA - 1. Stephen Skuse; 2. Mark Leggett; 3. GaryFry; 4. Martin Docker;5. David Walls; 6. NickMarsh; 7. Graham Berridge; 8. Colin Jinks; 9.Robert Hemming; 10. Richard McVey.B - 1. Paul Doel; 2. Mick Gray; 3. DominicGabellini; 4. Peter Stroud; 5. Graham Pearl.C - 1. Ron Hewes; 2. Carl McDonagh; 3. RogerHargeaves; 4. Mick Lane; 5. RichardBarraclough; 6. Pete Constable.D - 1. Dave Griffiths; 2. Chris Broadway; 3.Andrew Gibson; 4. David Williams; 5. DavidWoods; 6. Oliver McPherson; 7. Trevor Mills; 8.Terry Devine; 9. Dick Naylor; 10. Chris Gooch.E - 1. Shay Giles; 2. John Duckworth; 3. TimElsdale; 4. Dave Fleming; 5. Roger Hornsby; 6.Dan Nickolay; 7. John Leitch; 8. JennyPatience.F - 1. Brian Dacey; 2. Roly Crayford; 3. ArnoldRussell; 4. George Potter; 5. Pete Wilson; 6.Ralph Maudlin; 7. Alan Brown; 8. Mick Curtis.G - 1. Mike Brushett; 2. Roy Godbeer.GS Avanti Kentish Hop RRHorsmonden Kent 4 Septemberincorporating Region 9 A/B/C ChampionshipsRace 1 A/B/C 1. Julian Cann (A); 2. GaryFry(A); 3. Stephen Skuse(A); 4. Paul Doel(B);5. Brian Bingham (A out of Region); 6. SimonWright (A out of Region); 7. Martin Hulbert(Bout of Region); 8. Ken Baker(B); 9. Gus deCastro(A); 10. Nick Marsh(A).A - 1. J. Cann; 2. Gary Fry; 3. Stephen SkuseB - 1. Paul Doel; 2. Ken Baker; 3. Barry FordC - 1. M. McManus; 2. M. Lane; 3. R.Hargreaves

Picture PagesClockwise from top left. The D field in the national championships nearWinchester; the E race in a sylvan setting (Barrington Day); two pictures fromthe East Coast road race; Colin Abdy in the Vic Sutton Memorial (Jim Sampson)Page 12 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

Vic Sutton Memorial: above, MartinSladdin and Shirley; right, Colin Leckonbyand Rodney Tordoff; below right, JackWatson, Shirley Sutton; bottom right, DeanFulstow leads the AB field.(photos: Jim Sampson)Two early-season pictures: above, the ABCfield in the Staffs Oatcake; below AlanBelton at Pinvin (photos: Heather Sims)The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 13

Race 2 D/E/F/G 1. Terry Devine(D); 2. GeoffMindham(F); 3. Alan Clarke(D); 4. David Williams(D); 5. Sid Lovatt (E); 6. Shay Giles (E);7. Oliver McPherson(D); 8. K. Brooks(D); 9. J.Rusz(D); 10. D. Fleming(E).D - 1. T. Devine; 2. A. Clarke; 3. D. WilliamsE - 1. S. Lovatt; 2. S. Giles; 3. D. FlemingF - 1. G. Mindham; 2. A. Russell; 3. P.GreshamG - 1. Roy GodbeerDinnington RC Australian PursuitStainton, Doncaster, 4 September1. Dave Marsh(D); 2. Mick Holmes(D); 3. DaveHolmes(D); 4. Dave Maughan(D); 5. Ron Pyne(E); 6. David Phillips(D); 7. Jack Watson (F); 8.John Ford(E); 9. Roger Holmes (E); 10. BryanBliss(F).Newcastle RC Staffordshire Oatcake11 September Stallard series Round 9A - 1. Steve Marrows(10); 2. Carl Halpin(9); 3.Andy Light(8); 4. Steve Davies(7); 5. IanNoons(6); 6. Mark Gillingham(5)B - 1. Keith Lilley (10); 2. Roy Francis(9); 3.Neil Vaughan(8); 4. Gerald Sturdy(7); 5. TerryWood(6); 6. Marcus Walker(5); 7. ChrisNosek(4); 8. Chris Smith(3); 9. MikeHopkins(2); 10. Mike Gormley(1)C - 1. Phil Rose(10); 2. Paul Tabron(9); 3.Dave Cuming(8); 4. Brian Davison(7); 5. JoeWilliams(6); 6. Chris Davis(5); 7. SteveJolley(4); 8. Dave Viner(3); 9. MalcolmWhitehead(2); 10. Andrew Donaldson(1)D - 1. Kev Shand(10); 2. Dave Hargreaves(9);3. Wayne Hughes(8); 4. Barrie Mitchell(7); 5.Don Parry(6); 6. Gordon Smith(5); 7. DavidParkin(4); 8. Martin Hackley(3); 9. AllanRamsay(2); 10. Dave Woods(1)E - 1. Tony Taylor(10); 2. Ron Pyne(9); 3. BobRichards(8);4. Roger Iddles(7).F - 1. Mick Ives(10); 2. Derrick Woodings(9);3. Geoff Mindham(8); 4. Ken Haddon(7); 5.Arnold Russell(6); 6. Hugh McGuire(5).G - 1. John Lyth(10); 2. Jeff Warren(9); 3.Barrie Bodenham(8).Vic Sutton Memorial RacesHull, 11 SeptemberRace 1 A/B 1. David Thorpe(A); 2. Tony Parkinson(B);3. Ian Harvey(B); 4. Keith Richards(A); 5. John French(B); 6. Martin Sladdin (A);7. Fred Easton(A); 8. Tim Robson (A); 9. RichRollstone(A); 10. Dean Fulstow(A).A - 1. D. Thorpe; 2. K. Richards; 3. M. SladdinB - 1. T. Parkinson; 2. I. Harvey; 3. J. FrenchRace 2 C/D 1. Dave Maughan(D); 2. GarryHill(C); 3. Lewis Teal(C); 4. Neil Ingles(D); 5.Tony Carter(C); 6. Steve Macklin(C); 7. DaveScargill(C); 8. Alastair Cameron(C); 9. DaveHolmes(D); 10. Derek Palmer(C)C - 1. Garry Hill; 2. Lewis Teal; 3. Tony CarterD - 1. Dave Maughan; 2. Neil Ingles; 3. DaveHolmesRace 3 E/F/G 1. Roger Holmes (E); 2. JohnFord (E); 3. Malcolm Robinson(E); 4. JackWatson (F); 5. Ron Bennett (E); 6. Jack Wright(E); 7. Bernard Garnett(E); 8. Brian Northing(E); 9. Athel Lawton(E); 10. Jeff Hardy(E)E - 1. R. Holmes; 2. J. Ford; 3. M. RobinsonF - 1. J. Watson; 2. G. Sjeard; 3. Colin AbdyG - 1. Colin LeckonbyBrian Hawkridge MemorialBenenden, Kent 11 SeptemberRace 1 A/B/C/D 1. Craig Wilson(A); 2. MartinHulbert(B); 3. Dave Griffiths(D); 4. Ron Hewes(C); 5. David Williams (D); 6. Alan Clarke (D);7. Mick McManus(C); 8. Nick Welsh (B); 9.Nick Marsh (A); 10. Pete Constable (C)A - 1. Craig Wilson; 2. Nick MarshB - 1. M. Hulbert; 2. N. Welsh; 3. Mark HarrisC - 1. R. Hewes; 2. P. Constable; 3. M. LaneD - 1. D. Griffiths; 2. D. Williams; 3. A. ClarkeRace 2 E/F/G 1. Sid Lovatt(E); 2. Shay Giles(E); 3. Eric King(F); 4. Andy Hicks(E); 5. PaulGresham(F); 6. Roger Hornsby(E); 7. JohnDuckworth(E); 8. Tom McCall(E); 9. ArnoldRussell(F); 10. Pete Wilson(F).E - 1. Sid Lovatt; 2. Shay Giles; 3. Andy HicksF - 1. Eric King; 2. Paul Gresham; 3. PeteWilsonG - 1. Arnold Russell; 2. John Norris; 3. RoyGodbeerYorkshire Coast RR 18 SeptemberPromoter Jim Morrison put on another excellentevent on the Burton Fleming course near Scarborough.Warm, sunny conditions made forgood racing for the 70+ riders entered over thetough 7.5 mile circuit. Jim acquired some goodsponsorship from local businesses, and therewas a donation to the prize list from Sir JimmySavile. The buffet was again first class, andwith plenty of help from friends and colleagues,the event went off without a hitch. ParamedicTony Berry was only called upon once duringthe day when Allan Bell was stung by a bee!A - 1. Paul Stubbs; 2. David Thorpe; 3. MelBlackfordB - 1. John Galway; 2. Steve Wakefield; 3.Barry KiplingC - 1. Phil Rose; 2. Steve Macklin; 3. DaveScargillD - 1. Mick Holmes; 2. Dave Maughan; 3. NeilInglesE - 1. John Ford; 2. John Downing; 3. MalcolmRobinsonF - 1. Derrick Woodings; 2. Jack Watson; 3.George BennettG - 1. Colin LeckonbyREADING CC road racesHenley on Thames; 25 SeptemberRace 1 A/B 1. Colin Roshier(A); 2. MartinHulbert(B); 3. Gary Fry(A); 4. Mike Hopkins(B);5. Neil Vaughan (B); 6. Martin Docker (A); 7.Mike Anderson (B); 8. Bill Butterworth(D); 9.Bob Tyrell (B);10. Colin Bateman (B).A – 1. Colin Roshier; 2. Gary Fry; 3. MartinDocker.B – 1. Martin Hulbert; 2. Mike Hopkins; 3. NeilVaughan.Race 2 C/D 1. Eddie Adkins(D); 2. Neil Ingles(D); 3. Ron Hewes (C); 4. Ed Demery (D); 5.Ivor Thomas (C); 6. Bob Garlinge (C);7. StevePym (C); 8. Paul Ruta (D); 9. Gavin Shaw (C);10. Dan Montgomerie (C).C – 1. Ron Hewes; 2. Ivor Thomas; 3. BobGarlinge.D – 1. Eddie Adkins; 2. Neil Ingles; 3. EdDemery.Race 3 E/F/G 1. Mick Ives(F); 2. Sid Lovatt(E); 3. Geoff Mindham(F);4. Andy Hicks (E); 5.Dave Fleming(E); 6. Brian Dacey (F); 7. BobMcDonald(E); 8. Ken Haddon(F); 9. PaulGresham (F);10. Hugh McGuire (F).E- 1. Sid Lovatt; 2. Andy Hicks; 3. DaveFleming.F – 1. Mick Ives; 2. Geoff Mindham; 3. BrianDacey.G – 1. Roger Smith.National CriteriumChampionshipsEastway 6th JuneA1. David Baker; 2. Simon Wright; 3. SteveMarrows; 4. Paul Stewart; 5. Chris Badell;6. Graham BerridgeB1. Dominic Gabellini; 2. Barry Ford; 3.Vincent Davison; 4. Martin Hulbert; 5.Dave Sinar; 6. Brian BleaseC1. Mick McManus; 2. Dave Wright; 3. IanCooper; 4. Carl McDonagh; 5. DaveGriffiths; 6. Thomas WilsonD1. Terry Devine; 2. Ed Demery; 3. MartinHackley; 4. Peter Jones; 5. ColinSummerfield; 6. Barrie MitchellE1. Sid Lovatt; 2. Shay Giles; 3. JohnDuckworth; 4. Tony Beech; 5. John Knight;6. Tim ElsdaleF1. Mick Ives; 2. Geoff Mindham; 3. RolyCrayford; 4. Ken Haddon; 5. Alex Bentley;6. Fred LittleG1. Roger Smith; 2. Terry Law; 3. JohnDowell; 4. Mike BrushettPage 14 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

