Ras de Cymru 2008 Stage 3 fri 4th July

Abergavenny/Raglan/Abergavenny, 15 mile TTT

I wasn't really looking forward to this but it had to be done...team Ogmore/Gale/Spex were down to 3 after Graham jacked on stage 2 and the remaining 3 of us were hardly likely to be a Swiss watch out there on the B4598. Nice weather though, the larks were trilling and the air was clean after all the overnight rain. Off we went trying to establish some kind of rhythm on what was a relatively flat there and back course - with a hill in the middle. We were rubbish though - it only worked if we were going slow which I wasn't for accepting. On we plugged catching glimpses of very slick looking efforts from Halfords, Cwmcarrn Paragon and Team GB. And sure enough the results reflected this impression with these being the only teams to efficiently cover the distance. This was emphatically proved by young Nino Piccoli (API-Metrow) whose entire team had failed to start the Ras. He is though a talented tester with a sub 20 minute 10 mile TT under his belt and a fantastic flat-back position on his Giant. He, all alone, posted the second fastest time! Chapeau!
Our time made me cringe, but I guess most others felt the same about it. There's a trick to that trade.

Listening to: Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - 'gewn ni gorffen' (let's finish)

Ras de Cymru 2008 Stage 2 thur 3rd July

Abergavenny/Raglan/Llangwm/Devauden, 56 miles

A quick hop in the van up to Abergavenny and on with the racing. We started nice and easy, only gradually picking up speed as we wheeled SE out of town. I relaxed - a little too much as I hadn't read the race profile and before I knew it we were on a climb and I was near the back of the field! I did know this first climb was a long one so despite the vision of the bunch spread out up the road I didn't panic just got on with the job of weaving through the heaving riders. Hard work but hey, its not the Trossachs and I made my way onto the 40 strong first group. We sped along greasey forest roads, rolling and diving about like it was Ayrshire. An over signed descent had folks panicking and slowing unnecesarily, then bang we were at a sharp junction (badly signed) and really braking! I got through that and despite a lot of dangling and grimacing I was back up there at the front of the race. Dave Nyons took a photo of precisely that desperate situation, Tom rescues his race...

Yeah thats me scrabbling for Joanna Rowsall's wheel. She's a tough one, though I think she punctured later on in the day - as did my team-mate Shane. Neutral service were clearly having a hard time today with the race split into chunks by now on the flint strewn roads. Nae luck for Shane as he is a strong rider and was going well today. On we headed back down to the valley where we incongrously had to ride some miles on the A40 dual carriageway. By this time 4 had got off the front and we slowed to piss about prior to a fast sprint for the line. I cruised to the line =18th.
That night I hooked up with Barkee's old pals the Cambridge CC (yes I did get the trophy back to them Colin) who were good company drinking wine and checking out the next days parcours via the OS fly-through software. Looked easy!
After a lot to eat I had a great leg massage on campus but I was beat so got an early night like a good stage racer.

Listening to: John Cale - 'wall'

Ras de Cymru 2008 Stage 1 wed 2nd July

Llangybi-Llanhennock, 4 miles
Short and sharp, a fast twisting, up and downing road with a sharp left and then a 1/2 mile climb up lanes to the line. Felt good on the recce, legs glad of the stretch. Ominous thunder rumbles further up the valley. I get a good warm up and I even manage to meet my team. Thunder overhead, then rain, torrential rain. We huddle in a bus shelter, riders, pushers off and commisaires nip out for a few seconds every minute to set another rider off down the road. Its chucking it down - but maybe the winds dropped? 16.15 I'm off. Puddles make it hard, I'm coasting through them, or swinging out wide, concentrating, keeping the revs high. Single sharp left turn negotiated with a skip of the back wheel then its a tough steep pech to the top with a slight lull in the middle but I'm satisyingly gubbed at the top. What more can you do? Turns out our team finished within 20 secs of each other so thats cool. Rather more perturbing are the fastest times which shave almost a minute off my effort. I begin to realise what I am up against here...once back at the Uni I study the result sheet in an effort to put names to faces to numbers to teams to watch.

That night there's a bike themed quiz in the bar. I lurk for a while but am disappointed that the Q's refer to races French not Welsh...
I turn in early.

Listening to: Datblygu - 'dwylo olew' (oily hands)

Ras de Cymru 2008

Well it started just a few months back with an idle web browse, something about UK stage racing which, in an effort to broaden my bike riding I had a bit of an idea about pursuing. There's not much of it about up here these days. Barring the big, bad Girvan theres only the Dundee 2 dayer, which I like riding well enough but leave wishing it would go on a for few more days...So the Ras de Cymru pops up here
http://www3.newport.ac.uk/displayPage.aspx?object_id=1340&type=PAG
and I'm agog. 6 stages, 5 days, mountain top finishes, £100 000 prizes, entries not accepted from 1st cat or Elite riders - I'm in! I was able to persuade my club, the excellent and venerable Glasgow Nightingale Cycling Club to pay my entry/accom fees - (thanks everyone!) but I was unable to twist other Scottish arms into entering but as the race format was for teams of 4 I was steered towards the Veloriders forum where 2 locals from the Ogmore Valley Wheelers, Robin Powell and Graham Howell, were soliciting for team-mates. Shane Leadley (Go Sport Spex) was up for it and I was welcomed into the fold - which garnered a little press in itself.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sports/grassroots/bridgend-maesteg-sport/2008/06/26/the-wheel-deal-for-wales-91466-21150263/
The other fascinating and enormously appealing detail of the Ras was the entry of 2 female teams with Jo Rowsall, Emma Trott & Nicole Cooke (Team Halfords) and Emma Pooley & Jessica Allan of Team GB (team made up to 3 with the addition of South African Tim Carter) - good company to be keeping! Cooke (ex of Ogmore Valley Wheelers) and Pooley were riding the Ras as one of the final elements of their Olympics preparation.
So off I went south overnight in a wee hire van. Clear roads and a couple of service station snoozes later and I'm at the University of Wales campus outside Newport which is the race HQ. All very friendly and organised - I check in and find my way to my student cell in a flat of 4 in a block full of cyclists. Refectory is 2 minutes walk, race HQ is 3 and on the way is the library, sports centre, bar, launderette and basically everything we were going to need for the rest of the week. Other riders arriving all the time, all lean, mostly young and aye, all friendly. I unpack and fiddle about with the bike as this afternoon its the prologue:

Listening to: Jarvis Cocker - 'Jarvis ' & himself reminiscing on a Sheffield childhood on Radio 4

the wee ring

Here is my new blog.
I've never had one before.
It'll be mostly about bikes.
Which is is just like me.
Bit nervous about it frankly, vanity publishing and all.
What do you care about what I think or what I've been up to?
Let me know if you feel like it, you know the score.
Tom/the wee ring