Crosshair..common sense prevailed for me, and I didn’t book Abingdon due to velo Birmingham Sunday.
I didn’t make the Swindon cross Thursday either though due to people in hospital in Bec’s family…

Brass neck, how did you get on?
I saw a tripster laying down and it reminded me of this thread…couldn’t remember the user name and didnt want to ask random people of they were from STW…!
Took the kids (2&5 years) for nearly 2 hours including a little picnic, 5 year old wants to race which is good but 2 year old was doing her best to get knobbly tyre prints on her….!

Do it crosshair!! I keep eyeing BC site but unsure due to my CX debut the Thursday before and velo Birmingham the day after…

I’ve entered the last 4 Swindon floodlit races so equally nervous and excited for those…
Got the Wessex and a few westerns on the work calendar but haven’t entered those as yet, sounds like I should be OK on the day if needed.
While I am here can anyone recommend a mech mount chainguide (cheaper the better!) To fit a TCX advanced? Thanks!

I’ve got to return my compressor after a very long term loan so following with interest….!

Marginal gainzzzz and such things…!

Bumpy…
I retested today.
Not quite what I wanted…289 FTP, 3.55w/kg. Improvement over my last test about 6/7 months ago (275/ 6kg heavier). Strava guesstimated me at 308 FTP so was hoping G to break 300 on test…

Few classics in there!! No idea where all mine went from the late 80s, I have only a broken Grimlock to show for them!

Well done CH!!! I beat my mate in 16th but they have placed me 28th….WTF?!

CH, my sources have misinformed me then…if you do fancy any, remember if I can stick with the pack you will be mix for sure…!
NathB….good luck!

Crosshair,
Yep usually my thoughts- just a few people (possibly just one or 2 that I was close to for a while!) Were using it for them to be silly imo rather than self preservation…!

So close CH!!!
Now just the agonising 3 day wait for results!
Rant for the night….shouting line at me should mean I’m cutting you up….not I’m next to you trying to force through or doing something stupid….amiright?
Some people seemes to think the latter tonight.
Hopefully that makes sense…!!

Padkinson…
my bearings were inside (focus cayo disc) and I want to fit an Ultegra crank without spacers and faff…guess yours won’t fit ??

The ORRL has First dibs on spaces (up to 10 per team) for each member club that puts on a race…if that’s what you mean?

Just had a weigh in, 81.6, lowest for a long while. Strava FTP says 308 but haven’t done a test for months…!
Still, progress, hopefully.

Night shifts Friday and Saturday says no…! Thanks though. Will make what I can upcoming though…!

CH, as usual, nice write up.
I got extended from a 1600 finish to somewhere after 2300 at work so would have been super happy to be in a zzz—> sprint finish…as it was no one in my house got their exercise fix..!
Where are you racing Saturday mate? I guess I have missed it in the above posts…!

I’ve got the aftershox bluez 2s and quite like them for running and riding. For running I need to hear my breathing to regulate it and for riding it’s nice to know when I am likely to get run over…!
NathB I wear mine in bed sometimes without any complaints from the other half. Haven’t maxed the volume out there though…!

I’m trying the track place in reading Thursday so will give Tues back to “the boss” to keep the peace….hopefully make next 2 though!!
Need to find some more Sunday races too….

And there was a buffet at the end….I ate cake and cheese sandwiches and a fat coke, and am paying the price currently…!!!

Another Sunday, another poor write up from me…!
Emergency services RR today, course around cheddington, 12*4.1 mile laps.
Somewhere around the 3rd lap I found myself in a small group going off the back of the main group. It was a bit annoying as the same people who I kept coming last kept pushing back up then causing the split..but that comes back to my lack of racecraft I guess, as I should be shutting them down.
Our group grew and got smaller every so often but averaged around 7, with people doing various amounts of work…
The start/finish line was at the top of a punchy climb, think I read 8% somewhere. I kept pulling away from the group on the climb and sitting up at the top to rejoin, then pulling off sometimes on a flat straight. After a few laps of this and after the main bunch lapping us I went, a little too late to get in touch with them and unlap myself. I dropped the rest of my second group, felt like a bit of a dick doing it, didn’t have anything to lose though…! Eventually caught a guy who dropped out of the main and worked together to the finish. No points, no prizes, but had fun…!