Yellow JerseySeries 2005Final resultA Category1. Tim Costello, 704 points; 2. MarkLeggett, 654; 3. Dave Larcombe, 498; 4.Brian Bingham, 455; 5. Mark Bremner, 410;6. Kevin Blann, 397; 7. G. de Castro, 395;8=. G. Fry, 352 & F. Kennedy, 352; 10. M.Docker, 337.B Category1. Rob Cranstone, 745; 2. Pete Connelly,684; 3. Colin Bateman, 532; 4. TerryMorgan, 481; 5. Alistair Asher, 445; 6. PaulDoel, 180; 7. B. Ford, 171; 8. N. Welsh,162; 9. M. Jones, 154; 10. G. Hindle, 148.C Category1. Keith Brooks, 629; 2. Oliver McPherson,592; 3. David Williams, 582; 4. DaveWorsfold, 372; 5. Roger Jackaman, 331; 6.Alan Clarke, 3237. N. Ingles, 285; 8. T.Devine, 270;9. H. Webb, 200; 10. C.Summerfield, 169.D Category1. Mick McManus, 765; 2. Keith Boniface,715; 3. David Griffiths, 710; 4. DanMontgomerie, 516; 5. Lindsey Ruocco,511; 6. Michael Lane, 448; 7. R. Robinson,424; 8. S. Watson, 384; 9. M. Metcalf, 305;10. D. McMullen, 280.E Category1. John McMillan, 575; 2. Dave Fleming,436; 3. Andy Hicks, 370; 4. Will McCombe342; 5. Robert Eyres, 208; 6. Sid Lovatt,195; 7. D. Nickolay, 170; 8. J. Garner, 165;9. A. Swanson, 162; 10. T. McCall, 154.F Category1. Pete Wilson, 640; 2. Arnie Russell, 537;3. Brian Dacey, 395; 4. Roly Crayford, 190;5. Roy Savery, 160; 6=. Geoff Mindham &A. Bentley, 100; 8. B. Bulmer, 95; 9=. J.Orwin & D. Friend, 90;G Category1. Terry Law, 395; 2. Trevor Fenwick, 185;3=. Roger Smith & Roy Godbeer, 100; 5.Bryan Staples, 95; 6. A. Preece, 90.National HandicapChampionshipBearley; Warkwickshire11th June1. Ron Pyne (E); 2. Tony Woodcock(E); 3.Dave Elliott (F); 4. Tony Taylor(E); 5. Derek Woodings (F); 6. BobRichards (E); 7. George Jones (E); 8.Ken Haddon (F); 9. Bill Rains (E); 10.Hugh McGuire (F).Percy Stallard Series: final tableA1. Steve Marrows, 462. Paul Stubbs, 403. Julian Cann 224. Chris Badell 135. Andrew Barnes, 12=6. Robert Blackburn,Steve Davies, PaulGrindley, 11=9. Phil Axe, RichardBinks, Mel Blackford, PhilipBurnett, Andy Eagers, NickMarsh, Steve Moss, IanNoons, Robert Wheeler 10.B1. Roy Francis, 362. Paul Lilley, 333. Keith Middleton, 314. Keith Lilley, 305. Neil Vaughan, 29=6. Martin Hulbert,Anthony Parkinson, 188. Derek Kilgallon, 17=9. Mac McGready, IanWalker, 15.Cl. Malcolm Whitehead, 442. Brian Davison, 423. Chris Davis, 394. Andrew Donaldson, 385. Joe Williams, 356. Steve Macklin, 317. Dave Cuming, 258. Graham Brown, 219. Andrew Barnes, 1710. Mick McManus, 15Dl. Barrie Mitchell, 492. Martin Hackley, 393. Don Parry, 344. Terry Devine, 285. Dave Hargreaves, 216. Bill Butterworth, 207. Dave Griffiths, 19=8. John Powell, AllanRamsay, Dave Rutherford,Kev Shand 15.El. Ron Pyne, 412. Tony Woodcock, 393. Bob Richards, 354. Bob McDonald, 29Milton Keynes Bowl Evening Criteriums12 th May: Race 1: 1. Russell Powles (A); 2. Mark Booth(A); 3. Joe Quill (B)Race 2: 1. Don Parry (D); 2. Peter Jones (D); 3. ClivePinfold (D).Cats: A Powles; B Quill; C Graham Temple; D Parry; EBob Richards; F Pete Lickorish24 th May: Race 1: 1. Dominic Gabellini (B); 2. Ian Cooper(C); 3. R. Powles (A)Race 2: 1. C. Pinfold (D); 2. Martin Hackley (D); 3. D.Parry (D)Cats: A Powles; B Gabellini; C Cooper; D Pinfold; E R.Richards; F. Lickorish31 st May: Race 1: 1. D. Gabellini (B); 2. Simon Cook(A); 3. I Cooper (C)Race 2: 1. M. Hackley (D); 2. C. Pinfold (D); 3. DaveBenger (E)Cats: A S. Cook; B Gabellini; C Cooper; D Hackley; EBenger; F Lickorish14 th June: Race 1: 1. Dominic Gabellini (B); 2. Ian Cooper(C); 3. Dave Watson (A)Race 2: 1. D. Parry (D); 2. Eddie Adkins (D); 3. PeterJones (D)Cats: A S. Cook; B Gabellini; C. R. Keeler; D D. Parry; ED. Benger; F Lickorish21 st June: Race 1: 1. John Hopper (A); 2. Ian Gould (A);3. D. Watson (A)Race 2: 1. Pinfold (D); 2. D. Parry (D); 3. E. Adkins (D)Cats: A J. Hopper; B Gabellini; C R. Keeler; D Pinfold;E Benger; F Lickorish28 th June: Race 1: 1. Gabellini (B); 2. Mark Booth (A); 3.Garry Weston ( C)Race 2: 1. Pinfold (D); 2. D. Parry (D); 3. Adkins (D)Cats: A M. Booth; B Gabellini; C G. Weston; D Pinfold;E Benger; F Lickorish5. Roger Iddles, 27=6. John Duckworth, JohnTingle, 22=8. Trevor Horton, LanceRavenhill, 1910. Andy Hicks, 18Fl. Mick Ives 502. Geoff Mindham, 483. Ken Haddon, 363. Jack Watson, 274. Brian Dacey, 265. 6. Pete Lickorish, 207. Bryan Bliss, 198. Hugh McGuire, 189. Dave Elliott, 1610. Roly Crayford, 15Gl. Roger Smith, 502. Barrie Bodenham, 403. John Dowell, 354. Terry Law, 195. Jeff Warren, 18Trevor Fenwick, 157. John Lyth, 10=8. John Flear, Keith Gelder, 9=10. J. Palmer, J. Pottier, 8.12 th July: Race 1: 1. M. Booth (A); 2. R. Powles (A); 3.Gabellini (B)Race 2: 1. Pinfold (D); 2. M. Hackley (D); 3. P. MurrayCats: A M. Booth; B Gabellini; C Ian Howell; D Pinfold;E S. Walters; F Lickorish19 th July: Race 1: 1. Gabellini (B); 2. Martin Docker(A); 3. M. Booth (A)Race 2: 1. M. Hackley (D); 2. Parry (D); 3. Pinfold (D)Cats: A M. Docker; B Gabellini; C I. Howell; D M.Hackley; E Benger; F Lickorish26 th July: Race 1: 1. Paul Stewart (A); 2. M. Docker(A); 3. M. Booth (A)Race 2: 1. E. Adkins (D); 2. D. Parry (D); 3. M. Hackley(D)Cats: A P. Stewart; B Gabellini; C. I. Cooper; D E.Adkins; E Benger; F Lickorish9 th August: Race 1: 1. R. Powles (A); 2. M. Docker (B);3. I. Gould (A)Race 2: 1. Parry (D); 2. M. Hackley (D); 3. D. Benger(E)Cats: A Powles; B Docker; C J. Quill; D Hackley; EBenger; F D. Stockley16 th August : Race 1: 1. Joe Quill ( C); 2. I. Gould (A); 3.Paul Freeman (B)Race 2: 1. C. Pinfold (D); 2. D. Benger (E); 3. E. Adkins(D)Cats: A Gould; B P. Freeman; C J. Quill; D Pinfold; EBenger; F StockleyFinal ResultA 1. M. Booth, 13; 2. R. Bowles, 12; 3. S. Cooke, 10B 1. D. Gabellini, 26; 2. D. Cooke, 7; 3. A. Goodridge6C 1. Joe Quill, 17; 2eq.. Ralph Keeler, Ian Howell, 13D 1. C. Pinfold, 19; 2. D. Parry, 18; 3. M. Hackley, 14E 1eq. D. Benger, R. Richards, 24; 3. Murray Kirton, 6F 1. P. Lickorish, 27; 2. D. Stockley, 10; 3. G. Batcock,8The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 15

