Leeds Castle Report - 23 September 2018
Sept 24, 2018 19:47:17 GMT
via mobile
Nigel Wood, Joe R Booth, and 13 more like this
Post by aidanscully on Sept 24, 2018 19:47:17 GMT
The sun cream of last week was replaced by embrocation, the smell of Mont Ventoux lingered in the air at Leeds Castle for Round 3 of the London Cross League, presented by Dulwich Paragon. Cross is officially here.
The course, designed by Coach Charlie and refined by the Commissaires, consisted of the joust, a maze, a zip wire section, the Wall and a marching band which managed to drum to the beat of the riders’ hearts.
As usual, the under 8-16s took to the course to trample the grass before the other races. Judging by the faces of the children on the Wall, it was introduction to adversity for many. I am sure that, in time, admissions officers at Universities will hear about the time that the riders braved the cold and driving rain while carrying a bike which weighed more than them up a hill. The story of one rider throwing his bike down in disgust at the top of the Wall will be weaved into a compelling narrative about the time that he bounced back from a setback.
The V40s and Juniors were next to take to the course. 64 people took to the line, including 7 entrants from Dulwich Paragon. Sporting a Hunt baseball cap and holding a Rapha umbrella, Sponsors’ Favourite, Dylan Bexley, was confident before the race. “Look, my SRAM equipped Trek and Hunt wheel are up to this challenge”. Bexley rode a strong race and finished 12th.
The TTT approach to racing paid off for Mick Vance, Aaron Haines and Philip May as they finished in 42nd, 44th and 45th positions respectively. Rob Drake, Pete Owen and Dax Rossetti finished not far behind them, relieved that the whole thing was over.
Next up were the Women and V50s. Simon Clawson put his shoe woes behind him to finish 12th. Crowd favourite, Joe Booth, finished in 29th place and always looked at ease on the Wall. Mark Hindley was satisfied to have finished without a mechanical before realising that he misplaced his gilet and water bottle.
Olivia Campbell, in Team Scarpa colours finished 6th with Julia Van Campen in 10th place. Sara Barman secured her second podium in the V40s in as many weeks and is the only rider to make a profit from racing. Perhaps next week it will be third time lucky for her and she will actually be around to stand on the podium.
While it has been suggested that Eddie Davies is becoming the Enfant Terrible of the Men’s Senior CX riders, reportedly out until 3am the night before races, he appeared fresh faced on arrival at Leeds Castle. Sources close to Davies have put it down to a recent conversation that he had with Dave Rees. A source told Velo! Magazine that Rees told Davies “Just relax, take it easy, you’re still young, that's your fault, there’s so much you have to know, find a bike, settle down, if you want you can buy two, look at me, I am old, but I'm happy with my current Trek”.
While signing autographs from his Volvo Estate, Davies told young fans why they too should swap late nights for days at National Trust sites. “It is more economical and safer than a night out, particularly when you drive a Volvo”, he quipped.
Davies followed the Father and Son advice up with 6th place in a Dulwich Paragon heavy top 10 with Andy Boyd in 8th and Dave Rees in 9th. Stuart Lynn showed his class by riding around the Wall, finishing in 14th.
Having seen the success of the TTT tactic in the earlier race, Sam Judd, Alex Windett and Oliver Scott took a similar approach and finished in 27th, 29th and 30th positions. Windett took an unorthodox approach part way through the race by riding a women’s bike (Princess Xena of the Mud). John Cox, former CX rider and the club’s expert on bike maintenance, was seen with Windett on Sunday evening offering him on advice on how to fix the issue. Let’s hope that Alex does not take the advice on board.
James Corlett, the face of CX, finished in 36th. One wonders whether he would have finished more highly if he hadn’t conducted a photo shoot mid-race.
Titouan Barthelemy, Dulwich Paragon’s latest overseas signing, added a certain je ne sais quoi to affairs and finished just ahead of Will Brassington.
Ride of the day came from Kieran Day, finishing in 2nd place. Day denied any suggestion that a large amount of money had been exchanged between him and the Commissaires. “I had good legs and the course suited me. The results never lie.” he told reporters at the Press Conference.