Martin/ Stan is a beast..I’ll be switching allegiance to Didcot next season (they are my local club) and hopefully will get more club rides in, maybe some of Stans ability will rub off? 8)

Wowsers, you guys are on it. I got 4.56 Garmin time and 5.0something on the app time. Forgot I stopped for 2 wees and a water top up…!
Felt a bit jaded for the middle stretch until I saw a couple of mates after box hill. Possibly due to little sleep after the hotel shenanigans mentioned above…Point A in Shoreditch…other hotels are available….!

Couldn’t get on the train yesterday so drove last minute, barely made it to excel centre, hotel flooded due to the rain (moved rooms about 0245 hours), hoping today goes slightly better!!

Anyone and any luck starting earlier in previous years?

And OP must have tested too I guess?

Cheers CH, when you said 12th on the day I thought I passed you on the straight (must have been your stunt double!) So I was dreaming of maybe a point…..at least it took an extra 2 days to get the results up for me to sweat on it…! Fairly happy with 14th for the big STW 13/14.

That annoys me too! I’ve got 2 showing at the moment and don’t seem to be able to do anything to clear them…!

*checks BC for the hundredth time…..*
CH cheers for the kind words. You seemed like a cool cucumber in the pack and very disciplined….I need to work on that!

Today’s very un crosshair like report, round 9 orrl around great Milton. Felt rubbish until just before the race, then felt most confident in a RR so far (recent crits maybe?) In the pack until shortly before the start of the 3rd lap of 4, in the group most of the way up the smallish hill, then a small group of us off the back slightly and a moment later the leaders had disappeared from view. After a couple of minutes of no progress I sacked it off as we went past hq. Couldn’t be doing with lonely laps today!
Need a thruxton to cheer me up now!
Mate is looking for some cat4 only RRs too…might be slightly less brutal.

I’ve booked a couple hours between night shifts (yuck!) But yes please…it MUST be sunny this time…!

Well done Nath!
Disappointed I had to do my own maths though….!

I was just coming to ask if anyone had got theirs yet, and the postman came just at that moment! Quick thumb through, looks good.

Who are the cycling glasses people? I’m at the point where I now realise I should perhaps be able to see properly whilst on a bike…!

Crosshair…thanks for making any write up I do look shite!
My first sunny ride at thruxton didn’t happen- started raining after I had handed over my crisp £20 note!
Felt a bit drowsy in the front passenger seat, felt better soon after getting out the car and sorting bike etc.
Nice easy 15 mins warm up, with a few 10s baby sprints at the end (I think!).
First 2 laps were surprisingly slow, I mostly surfed the back third here getting a feel for corners etc etc.
By the 3rd lap I had decided “it” was on, spending a lot of time in the front 10ish.
Around this time, on a gentle right, a space opened up in the middle and the chap crosshair has mentioned previously was next to me before I fired into the space, he said where the F do you think you’re going, or something like that, which fired me up for a bit! Where do you think I’m going???
I drifted back and forwards a bit and shot up the outside to the front group when I wanted. Bridged a couple of small breakaways with other front boys, quite liked that! We went from 3 laps to go to bell lap due to hail and strong wind. I was surprised it didn’t come earlier.
On what was now the final lap I pushed forward on the outside on the left. In hindsight I think everyone was being cagey rather than tired as I sat on the tip of the spear for a minute or so before the kick up the hill, then boom, dropped 15+ places in a couple of seconds!
Made a couple back up through the chicane and a few more on the finish straight. I even managed a bike push to pip one more…! Hopefully a top 20 would be ace, expecting low to mid 20s though.
I think a breakaway of 2 made it away today too….

JD, sounds messy, heal up!
NathB has inspired me to sign back ylup to trainerroad for an FTP test. Just trying to work out when it would fit in….!!

Agreed mate, change is good. Although after today with 2 particular corners I borked 50%+ of the time corners you can make at 120mph might do me a favour…!!

Very kind CH… And sorry about your nan.
I think a few of the locals have committed to thruxton, and I’m working til 3 or 4 so will head there hopefully. And Hillingdon sounds hard….!!

Today’s update. It was horrible, I felt sick at the finish, and got lapped by at least the top half in the last couple of laps. Wallingford festival/ ORRL crit.
Strung out by a crash in the first bend then never really got in touch, just picking off others who had dropped off.
Slightly lighter on the scales this morn (82kg) so disappointed the associated watt/kg boost marginal gainzzzz didn’t see me to glory.
And for the earlier question about fuelling for a 1330 start, 2 weetwbix and skimmed milk when I woke up about 7, same about 10, toast at 1130ish and a Clif bar about 1. Then a gel just before start.

I’ve ordered but £12, ouch