Sport has always been invented by newspapermen, and they never let dull facts get in the way of agood story, even if they have to make it up. So when truth becomes the legend …Print the legendRay MinoviRené Vietto’s toeMany sportsmen accumulatemythsaround them. If thesportsman is in any way eccentric,the myths tend to multiplyand become increasinglybizarre.René Vietto, whose ‘heroic selfsacrifice’in the 1934 Tour deFrance (he gave a wheel to his teamleader, yellow jersey AntoninMagne) had been almost entirely inventedby the press, became increasinglyobsessive as he grew older. But the storyof the amputation of his toe is in a classof its own. As retailed by numerous writers,it goes as follows:After the Second World War, whenprofessional cycling began again, Renéacquired a devoted pupil, Jean-ApôtreLazaridés, known universally as ‘Apo’.During the 1947 Tour Rene was botheredby a little toe, so on the rest day hewent to the doctor and had it amputated,going on to finish fifth in the Tour. Oneversion has it that Apo was so devotedto him that nothing would satisfy himbut to have one of his own toes removedin order to be just like his master. In anotherVietto ordered him to have the toeremoved ‘because I say so’, and ‘Apowalked with a wobble for the rest of hislife’. Les Woodland retails the story asincontrovertible fact in his Yellow JerseyCompanion to the Tour de France, 2003.The truth is that Vietto did have anoverlapping little toe which rubbed onhis shoe and became infected in the1947 Tour, so that he cut a hole in hisshoe to relieve the pain. On the rest dayin Nice he asked a doctor to amputatethe toe: ‘This rotting appendage is abloody nuisance.’ The doctor refused –amputation, even of a toe is a seriousmatter – and instead treated the infectionwith penicillin. The toe was in factamputated after the Tour, Vietto spentthree weeks with his leg elevated, and itRené Viettotook several months for him to recoverhis balance well enough to walk. Thestory about Apo presumably originatedas a joke told to emphasise either Apo’sdevotion or Vietto’s dominance over hispupil: ‘He’ll do anything René says –even had his toe off!’ Lazaridés finished10 th in the 1947 Tour and 9 th in 1949.Arthur Linton’s deathA story still circulates that Arthur Linton,one of the first British international riders,(he competed in European classicsin the late 19th Century) died as a resultof dope administered by his trainer, W.G. ‘Choppy’ Warburton, during Bordeaux-Parisin 1886. The story appearson numerous websites and in a respectablebook on sport psychology publishedin 2005, where it’s cited as the firstknown drug-related death in modernsporting history. But it’s not true.The fact is that Bordeaux-Paris was firstrun in 1891, five years after Linton’s‘death’. Even more remarkably, Lintonwon the event in 1896, which wouldhave required a feat of resurrectionequalled (as far as we know) only oncein the history of the human race. In facthe died at his home in Aberdare, SouthWales two months after the race, thecause of death being given as typhoid.It was speculated at the time that theterrific efforts he had made inBordeaux-Paris had underminedhis resistance to the disease.However, Warburton was wellknownas an advocate of performance-enhancingsubstanceswhich he carried in his notorious‘black bottle’, most probablystrychnine. The Cycling trainingmanual of 1903 has this account:‘If his charge showed any unduesigns of distress, out came theblack bottle, the contents ofwhich seemed to act like magic onthe distressed rider.’ There’s no suggestionthat Warburton was responsiblefor Linton’s death, merely a referenceto ‘poor Arthur Linton’. Warburtonwas ‘a most successful coach’. But thestory gained currency and in 1897, afteranother ‘doping’ scandal involving theChoppy Warburtonwith Jimmy MichaelPage 16 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

sprinter Jimmy Michael, the NCUwarned him off every track in Britain.Books which repeat the story includeBob Goldman’s Death in the LockerRoom of 1984, Barrie Houlihan’s Dyingto Win (1999), Les Woodland’s Dope(1980), and a chapter on ‘Substance Use’in The Sport Psych Handbook, 2005. Nooneseems to have bothered to checkthe dates, or the cause of death.The drunken riderAbdel-kader Zaaf, an Algerian, rode forthe North African team in the 1950 and1951 Tours de France. Algeria was at thetime a département of France. On the13 th stage, Perpignan – Nimes, 212 kmin extreme heat, Zaaf and team-mateMarcel Molines attacked and were allowedso much leeway that Zaaf becameleader on the road. But with 15 km togo the heat and exhaustion overcamehim and he wobbled to a halt and passedout under a tree. The story claims thatZaaf had drunk a great deal of wine(which, as a Muslim he wasn’t used to)handed up to him by spectators. Thetruth is that the spectators splashed wineon his face to bring him round, thusfounding the legend of the Tour deFrance drunk. Even Raphael Géminiani,who loved a good legend, admits thatthis is the true story. There is, however,no doubt that when Zaaf set off again itwas in the wrong direction for at least afew hundred metres. He was eventuallytaken to hospital in an ambulance.Molines continued and won the stage.Had Zaaf stayed with him, he wouldhave become the first African to lead theTour. The following day he asked if hemight ride the distance he’d missed outthe day before and so continue. RaceDirector Jacques Goddet laughed butrefused.The next year Zaaf finished 66 th andlast, five hours behind winner HugoKoblet. He came within ten seconds ofbeing eliminated on percentage time byKoblet in the final time trial, surviving,he said, because Koblet had lost that tenseconds sitting up to eat a banana.Bartali ‘attacked’ byFrench fansTwo Italian national teams contested the1950 Tour de France. The ‘senior’ teamwas led by Gino Bartali, the 1948 winner,while Fiorenzo Magni led thecadetti, a team of younger riders. On thePyreanean mountain stage from Pau toSaint-Gaudens, after the climb of the firsttwo cols, the hors catégorie Aubisqueand Tourmalet, a select group had takenan unassailable lead on the rest of thefield. The group, including Bartali, Bobet,and Robic, climbed the Col d’Aspinthrough a narrow corridor of excitedspectators. Near the summit there was afall in which Bartali and other riders wereinvolved. In the midst of a mob of excitedfans the riders picked themselvesup and continued to the finish, whereBartali won the stage and Magni tookthe lead. That evening Bartali said thathe had been attacked by French fans,one at least armed with a knife, that heconsidered his life to be in danger, andthat he and all his compatriots, bothteams, were withdrawing. They refusedto discuss the matter further and wouldnot admit foreign (non-Italian) journaliststo their hotel. All attempts to persuadethe Italians to remain were unsuccessful,and the following day theytook the train for Italy. Bartali’s final wordwas: ‘If we can’t compete in safety, inour own national colours, then it’s betterthat we retire. We’re sportsmen, notsoldiers fighting a war.’Was Bartali actually attacked? No-oneelse seems to think so. Louison Bobettold this story:‘The whole episode took place beforemy eyes. A press motorbike swerved andcaused the three of us – Robic, Bartaliand myself – to get tangled up, and wefell. I can’t deny that the Italians wereabused during the climb of the Aspin.Some of the spectators appeared genuinelythreatening, and it showed on theirfaces. However, I can swear that duringthe few seconds it took to disentangleour machines Bartali was not struck, andI don’t think I’m wrong in saying thatwhat he thought were blows were in factthe result of over-eagerness on the partof some of the spectators to be the firstto help him back on to his bike.’The knife, if it existed at all, was almostcertainly part of someone’s picnicequipment. It has been suggested thatan ageing Bartali (he was 36) was displeasedat being put in the shade by theup-and-coming Magni and preferred towithdraw rather than suffer defeat at hishands; but his alleged injuries hadn’t preventedhim from winning the stage, heseemed as full of fight as ever, and hecame back to finish 4 th in both 1951 and1952.The Yellow JerseyEveryone knows that the Yellow Jerseyfirst appeared in the Tour de France in1919. Don’t they? The standard story isthat journalists and officials asked forsome means of picking out the raceleader (at this point there were only 11riders left in the race), and on July 18 th ,at the start of the 11 th Stage in Grenoble,Eugène Christophe appeared in yellow.He hated the jersey and was mocked as‘The Canary’ by the other riders for therest of the race.Legend says that the colour was chosento match the colour of the paper onwhich L’Auto was printed – its rival, Vélo,used green. But another account saysthat because of post-war shortages it wasthe only colour available in large enoughquantities.There is also some dispute over whowore the first Yellow Jersey. PhilippeThys, the first three times winner, saidthat he wore a yellow jersey as raceleader in 1913. His story, which he toldto the magazine Champions et Vedettesin 1957 when he was 67, has the ring oftruth. Desgrange asked him to wear adistinctive colour but he declined becausehe didn’t want to be more visibleto rivals. ‘Several stages later my managerat Peugeot (Alphonse Baugé) urgedme to wear the yellow jersey because itwould be an advertisement for the company.So a yellow jersey was bought inthe first shop we came to. It was just theright size, although we had to cut aslightly larger hole for my head to gothrough.’ In his account of his ride inthe following year, 1914, Thys says: ‘Iwon the first stage and was beaten by atyre by Bossus in the second. On thefollowing day the maillot jaune passedto Emile Georget after a crash.’The official Tour history accepts theprobability of Thys’ claim, but is unableto verify it.Lead-filled bottlesIn 1953 Jean Robic was accused ofthrowing away a drinking bottle in a dangerousmanner while descending theTourmalet. He argued that it would havebeen impossible because it was filledwith 10 kilos of lead to help him descendfaster. He repeated this undoubtedlyuntrue story on other occasions, butcommentators, keen to add colour tohistory, have continued to repeat it asthough it were established fact. VThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 17

From Vic Sedgley, founder member ofthe LVRC, WolverhamptonI read of the so-called Milk RaceReunion in Leeds. I worked for manyyears with Dave Orford running hisPeak area events. How on earth couldanyone involved in the organisation ofthis event not invite Dave O to honourthis unique gathering? He was instrumentalin gaining the sponsorship ofthe MMB way back, and indeed inholding this valuable sponsor in ongoingevents. I know of no-one else(other than his mentor Percy Stallard)who could have achieved this. In factthis blatant slur on such a stalwart ofour sport smacks of history almostrepeating the disgusting attitude of theblue-blazer brigades against Percy.From John LeitchWhat is it that stops all LVRC racesfrom having a staggered start process sothat each age group effectively has itsown race? The beauty is that riders canenjoy the feeling of riding like-againstlike,a pleasant change from the normof being in a big bunch with a 15-yearage spread, everyone being towedalong by a super-strong handful at thefrontI’m writing this 24 hours aftercompeting in the national road racechampionships at Beauworth, Hampshire,for D E F G categories. Thedirector was Peter Rigby.There was a staggered start for eachgroup and the policy worked splendidly.Each group had different colourednumbers and they each got the signalto go at 2-minute intervals. The D-riders went first, and slowly gainedtime on the following second pelotonof E-group riders. After a further pause,the F-riders got under way and in turnhad their own race at their own pace.What stops this happening all thetime? With the older groups doingfewer laps than the ‘young guys’ themarshals weren’t on duty for anylonger.The only difficulty I can think of isthe need for several sets of numbers indifferent colours. In Surrey League, thecentral organising body owns a wholearray of fictures and fittings necessaryfor racing, such as warning signs andflashing roof lights and finish-line flags.Which prompts the question: would itbe possible for the LVRC to hold 10sets (perhaps 20 sets) of numbers infour different colours, which could beoffered out to race organisers whodidn’t wish to invest themselves.Keith Brooks (back from doubling inthe Tour de France as GuiseppeGuerini) took the same staggered-startapproach with his races at DunsfoldAerodrome a month earlier. We in theE-group had a tactical race for once anddidn’t just slipstream the slightlystrongerpeople in the D-group.Peter and Keith – thank you both.From Pam Garnett, OtleyI was skimmimg through my husbandsVet Leaguer and was appalled to readthe comments in the editorial, regardingthe bolting of a lady’s horse in1894. As a cyclist myself I have everysympathy with his comments abouteven then, as now, we are fair game toa proportion of motorists. I takeexception though to his comments thatbecause the horse ran away, allegedlyfrightened by the sight of the NorthRoad Club, that the women was anincompetent owner of an untrainedanimal.As a horse owner and rider myself. Iwould like to enlighten this ignorantcomment by reminding him that ahorse is a living animal with a mind ofits own. It submits to being ridden byputting its trust in its rider as it would inthe leader of its herd, that it will not belead into danger. But it has a flightinstinct which takes over if it is startled.Believe me it is very difficult to stop ahorse once it has decided to run. Theydo not have brakes, you don’t yank onthe reigns to stop it, it will simply setthe bit in its mouth and ignore it.If this horse in 1894 was not used toseeing a crowd of cyclists, or theystartled it, and they did not respect thehorses unease ( it would have startedsidestepping and trying to turn around)then there was always a possibility thatit would take off.Might I suggest he gives horse ridersas much respect as cyclists would likefrom motorists.Editor: I was wrong on several counts:it turns out that it wasn’t the horse thatwas frightened – it was the lady. Whenthe three cyclists approached she panickedand pulled the horse across theroad (she was in a carriage of somesort). So it wasn’t the horse that wasuntrained, it was its owner. The episodeoccurred on 21st July 1894 near the 57thmilestone on the Great North Road. Theriders were F. T.Bidlake, A. Ilsleyand J. W. Stocks. Allthree were injuredand their bicyclesrendered unfit toride. The policetook no action butthe NCU set aboutabandoning roadracing forthwith, finallydoing so in1897.I was also wrong about HenryCracknell, the driver of the St Al-bansmail coach who hurled an iron ball onthe end of a rope into the wheels ofpassing cyclists and brought down theTrafalgar BC. He was fined £5.From CoombsAs someone who has only recentlyjoined the LVRC (and I’m ashamed toadmit it, only recently heard of it) Iwould just like to say how good it is toknow that old bike – racers don’t fadeaway: they obviously carry on racing. Isuspect I’m like the majority of yourmembers, I stopped racing twenty oddyears ago, forgot about the bike while Igot involved in other things, now with alittle more time on my hands I’vejoined a local club, the very friendlyand welcoming Leicester Forest CC,and after going out on club runs I’mstarting to get keen again. I might eventry to wobble round with the bunchnext year.I’ve enjoyed reading the VeteranLeaguer and I’m sorry to hear that wewill be losing you. I’ve written theattached account of my recent ride inItaly. (see page )From Steve Watson, Region 9I read about the impending end toyour role as the editor of the VeteranLeaguer in the Summer 05 issue thathas just been circulated.I want to say that you will be a toughact to follow: I thought your editorials& your book reviews were fantastic.They are well structured and I admiredyour use of English; I just wish I couldexpress myself as well in writing. If youdo give up the role of editor pleasekeep the book reviews coming as Iparticularly like your critical approachtogether with your fantastic detailedknowledge of the ‘true’ dates etc.Page 18 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

