The Racing Post – CX Season has begun

Mid race, and loving it! 😀

Tubs held then Mulletus Maximus? Nice glueing!

The held perfectly. The levels in grip compared to my clinchers were worlds apart. Thought I would be concious of rolling them but it was the exact opposite. With the grip I hard I could really through the bike into the corners, even in those conditions. I guess the real test will be when it’s dryer. Just wish I had made the change sooner.

What method did you use for gluing? I’m picking up 2 tub tyres this week

Glad to hear it!

Tricky, stretch the tires on some old rims for a few days at 3 bar or so, glue then re-glue both the rims and the tires, leaving around half a day between glueing so they dry, then apply final glue and fight to get the bugger on. Add Aquaseal if using Dugast’s

I found using an old toothbrush really useful.

That Oxford course is a lot of fun. We use the same place in the Central league, they stick to the UCI rules though and don’t take it through the woods like they do for Wessex, the woods is where all the fun is.

rp16v – 4 mech hangers in the last 2 seasons. On 2 occasions it also meant a new rear mech as they’d twisted.

What method did you use for gluing? I’m picking up 2 tub tyres this week

This is the method I used.

Day 1 – If they are new tyres then you need to stretch the tyre, this is very important as you’ll never get the tyre on. I stretched mine for 24hrs on a clincher wheel at 50psi before I started.

Day 2 – I lightly sanded the surface of the rim and cleaned with acetone (nail varnish remover) and applied one layer to the rim and tyre base tap. (I used 1/2″ Acid Flux brushes for wpreading the glue) Layer to base tape was thick as it soaks in. I then let the glue cure on the tyre for about 30 minutes then returned to the rim and pumped up to 50 psi. The tyre sticks a little to the rim but is easy to remove.

Day 3 – Repeat day 2. You don’t need as much glue to the tyre at this stage, just a thin layer.

Day 4 – Glue to tyre then glue to rim then immediately mounted the tyre to the rim. I put about 15/20psi into the tyre to give it a bit of shape. Pumped it up to 40psi and centred the tyre and rolled it around the rim and left to dry for 24hrs.

Day 5 – Aquasure on the side walls and dry for 16 hours.

Maybe over cautious but I wanted to be sure they stuck as it was my first attempt.

A couple of vids that I used to help me.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhjpen_how-to-glue-a-cyclocross-tubular-tire-to-a-303-rim_sport

A couple of weeks ago London League in Deal. This season is soooo much muddier than last…. Young Josh in the Under 14’s

Is the Fowlmead mud full of coal dust or has the site been cleaned up?

I think the mud is mainly coal dust. I think it was an open cast mine that was bulldozed flat ready to be made into a nature reserve. It gets very dusty at times in the summer and I do wondered what we’re breathing in exactly when racing there! Heavy metals?

It was the spoil heap for a deep mine that shut in 1989. The mine was just the other side of the Deal to Sandwich road.. I grew up in Deal, was an interesting and sometimes sad time

National cup, rounds 8 and 9 this weekend. Placed 7, and 10th on a super hard course just outside Stockholm.

Yes that is a ski lift in the background, made for a grinding climb and fast descent on the first day and then a lovely muddy run up the second

Dirtwheels Cross in Otley

My second ever race and achieved a good solid last place.

Travelled down to the Fixx supercross series outside Dublin for a pick me up after the previous weeks disaster.
The field was very strong, started at the back and managed to claw my way up to 13th and avoided getting lapped by the top guys, very pleased.

No pictures this week, but sure who needs pictures when you have video!
Thats me in the blue and white kit…

nice little vid.
argh just realised theres only really 2 more cx races i can attend, basingstoke and thruxton 🙁 and i might not do thruxton due to brass monkeys 🙂
theres not enough cx down south

Was having a good day until 51 minutes in I got a front wheel puncture. The last lap and a half wan’t much fun with no front wheel. Think I finished last 😥

Although I started off thinking that the Central league race was a pure power course, I realised after the second lap that although ther’s some very powerful riders an amazing number can’t go round corners. I kinda enjoyed it, unfortunately because of other commitments I’m going to race myself into what I consider to be fitness in mid January.

You looked very smooth yesterday.

3rd race this year in the western league at Gloucester boating lake (got moved after Bristol crossgate)

I came 7th Well chuffed with that :). Wish i’d realised I was in top 10 when i was racing I might have tried a lot harder 🙂

3rd round of the National Trophy for me.

Finshed in the 20’s I think so really pleased with that considering the class of field.

Well done Gav. 🙂 I’m like that after every race too wishing I tried a little harder, but in reality I don’t think I could have.

Good work!.. tubs are going on this week for me.. can’t wait 🙂 Did a test ride on them at the weekend and they felt so much better. I have some toro’s on at the moment on very narrow road rims so they look like 28’s!

I didn’t realise I was battling for 6th for 5 laps. Managed to gap him but he came back at me. I honestly thought I was around 20th.

Good work Steve. that is awesome in the nationals

Horwich Humdinger NWCC was hard going with lots of mechanicals & lost places!

Can anyone tell me what the deal with cyclocross points? I know what they mean in road racing but you don’t have the same categories and ‘moving up’

Is it the most amount in the league you’re in?

Regional points are different to national ranking points.

In the Wessex you get 60 points for a win, 57 for 2nd, 55 for 3rd, 54 for 4th and so on.

You also get national ranking points depending on what band the race is. There are no cats and you only score ranking points in whatever class you’re in whether U23, senior or Vets. Most local leagues are band 3 or 4 and some 5. I believe so you’ll score points for a top 20 finish in band 3, top 10 for band 4 and top 6 for band 5. BC points explained

Hope that makes sense.

Cheers Steve

Does it help with gridding?

I got 4 on sunday (my first points 🙂

So i have this

what does the allocation mean?

For national races you are gridded based on you national ranking and for local leagues you are gridded based on you league position.

Can’t see your link.

Ah try this

http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/points?person_id=28834&year=2012&d=6

The allocation is for you category. Points allocated to your senior ranking. My allocation is Vets 40-49.

I really enjoyed the Central CXL course, much more technical than it might have first appeared. 5th place for me, 4th for my team mate and my old man did well too after a massive crash on the first lap so a good day out all in.

Don’t forget that all regional championship entries close in less than a week, get entering!

Was the 1st lap crash at the bottom of the 1st drop as 2 people crashed there just before I came along and 1 looked quite hurt?

On Sunday my result was vastly overshadowed by Magnus Backstedt’s dog trying to eat my daughter’s lunch!

I really enjoyed the Central CXL course,

My favorite course that one. Was that your first Central race? and your old man, wasn’t the fella in orange was it?

First one this season, I did the December Hillingdon race last year too.
My dad was in the VCL red and blue. Perhaps the bloke in orange was the rider he landed on in that first lap crash, he had no where else to go!

Results are up now:

http://centralcxl.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/IRC_senior2012-v2.pdf

Results are up now:

The shame, I did have to run the last two laps though.

‘PICK IT UP AND RUN’

But the main thing. Will this be my first muddy cross in four years?

Anyone doing Myrtle Park in Bingley tomorrow? Reckon it’s going to be a little soft under foot.

I think muddy in places, definitely slippy though. Might get very muddy if the course cuts up.

Been out all afternoon setting the course and strimming, wish I was riding now. We’ve had to make some adjustments as the lake has started to become part of the river! Plus we can’t get any vehicles on the grass. Will be interesting to see how close to the course the lake is in the morning.

Sorry Sturmey, that was to OG.

There was a climb last year you could just be done by riding a thin line right over to the left, that’ll be a run now then.