HCC Newsletter July 2002

                                Randy’s 54K Handicap Road Race            by Randy Brown

Saturday, June 15^th 2002, Ayr

weather:  mid to upper teens, threatening rain, then rain on and off

I arrived at the course at 8:00 a.m. and swept three of the four corners and placed my cones to mark the turns.  I also repainted the finish line and left a cone there.  I next parked at the Queen’s Hotel parking lot and set out my two lawn chairs behind my car.  A woman in a SUV drove over to my location and asked what was happening.  I told her that some cyclists were going to meet here for a ride.  I asked her if some event was happening in Ayr today and she answered “No” but she owns the hotel and parking lot.  I asked her if it was OK to park here and she said, “OK since you asked.”  That was a relief. 

Around 20 minutes to 9:00 a.m. I was wondering if anyone would come as last year nobody did.  Then all at once they drove in, ten in all.  Shortly after 9:00 I sent off Dermot Kelly and Bob Drinkwater.  Two minutes later Peter Schouten and guests Egon Otten and Ian Slater were on their way.  Three minutes later the scratch group consisting of myself, Dennis Kings, Larry Arsenault, John Rasmussen, Paul Bowkunowicz and guest Jim Tarbot headed into darkening skies. 

The rain began almost immediately and we continued thinking maybe this would be a one-lap affair.  Back near the start the roads were still dry so lap two began.  Two-thirds of the way around this lap we caught the handicap bunch.  Dermot and Bob let us go and finished after this second lap probably hoping to save their legs for tomorrow’s Masters Pursuit.  Jim got a flat but I’m sure would have been a contender with better luck.  Ian missed the Queen’s Hotel turn and unfortunately lost contact after doing an immediate U-turn as we yelled at him.  We continued onto lap three where Peter found the pace too much.  John Rasmussen had enough after three laps.  Heading south out of Ayr we caught a lone rider who I identified as Shawn Cranwell who got a bit lost and missed our start.  I told him he was welcome to join in.  He said he wouldn’t contest the finish and although I said he could, as this was just a fun race, he didn’t.  With 1k to go Paul Bowkunowicz took a flyer and we didn’t catch him ‘til the last 200 metre uphill finish.  Larry, Dennis, myself and Egon held our positions over the line past a fading Paul.  Ian persisted to finish sixth.  Shawn didn’t count in the order because of starting late. 

We gathered later at the Tim Hortons in Paris to rehash what was definitely the wettest race I’ve done in a while.  Everyone agreed it was fun though.

Finishing Order (no elapsed time – computer got wet)

1.  Larry Arsenault

2.  Dennis Kings

3.  RandyBrown

4.  Egon Otten

5.  Paul Bowkunowicz   

6.  Ian Slater               

John Rasmussen            D.N.F.

Bob Drinkwater            D.N.F.

Dermot Kelly                 D.N.F.

Peter Schouten             D.N.F.

Jim Tarbot                   D.N.F.

Shawn Cranwell            D.N.F.     

                                 Nella Trophy 40K Time Trial            by Randy Brown

B.A.R., T.T.C., C.T.T.A.

Saturday, May 25^th, 2002, Scotland

I arrived at 7:30 a.m. at Scotland Public School.  I was the first.  I drove to the turn and set out the cones and painted the turn.  On the way back I decided to move a couple road kills so the riders wouldn’t have to swerve around them possibly into traffic.  I put out my rope start/finish line then did a little warming up.  The temperature was around +7°C and the wind was increasing from the SE.  Barb Morrow came along to do registration and timing.  Peter Schouten told me on the previous day that he would do the turn marshaling and did.  Dermot Kelly signed up but decided after a warm-up ride to give it a pass.  He went out and assisted Peter at the turn.  Dennis Kings, who brought along his son, Matt, didn’t ride the event but took a spin around the area and agreed to help Barb with timing.  This was Dennis’s first experience at this and he did a fine job.  Eventually seventeen riders signed on.  I went off first in order to get back and assist if necessary with timing.  It turns out I really didn’t need to.  I didn’t get a good warm-up but luckily there was a tail going out so my    52-13 fixed gear wasn’t so bad.  I was happy with my 58:51 on a cool, windy day.  As the others came in, my position slipped to 5^th as Fred Pepper, Matt Kings, Mirek Mazur and Duncan Gavin all bested me.  After the times were exclaimed by Jay Darch we had a draw for two fine-looking Shimano caps donated by The Bicycle Shop in Brantford.  I’d like to thank the volunteers Barb, Peter, Dennis and Dermot for their valuable help and hope all who rode were happy with the event.

P.S.  Thanks to The Bicycle Shop for their donation.  Check them out; they’re a great bunch

Timekeepers: Randy Brown, Peter Schouten, Dennis Kings, Dermot Kelly, Barbara Morrow

Texas, by Robert Brehn

My work as a retail lighting designer allows me to travel quite a bit.  Whenever I can I bring my bike with me to kill the deadly hours after work and before bedtime, and on weekends, when a guy can get in some real trouble.  I have had the opportunity to ride in Sweden, Scotland, Vancouver, Seattle, Virginia, etc.