A Peiper’s Tale: Allan Peiper, with ChrisSidwells. Mousehold Press, 2005. 180 pagespaperback, £12.95. ISBN 1-874739-39-0.MOST OF US will remember Alan Peiper as atypical gutsy, attacking Australian roadmanwith an impressive professional palmarés accumulatedover the ten years from 1981 to1991, and a career, usually in a subsidiaryrole, in half a dozen big teams.Today Peiper is a manager with Davitamon–Lotto, and it’s from this perspective that helooks back on his career: the tough kid upbringing,the drunken and violent father, themother who worked herself to exhaustionto make ends meet, a dislike for school andany kind of formal education (sign the register,skip off and go training), the former bikechampiongrandfather, and the discovery thaton a bike he could beat all the other kidsand didn’t have to rely on anyone else. Whenthe other juniors talked about how their legshurt, Peiper just didn’t get it – what pain? Hewon the national junior pursuit title. Sufferingwhile enjoying not feeling the pain seemsto have been the divine recipe for his life – ifyou believe in a divinity, and Peiper does.Why are Australian cyclists so successfulin Europe? Because they can’t afford to gohome if they don’t make it. Peiper saved hisfactory wages to make the trip at 16 (can yobelieve this?) headed for Ghent (where else?),lived in the corner of the Plume Vainqueurbike shop, trained like a pro, raced with thebest, especially Eddy Planckaert, gatheredsugar beet tops in the fields and boiled themup with potatoes. Why not? Lots of carbohydrateand vitamins. Then he went to livewith the Planckaerts, and at least got fed.On a trip home Peter Brotherton coachedhim and he began to make good. Soon hewas a pro and from here on each chaptercentres on friends, acquaintances, teammates.And managers. Peiper’s unsuccessfulattempts to make Peter Post seem like anythingother than the biggest bastard on earthare (unintentionally?) hilarious. Post’s impressivearmoury of devices for making you loatheand fear him must have been genetic: no onecould have learned or invented them. Postis a four-letter word.The writing improves as we go on. Peiperwas clearly treated badly by a number ofpeople in the sport, and there’s a note ofabiding bitterness. He feels he sees the bestin everyone, which made him an easy victim– chicanery robbed him of victory in theTour of Belgium, for instance. He neversucked up to anyone, and the promised jobsand careers in TV, PR work, journalism, disappearedthe day he retired. Dishing outpatronage massages people’s egos, especiallyif they don’t have to deliver on it.Life after he left the sport in 1992 wasunhappy. Sportsmen are defined by performance:one day a star, the next ‘Who am I?’At one time the former Giro stage winner wasmaking a living selling hamburgers from astreet stall. Most of the twelve years (coveredin four pages) were spent in ‘a search to findpeace with myself and find out who I am.’Like many pros Peiper is confused abouthis own position on drugs in cycling. There’sa strong sense that those who are trying tostamp them out are the villains. Willy Voetwas ‘irresponsible’ to publish his book – itwould be much better if we all kept stummand shut out the busybodies who can’t beexpected to understand. So the book willprobably be described as ‘controversial’.But it’s an excellent read, not your standard‘how I became a champion’ autobiography,and it ought to be on most cyclist’sChristmas list. Suffer, but enjoy. RMLance Armstrong; tour de force: DanielCoyle CollinsWillow (UK) 2005. 326 pageshardback, £15.99. ISBN 0 00 719183 9.Cycling in the US is uncool, that’s whatmakes it so cool. This paradox is the key toDaniel Coyle’s attempt to identify whatmakes Lance Armstrong tick. Inspired byArmstrong’s attempt to win his sixth Tour,Coyle uprooted his family from Alaska andset up briefly in Gerona (where Lance andother American cyclists have Spanishhomes), and followed Armstrong, his acolytes,challengers and detractors from Februarythrough the 2004 season. Part of theattraction is that the book is not an authorisedwork on Armstrong, and Coyle, a journalist,does not rely on cycling for his living.The question was: ‘Would Armstrongcrack?’ Coyle wasn’t the only one with thatthought on his mind. Six point seven –Michele Ferrari’s mantra – appeared early on.Six point seven watts for each kilogram ofbody weight would determine whether arider had the firepower to win the Tour. Thereare other variables, of course, but put crudely,Armstrong could go harder, and for longer,than anyone else. His body processed lacticacid more efficiently than his peers. In thespring of 2004 he was on course for six pointseven.Pro bike riders have a few tricks of thetrade. They will shake hands with a rivalwhilst feeling his body fat above the waistlinewith the other hand. The size of the backsideis a give-away. Fat equates to time, especiallyuphill. At the Tour of Murcia,Armstrong looked much as he always did atthat time of the year: Ullrich had a big backsideand sucked his stomach in.Ullrich does not focus on cycling duringthe winter. He enjoys his ‘big winter sleep,’says coach Rudy Pevenage. Ulle liked asmall, intimate, team around him. UnlikeLance, he cares nothing for technology andprefers a more natural approach to training.But Ullrich knew something: he knew thatyou did not beat Lance by being like Lance.Armstrong is touchy, must be in control, issuspicious and wary. Those in his orbit knowthe rules if they want to stay in the magiccircle. Lance prized loyalty above all else inhis team-mates and helpers. He loved it especiallyin the Belgians.They surrounded himat USPS (and later atDiscovery). Directeursportif JohannBruyneel, Demol,DeVries, the other mechanics,the soigneurs:old-fashioned, traditional,watchful, strivingfor ‘correctness’ in everything.When peoplewho have got close failto live up to Lance’s standards, things gohaywire.Lance and Ferrari – Doctor Evil – wereclose. Ferrari would spend one week a monthwith Armstrong during the season, togetherwith the five to six weeks before the Tour,excluding races.At the same time he was ontrial in Italy for doping offences. Whether hehad more influence than Carmichael,Armstrong’s coach, is an interesting point.In 2003 Iban Mayo nearly beat Armstrongin Tour and took him over the edge in theDauphiné Libéré. In 2004, Bruyneel saw himat 100% during the Dauphiné: he had theelusive form for which all the racers strive,‘stepping out on the razor’. Bruyneel wasright in supposing he couldn’t maintain thisform. He was right although Mayo didn’t somuch lose form as lose his luck in an avoidablecrash on stage three.Things were happening in Armstrong’s life.The Walsh/Ballester book LA Confidentiel waspublished in France. It infuriated Lance butdidn’t seem to distract him – he has the uncannyability that once an issue is behindhim, he never reflects on it. Coyle was quickto detect this trait – Armstrong wears his lackof reflectivity with pride.Hamilton had trained to a peak for July.His Swiss Phonak team supported him to victoryin the Tour of Romandie shortly beforethe Tour. He was confident and took care ofeverything within his control. But he was unlucky:he crashed and landed on his back.His injuries and the death of his dog, Tugboat,from cancer finished him.Armstrong, meanwhile, seemed to relax.He showed himself in the pack in a casualsort of way and continued to play mindgames with his rivals, particularly Ullrich.Ulle doesn’t like pressure, so Armstrong’smethod was to praise him. Was he as goodas Lance said? If so, why wasn’t he going well?Coyle has the knack of getting inside theheads of the main contenders and has prisedopen the lid of pro cycling. His style is meticulousand simultaneously confidential andgossipy.What makes Armstrong tick? His singlemindednessand courage showed on thetime trial stage to l’Alpe d’Huez. The graffitiranged from aggressively supportive – ‘Riptheir balls off, Lance!’ – to the predictabledoping themes. Some cheered. There were25,000 Americans on the mountain. OthersThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 19