A massive thank you to all the volunteers who helped out on Saturday and Sunday, in particular those who didn’t race. Finally, well done to Charlie for putting on such a great event.
The course, designed by Coach Charlie and refined by the Commissaires, consisted of the joust, a maze, a zip wire section, the Wall and a marching band which managed to drum to the beat of the riders’ hearts.
As usual, the under 8-16s took to the course to trample the grass before the other races. Judging by the faces of the children on the Wall, it was introduction to adversity for many. I am sure that, in time, admissions officers at Universities will hear about the time that the riders braved the cold and driving rain while carrying a bike which weighed more than them up a hill. The story of one rider throwing his bike down in disgust at the top of the Wall will be weaved into a compelling narrative about the time that he bounced back from a setback.
The V40s and Juniors were next to take to the course. 64 people took to the line, including 7 entrants from Dulwich Paragon. Sporting a Hunt baseball cap and holding a Rapha umbrella, Sponsors’ Favourite, Dylan Bexley, was confident before the race. “Look, my SRAM equipped Trek and Hunt wheel are up to this challenge”. Bexley rode a strong race and finished 12th.
The TTT approach to racing paid off for Mick Vance, Aaron Haines and Philip May as they finished in 42nd, 44th and 45th positions respectively. Rob Drake, Pete Owen and Dax Rossetti finished not far behind them, relieved that the whole thing was over.
Next up were the Women and V50s. Simon Clawson put his shoe woes behind him to finish 12th. Crowd favourite, Joe Booth, finished in 29th place and always looked at ease on the Wall. Mark Hindley was satisfied to have finished without a mechanical before realising that he misplaced his gilet and water bottle.
Olivia Campbell, in Team Scarpa colours finished 6th with Julia Van Campen in 10th place. Sara Barman secured her second podium in the V40s in as many weeks and is the only rider to make a profit from racing. Perhaps next week it will be third time lucky for her and she will actually be around to stand on the podium.
While it has been suggested that Eddie Davies is becoming the Enfant Terrible of the Men’s Senior CX riders, reportedly out until 3am the night before races, he appeared fresh faced on arrival at Leeds Castle. Sources close to Davies have put it down to a recent conversation that he had with Dave Rees. A source told Velo! Magazine that Rees told Davies “Just relax, take it easy, you’re still young, that's your fault, there’s so much you have to know, find a bike, settle down, if you want you can buy two, look at me, I am old, but I'm happy with my current Trek”.
While signing autographs from his Volvo Estate, Davies told young fans why they too should swap late nights for days at National Trust sites. “It is more economical and safer than a night out, particularly when you drive a Volvo”, he quipped.
Davies followed the Father and Son advice up with 6th place in a Dulwich Paragon heavy top 10 with Andy Boyd in 8th and Dave Rees in 9th. Stuart Lynn showed his class by riding around the Wall, finishing in 14th.
Having seen the success of the TTT tactic in the earlier race, Sam Judd, Alex Windett and Oliver Scott took a similar approach and finished in 27th, 29th and 30th positions. Windett took an unorthodox approach part way through the race by riding a women’s bike (Princess Xena of the Mud). John Cox, former CX rider and the club’s expert on bike maintenance, was seen with Windett on Sunday evening offering him on advice on how to fix the issue. Let’s hope that Alex does not take the advice on board.
James Corlett, the face of CX, finished in 36th. One wonders whether he would have finished more highly if he hadn’t conducted a photo shoot mid-race.
Titouan Barthelemy, Dulwich Paragon’s latest overseas signing, added a certain je ne sais quoi to affairs and finished just ahead of Will Brassington.
Ride of the day came from Kieran Day, finishing in 2nd place. Day denied any suggestion that a large amount of money had been exchanged between him and the Commissaires. “I had good legs and the course suited me. The results never lie.” he told reporters at the Press Conference.
A massive thank you to all the volunteers who helped out on Saturday and Sunday, in particular those who didn’t race. Finally, well done to Charlie for putting on such a great event.