I thought I would share with my new friends at the Hamilton Cycle Club a bit about the competitive bike scene in Houston Texas, where I spent the first two weeks of the month of May, this year and last.

With horrible traffic and urban spread making riding on the roads difficult, most inner city riders meet in Memorial Park in the North West part of town.  This huge park is a mecca for all sorts of work out addicts.  The running loop is about 3 km around and there are always at least 50 to 75 people in every 100m of space during peak periods after work.

Cyclists and in-line skaters use a smaller, 2 km car free loop that winds its way through a nice forested area with lots of shade.  On any given evening there can be as many as 30 to 40 serious riders there, as well as dozens more enthusiasts. 

Often the in-line skaters will draft the cyclists, a disarming feeling until you get used to a couple of guys with their chins next to your saddle.  One night a really strong skater drafted a group of us at 40 km per hour for about 4 or 5 km!

Two nights a week the ride leaves the park for the so-called “Death ride” through the streets of downtown Houston.  60 to 80 maniacs do a 15 km loop that involves screaming along 3 lane parkways at 50 clicks, and then stopping dead at a red light.

With temperature at 90F plus, and high humidity, the heat hits you when you stop like you are stepping into a sauna.  I think the “death” in “death ride” would more likely result from a cardiac arrest than from any traffic fatality.  We actually stop at every light and sit behind the last car…very law abiding.

The highlight of this year’s trip was the 86km road race I entered in Inex, a hole in the wall about 100 miles SW of Houston.

I was in the Masters 45+ category, which probably helped as I was one of the younger of the field of 20 riders.  We had to do two loops of a 43 km, flat and fiercely windy course just north of the Gulf of Mexico.  The temperature at the start line at 9:00 am was a humid 88 degrees, and no, it didn’t get any cooler as the morning unfolded.  There were three teams that were well represented with at least 3 or 4 riders each.

The ride started out calmly enough but when we got into the wind all hell broke loose.  We were strung out like a kindergarten class on a field trip, struggling to hang on to whatever shelter we could take.  The riders here are very aggressive and would not give an inch.  Experience with gutter riding was certainly an asset.

Before I knew it I was part of a group of 10 riders or so who were clear by about 20 or 30 meters.  When we realized we had a gap, we built a nice lead.

Turning now so the wind was at our backs we echeloned nicely at about 50 km per hour for a good 10 or 12 km…that wind sure felt good now.  Slowly riders who had made the break by luck started to drop off and we found ourselves just 7 riders with two guys from the main group chasing. 

Of the 7, 3 were teammates on the “Violet Crown” team out of Austin.  At 35kms in, the attacks started.  They took turns from the back, forcing the 4 remaining guys, including me to cover everything that moved.  This lasted until we turned into the wind again and things settled down a bit.  We were 8 now as the two very strong chasers had reeled us in.  The main group was nowhere in sight.

The cross wind proved to be a defining factor, as about 2/3s of the way through the windy section, with me 2^nd clothes pin on the line, a guy near the back caught the edge of the shoulder and a couple of guys had a “Texas Gravel” sandwich for lunch.  Hey…opportunity knocks baby…one of them was the strongest of the 3 “Violet thong” boys, and the biggest threat.  Now we were down to 6 again.

With about 20 km to go one of the 4 non-violet boys took a solo flyer, and gained about 100 meters, but stalled.  We didn’t chase, leaving the job to our boys in purple.  Eventually the weaker of the two took off after him, but I decided to let him go, figuring that his strength wouldn’t hold.  Eventually they joined together but after about 8 km we caught them up.  The chase was too much for one of the guys who silently slipped off the back, much like me heading for the WC when it’s time to pay for the doughnuts!  We were now just 5 hot, tired, lactate saturated painboys with about 10 km to go to the finish.

From there it was cat and mouse, with a few insignificant attacks.  The sprint was into the wind and with 200 meters to go, sitting third, I watched a guy come around me.  I took his wheel as he pulled in front of the other two riders and then I made my move, taking the sprint by a half a wheel. 

I won 50 bucks (US!) and lots of compliments all around for an aggressive ride.  On the way home I stopped at a dead authentic Texas Smokehouse and, surrounded by cowboy hats and waists the size of a Teacher’s pension, had a lovely smoked ½ chicken dinner with baked beans, mashed potatoes mixed with bacon and onions, and of course, a Lone Star beer!

Next trip…Los Angeles in July.

Ciao bella…

Robert

Thursday, May 8th 2002, 7pm Corwhin 15K CTTA

Timekeepers: Gary Scully, Joe Marangi, Linda Jesse

Weather Conditions: E Wind 40Km/h, 10C

Wednesday, June 12th 2002, 7pm Corwhin 15K CTTA

Timekeepers: Ian Beales   Holder: Gary Scully  Marshall: Barry Harbroe

Weather Conditions: Drizzle SE Wind 0-5Km/h, 13C

Sunday, June 16th 2002, 9am Binbrook 40K CTTA

Timekeepers: Sue Mikulicic   Holder: Bryce Harbroe   Marshall: Gary Scully

Weather Conditions: Cloudy/Sunny NE Wind 28Km/h, 15C