abused him, spat on him and threw waterand beer. It didn’t matter: he won.Coyle perhaps comes as close as anyonein summing Armstrong up. Life for him is acontinuous fight, whether he is cycling, ambassadorfor cancer research or in his corporateidentity. That’s the key: when he stopsfighting, he’ll be no more. GDThe Condor Years – a panorama of Britishcycling, 1945 – 2000: Peter Whitfield.Wychwood, 2005. 236 pages paperback,£15 or £17.50 post paid. ISBN 0-95114838-9-7. Available from Condor Cycles, 51 Gray’sInn Road, London WC1.FOR ABOUT 25 YEARS, from 1965 to 1990, Ihad one book on the Tour de France. Now Ihave around 30. So much for marketing, andthe dominance of one race. But up until nowthere’s been no single book on the historyof cycle sport – road, time-trialling, track,cyclo-cross – in the UK during the very important55 years from 1945 to 2000, a welldocumentedperiod during which cycling inBritain changed radically, from somethingwhich absolutely everyone did, to a dyingactivity, on roads crammed with 22 millionmotor vehicles.So Peter Whitfield’s excellent history fillsa vacancy on the shelf. This is a very goodbook indeed. It’s thoroughly researched, asdetailed as anyone could wish, written bysomeone who can write, lavishly illustrated(over 200 photos), and beautifully printedand handsomely produced. It’s a privatepublication, sponsored by Condor Cycles,and contains within its wider context a historyof the famous firm.Thanks to Percy Stallard and the BLRC,road racing was already possible by 1946,and the next 15 years, it’s now apparent,were a Golden Age for cycling in Britain.There was little traffic and a huge base ofcommuter cyclists who knew exactly howhard it must be to ride at 25 mph. There werethousands of clubs, and runs of 60 or moreriders were the norm. Pictures show tracks –Fallowfield, Herne Hill, Halesowen –crammed to capacity, thousands of spectatorslining the roads at road-race finishes inthe suburbs.Yet the sport was bedevilled by a ceaselesswar among the governing bodies, inwhich the riders were caught in the crossfire.Great riders like George Lander weredeprived of careers and often lost to thesport. Whitfield is right to refer to the ‘hatreds’which this corrosive atmosphere engendered:the bitterness continues to thepresent day. There was the row about whoreally ran what, the amateur/independent/professional divide, the impression that sportwas really about a bunch of reactionary selfappointedofficials, some of them, unfortunately,still around.The weekly Cycling objected to road racing’slove-affair with things European, butthere was nothing they could do. The loss ofBritish component manufacturers wasn’t entirelya matter of fashion: most of their productswere badly-made rubbish, and nothingwould equal the Campagnolo Gran Sportderailleur until the 1970s.Yet cycle sport in the UK continued tothrive, despite its problems, which always includeda serious lack of money. Tens of thousandsrode hundreds of time-trials everyweekend. Our performances abroadthroughout the 1950s were remarkable, butby the 1960s they were a memory. Whydidn’t we continue to do well? Probably because,uniquely among western Europeancountries, we never had a real professionalclass. Eastern Europe had their own professionals,of course.The performances of all the riders of anynote during the period are recorded here:the great Booty, the remarkable FrankColden, Hitchen, Metcalfe, Peter Hill, West,Norman Sheil, Tom Simpson of course, JohnAtkins, hundreds of successful riders on road,track and mud. Some acquired a wider thanBritish fame, others (Alf Engers) remained isolatedin this dripping island. Errors are mostlydown to proof-reading – canon-ball,lynchpin, some foreign names. ‘Baty’ in thepicture on page 102 is Ken Hill, and RonJowers used, for the day, big gears – 92 ratherthan 84. There’s a photo on every page, thebest ones from originals, others scanned frommagazine pictures. People my age will spendhours flipping through them.Peter Whitfield has performed a great servicein writing this excellent book. Christmasis coming, and it’s a great present for thecyclist who has, so far, everything. He hasn’tgot this, though, because it’s unique. RMThe Crooked Path to Victory: Drugs andCheating in Professional Bicycle Racing. LesWoodland. Cycle Publishing 2003. 192 pagespaperback. £9.85. ISBN 1-892495-40-6.A REVELATORY BOOK of this type would not havebeen published a generation ago. Pro cyclingremains insular and suspicious of those whospeak out against its culture. In this resourceful,well-indexed look at life in the peloton,Les Woodland has assembled scores of storiesat once amusing, enlightening, surprising,sometimes tragic.Endurance events like six-day racing, (Bordeaux- Paris) date from the late 19th Century.The extremes of human endurance andsuffering demanded by the punters spawnedtrainers like ‘Choppy’ Warburton (whoseprotégés seemed to soar briefly and die prematurely),and brought the Church in to remonstrateon the riders’ behalf.Some trickery has become cycling folklore.Benoni Beheyt’s victory over team leader Rikvan Looy in the 1963 world road championshipcontinues to inflame tiny bar-roomsin rural Belgium. Engaged in the Madrid Six(where one rider from each team had to beon the track at all times) Tom Simpson’slookalike mechanic, suitably disguised, tookhis place on the track during one of the quietnight sessions while Simpson slept – until thetrack manager discovered the ruse.The fixing of criteriums remains part ofcycling. It’s difficult to break in, rather likethe Blue Train in six-day racing, but the combinehas existed since the top riders recognisedthat the paying public came to watchthem win.Drugging is institutionalised. At one timethe stars used amphetamines laced withpainkillers. Sleeping pills helped settle themdown at night. Roger Rivière was dopedwhen, in the 1960 Tour de France, he triedto follow Nencini, a superb descender (anddope-taker), on the Perjuret. Unable to applyhis brakes, owing to the effect of the drugsthat he had taken, Rivière crashed into a ravine,broke his back and ended a potentiallyglittering career.Doctor Pierre Dumas assumed control ofthe Tour de France medical service in theearly fifties. The volume of drug taking astoundedhim and he was instrumental in theintroduction of drug testing in the Tour. However,cycling didn’t impose drug controls. Instead,the Belgian government did the job in1965. Not surprisingly, notice of testing gavefew positive results. No-notice testing, however,gave depressingly high results.Tom Simpson’s death was a watershed inthe Tour. More exacting dope tests were introducedbut nothing really changed – a factconfirmed by Jacques Goddet many yearslater. Woodland challenges whether tightercontrols and more qualified medical supporthave made any difference. With advances inmedical science, modern racers are exposedto more insidious remedies and their cynicalpurveyors are more brazen.The Festina affair in 1998 brought thewhole sordid business out into the openagain. The arrest of soigneur, Willy Voet,whilst in the possession of drugs for his team,precipitated the scandal. Although the leadingprotagonists – riders, team management,medical help and others – had their day incourt, a degree of mystery still surrounds thecase. Conspiracy theories are always popular,particularly those with a political flavour.According to some observers, the Left andRight may have been involved. BrunoRoussel, the Festina directeur sportif, claimeda plot orchestrated from within cycling itself.Every generation has had its share of cheatsand charlatans. They may have possessedstrong limbs and stout lungs, worn bespokesuits or boasted gilded certificates on thewalls of smart consulting rooms. Their backgroundsmight have been totally different:the subsistence farm, the leafy suburb or themedical school but there was a commonthread. It might have been simply the needto survive in a harsh profession or perhapsto make money from gullible racers, demandingsponsors or to fool the public butcheating and doping has been part of cyclingand is unlikely to go away. Gordon DanielsPage 20 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

You’d have thought nobody needed to look it up, but apparently this bit of cycle-racing folklore isn’tas well-known as some of us thought. So let’s set the record straight …How Orford invented the Milk RaceTHE MILK RACE REUNION in Leedson 1 st October resulted in something of a hoo-ha over whetherDave Orford should have been invited.Part of the problem is a matter of mutualdislike on the part of several peopleinvolved; part is a general bruising ofegos; part is owed to memories, stillfresh, of conflicts which occurred fiftyyears ago; and part is a general lack ofknowledge about just what DaveOrford’s contribution was. So here arethe facts.Dave’s aim was to seek sponsorshipfor the British Professional and IndependentsCycling Association, which hehad singlehandedly set up the previousyear, 1957. In the process he approachedthe Milk Marketing Board, andinvented the Milk Race. What is undeniableis that without Orford’s initiativeit’s almost certain that there would havebeen no Milk Race, and possibly no nationalstage race of any kind sponsoredby anyone. It is also undeniable that thebitterness and ill-feeling which so damagedBritish cycling in the 1950s is, unfortunately,alive and well today. Theseenmities are deeply ingrained but perhapswe may hope there may be, eventually,some kind of reconciliation.Extract from Cycling’s Circus, by ChasMessenger (Pelham Books, 1972)Dave Orford, ever a fighter for thesport and especially for the future of theIndependent/Professional class in thiscountry, had a bee in his bonnet aboutanother extra-sportif sponsor and wroteto the Milk Marketing Board. They wereinterested enough to suggest that he visittheir offices at Thames Ditton and, aftertalks lasting a considerable time, he wastold by their then Public Relations Officer,Reginald Pugh, that they could notconsider sponsoring a team or a singleday event, but perhaps there might besomething more in keeping with theirnational position that the League had tooffer?Common sense prevailed, and themagic word ‘Tour’ was bandied back andforth, stirring great interest among themilk-men, and hurriedly another meetingwas arranged. The Chairman of theLeague, Eddie Lawton, together withSecretary Bob Frood- Barclay, went alongthis time, taking with them the cuttings,photographs and other paraphernaliathat showed the Express Tour of Britainand the Oats Circuit of Britain. It musthave had some good effect, for the bugtook hold, and at the League’s AGM atthe end of 1957 we were able to announcethat there might be a League‘Tour of Britain’ in 1958.After a hurriedly-convened ManagementCommittee Meeting Chas Messenger waselected organiser of the new stage race,and he, Eddie Lawton and Bob Frood-Barclay met the MMB’s publicity officer.Although we came away elated and withthe 1958 ‘Tour of Britain’ more or lessfirmly in our pockets, we also came awaywith a budget well below what wasneeded, and very much under-equippedfor such a venture …Yet such was thespirit of the League at that time that adversityafter adversity was fought andovercome throughout the year.Extracts from Dave Orford’s Diary (unpublished)I went down to the local printer and hadsome headed notepaper printed. I hadnow invented the British Professional andIndependents Cycling Association, andappointed myself Public Relations Officer!My first letter on behalf of this organisation(total membership: one) wasto the Chairman of the BLRC, EddieLawton. I told him there had been ameeting of all interested parties wherewe had discussed all the items which haddestroyed the independent/amateur setup,and if the BLRC did not reinstatethe system that was in operation prior tothe UCI, recognition of the BLRC, andthe Tripartite Agreement (NCU, BLRC,RTTC), the newly-formed BPICA wouldhave to go it alone … When eventually(after five weeks) I got the reply, to myamazement they had accepted the demandsen bloc …1958 was now in the planning stage,and I had made one of my jobs that ofseeking sponsorship that we could allbenefit from. Williams, the maker ofchainsets, had brought out a new alloycotterless job and I wrote suggesting thatall the domestic independent teamsshould be issued with the new chainsetand that they pay a set bonus for wins. Isaid that in this way they would have awinner every week to advertise in thecycling press. They had spent a great dealof money producing this new chainset,but it would appear they were very shortsightedwhen it came to selling the product.They were not interested in myscheme: the chainset never sold.Not to be put off I kept trying, then Icame up with the biggest success in thisfield that I ever achieved. I wrote to theMilk Marketing Board suggesting againthat all our domestic teams had on eachsleeve of the racing vest the legend‘Drink More Milk’, and each week theywould have a winner. ‘Come and seeus,’ they said. I went down to Londonand came away having laid the foundationof the Milk Race, the sport’s longest-eversponsorship.Having then passed to Eddie Lawtonthe details of what I had achieved withthe MMB, I followed up with other ideasI had. Lawton’s reply came as quite ashock, as he told me they didn’t wantany interference from any outsiders asthe BLRC were organising the Milk Race… What a shit.When I told Jim Wilson what Lawtonhad done, he said, ‘No matter how smartyou think you are, there are a good manybastards who are a damn sight smarter.’I somehow knew that the independentswould be pushed out of the Milk Race,and it came to pass. I obviously shouldhave got a written agreement to safeguardthe independents before handingthe MMB over to the BLRC. VThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 21

AlysonFranceAdvertPage 22 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005

Legro’s Training CampMajorca 2006Come train in the sun with 15 times World Masters Champion and Mastercoach Dave Le GrysIncludes flights and hotel transfers (includingbike carriage) OR book your own flightsfrom your local airport and still have the benefitsof this exclusive training package.Half board accommodation (bed, breakfastand evening meal provided) 4 Star Hotel.Groups welcomed and catered for includingnon-cyclists who want to travel with theirpartnersStructured training available, suitable for allabilities.Guidebook with coaching information, routemaps and other information so you can planahead and enjoy your holidayCoaching advice and support throughoutyour stay.Group leaders for all abilities with every ride.Reigning World Masters, British SeniorChampions and experienced riders willingto assist all ridersOption 1: 27 th March – 10 th April 2 weekspackage (flights and transfers included)Departure date 27/03/06 for 14 Nights. Return10/04/06 London Heathrow/Mallorca with BMOption 2: 27 th March – 3 rd April 1 week package(flights and transfers included)Departure date 27/03/06 for 7 Nights. Return10/04/06 London Heathrow/Mallorca with BMOption 3: 3 rd April – 10 th April 1 week package(flights and transfers included)Departure date 03/03/06 for 14 Nights. Return10/04/06 London Heathrow/Mallorca with BMOptions 1 - 3: All departure times to be confirmed.Accommodation Pollensa Park Hotel onHalf Board Basis. Return transportation of bikesfrom Heathrow to Pollensa Park Hotel. Returntransfer of Guests from airport to hotel. Totalbased on twin sharingOption 4: 27 th March – 10 th April 2 weekspackage (excluding flights and transfers)Option 5: 27 th March – 3 rd April 1 week (excludingflights and transfers)Option 6: 3 rd April – 10th April 1 week(excluding flights and transfers)Options 4 – 6: Training Camp and AccommodationPollensa Park Hotel on Half Board BasisEasyjet are Flying from Stanstead, Gatwick forexample on this dateFor further information please contact DaveLe Grys 01206 271553 or 07930 648469Or email:legro@mastercoach.fsnet.co.ukVisit my website www.mastercoach.co.ukfor further details and pictures fromprevious camps.Come to the beautiful département of the AudeMinervois MaisonsProprietors: Chris & Helen Remnant (ex. VC Meudon & LVRC)Self-catering holidays in village houses and gîtes. Quietroads with varied terrain, suitable for all abilities, idealfor training or just pottering.Accommodation: each house sleeps up to 6 and has all theusual facilities. Linens included.We offer: Itineried routes Racing Guided rides Epreuves cyclo-sportives Rides with local ClubsLa Tuilerie, Route de St Pons, Travers de Belveze,11120 Bize-Minervois, FranceTelephone: 00 33 (0)4 68 46 56 41or 00 33 (0)6 89 61 06 88E-mail: helen@minervoismaisons.comAnd when you’ve finished cyclingfor the day, why not sample thelocal wines from the producers.Wine-tasting trips can also bearranged.‘Thank you for showing me the quiet roads of this hillyarea. Pity the roads in Surrey aren’t like that!’ Alex Atkins,Evans Cycles RTThe Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005 Page 23

Chance favours the prepared mindIN A RUSH TO get to a race, I onceforgot my cycling shoes and rode thewhole 70-mile event in a pair ofblack elastic-sided walking shoes. Itwasn’t a lot of fun and I never did itagain. Moral: don’t be in a rush. But backin the sixties I remember a rider whoused habitually to turn up at events inthe Midlands without some essentialpiece of gear. With half an hour to goyou’d hear a voice at the door of thechanging room saying, ‘Has anybody gota spare bottle?’ Or it would be a pair ofsocks, a spare tyre (we all rode tubularsthen), a pump, some food (‘Anybody gota banana?), embrocation. More thanonce he forgot his shoes. Finally therecame the day when the plaintive voiceasked, ‘Has anybody got a spare bike?’He’d leant it against the garage door toput on the roof rack and then drivenaway without it. This sort of thing is surprisinglyeasy to do if you’ve left yourpreparation to the last minute.Over the years I’ve lent to other riders:safety pins, spare wheels, innertubes, spare tubulars, shoes (at least threetimes), socks, quick-release skewers, acomplete left-hand STI lever and cable,sprockets, chainrings, embrocation, insectsting relief ointment, tape, spokes,and dozens of tools. Of course you can’tforecast that you’ll need a complete lefthandbrake and front changer cable –but most of the other stuff is pretty basic:cables and spokes break, nuts andbolts work loose. And this has continuedto the present day, when the ridersare all men over 40 with years of experience.I really don’t understand whypeople nowadays turn up with just onepair of wheels, or no tools.A lot of what’s in your race bag canstay there throughout the season: helmet,shoes, licence, for starters. Obviouslythey’ll be taken out, used, andcleaned; but for the season, that’s wherethey live. Other fixtures include safetypins, massage cream, shorts cream (if youuse it), a couple of energy bars for emergencies,inner tube(s) and tyre levers,mini pump, rain jacket, plastic bag(s) forwet clothes and stuff. Safety pins areessential, especially if you race abroad,where the management doesn’t supplythem. At the World Championships inLiège in 2002 I supplied a dozen Britishriders with safety pins. I’ve got into thehabit of leaving a kit of tools and a sparepair of shoes in the car. Now that nearlyeverything on your bike can be fixed witha set of Allen keys the toolkit doesn’t haveto be very big and heavy, but you’ll alsowant bottom bracket tools, a chainwrench, cassette lockring remover, a nipplekey and a few spare spokes (if youuse conventional wheels), chain tool, 10and 13 mm combination spanners, cablecutters, spare cables and shoe plates.And your track pump. And a spare pairof wheels. Oh, and your bike.Of course it helps if you clean andcheck the bike the day before and replaceanything that looks as though it’snear its sell-by date. This is somethingthat should be an automatic part of yourrace preparation. No equipment lasts forever. Change cables, chains and shoeplatesfrequently. The last time I repaireda club-mate’s broken chain on a trainingride he complained: ‘That chain’sonly been on there two years.’You wouldn’t think you’d have to tellanyone, ‘Pack your bag the night before’,but there are still people who leaveit until the last minute. This almost guaranteesthat you’ll forget something important.Modern race bags with severalpockets are very useful. Get used tokeeping the same stuff in the same places– you may need it in a hurry. When youpack the bag have a checklist. Thisdoesn’t have to be written down: yousoon get used to checking off essentialsmentally. Have a system for it, like startingfrom the feet up: shoes, socks, shorts,undervest, jersey, arm warmers, shades,helmet, mitts. It becomes a ritual. Takeall you need for possible weather conditions:a long-sleeved jersey, arm-warmers,an extra undervest, rain jacket – andplastic bags for putting your wet and dirtygear in. These things are more importantin the early and late season, but conditionscan change significantly at anytime of year.I know that most organisers lay on foodand drink of some kind, but having yourown basic supply (a ham roll, a Mars bar,a small flask of coffee, a bottle of mineralwater) is a good idea, too, and youcan put all that and your race bottles ina separate bag. Always have a spare bottle– if you lose one during the race youat least have a chance of getting a replacementhanded up.Being uncertain about your equipmentis no way to turn up for a competition,and going round the changing roomcadging socks does nothing for your confidence.As the great Yogi Berra remarkedonce, ‘Ninety percent of it is half mentalanyway.’ VThe well-prepared stage race rider: Dave McMullen, having put everythingready for the next day, relaxes between stages at the Tour of the AbberleysPage 24 The Veteran Leaguer: Autumn 2005