Hello Vets,
In the Bleat this week;
• First Aiders Needed
• Race Director for 3 Nov
• Cycling study at the University of Canberra
• From the Handicapper
• COVID-19 Restrictions
• AVCC 2021 Nationals – CANCELLED
• Racing this Week
• Race Reports
Ian Morton
thebleat@actvets.cc
First Aiders Needed
The race on Sunday found us again short of a 1st Aider. If there is no dedicated 1st Aider available i.e. not riding, racing cannot proceed.
It is no great impost to get trained and accredited each 3 years. Details are below.
There have only been 4 members out of over 300 who have taken up this offer, which is quite pathetic.
If I have to stand in as 1st aider again at a race I will not be happy.
Ian McVay
First Aid Course
Dear Members,
Would you know what to do if you were first on the scene of a road accident involving a cyclist? Would you know how to help one of your friends if they had a fall during a ride?
The club has been successful in bidding for an ACT Government Grant for road safety. This allows us to offer members First Aid courses free of charge. We estimate our nearly 300 members cycle more than 180,000km on ACT Roads every year. This makes it quite likely one of us will be first on scene at an accident at some time.
A First Aid course would provide you with a nationally recognised qualification, and would equip you to help others in the event of an emergency. It would also help the club to continue to conduct racing in the ACT. The club uses, and will continue to use, an external contractor to provide first aid support to races, however there are times when this service is unavailable. In order for the club to be able to undertake our scheduled race calendar, the club will, from time to time, ask a first aid qualified member to attend a race.
The committee has experience of a course provider in the ACT that has adapted to COVID-19 restrictions by taking the theory components on-line, and adapting the practical elements in line with social distancing requirements. If there’s interest from members, the Committee will organise a group booking with this provider. Please e-mail committee@actvets.cc if you would like to take up this option.
Otherwise, members may register for the first aid course of their choice, provided that:
1) the course provides a recognised Australian first aid qualification;
2) the cost of the course is less than or equal to $200; and
3) members acknowledge and agree to being placed on a list of first aid providers that, from time to time, will be utilised to provide first aid services to club races.
Contact the committee to ensure that your intended course meets the club’s needs. Following completion of the course, contact the Treasurer at treasurer@actvets.cc to provide a copy of your qualification and organise a reimbursement.
Race Director required for 3 Nov
A replacement Race Director is required for the Criterium on 3rd Nov. Any one able to fill this role, please contact the Race Committee race.committee@actvets.cc
Cycling study at the University of Canberra
I’m Felicity, a third-year PhD candidate in Environmental Physiology at the University of Canberra Research Institute for Sport and Exercise. I’m currently recruiting cyclists for my second study, which investigates the effect of variations in relative humidity on thermal and physiology responses during a cycling time trial in the heat.
What we are looking for;
– Trained male cyclists and triathletes (18-55 years)
– Cycling a minimum of 250km per week
– Can reach 5W/Kg during a VO2max test
What we require from you;
– ~3 weeks of testing at UCRISE
– 2 x 2hr familiarisation trials
– 4 x 2hr 30km time trials in varying relative humidity in a hot environment
What we will be measuring;
– Performance – average power output (W), cadence (rpm), speed (kph)
– Thermal response – core and skin temperature, sweat loss
– Cardiorespiratory response – VO2max, heart rate, cardiac output
What we will give you;
– Your VO2max
– A comprehnsive physiological and performance profile
At the end of study completion, participants receive their VO2max and a comprehensive performance and physiology profile. It’s a great chance to fit in extra training sessions and collect data you may not normally be able to collect. It’s also a great chance to see how well you perform in a variety of environments!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me.
Thank you in advance for your help.
Kind Regards,
Felicity
Felicity Bright
BAppSc (Ex&SpSc) (Hons)
University of Canberra Research Institute for Sport and Exercise (UCRISE)
Bruce | ACT 2617 | Australia
PhD Candidate
Phone: +61 400 413 895
Email: felicity.bright@canberra.edu.au
From the Handicapper
Promotions
Paul Watson C to B
Alison Hale E to D
Rob Langridge
Handicapper
COVID-19 Restrictions
There are legal requirements in place for people returning to the ACT from Victoria and particular places in New South Wales to self-quarantine.
Members who have been to any of these locations in the past 14 days should be complying with ACT Government quarantine restrictions.
Members should stay home if you have been feeling unwell or showing symptoms of COVID-19 or been in contact with someone who has felt unwell in the past 2 weeks.
AVCC 2021 Nationals – CANCELLED
The National Championships were scheduled to be held in South Australia during January 2021 in conjunction with the Tour Down Under.
Unfortunately, the AVCC have had to cancel the Nationals due to uncertainty arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of state border restrictions, there is no clarity regarding the ability of members to travel to South Australia in January.
RACING THIS WEEK:
Tuesday, 27th October: Stromlo Criterium
Where: Stromlo Forest Park
Sign on: 15 mins before scheduled start time wearing your registered number.
Race Description:
E/F/G 5:50 20 min + 2 laps
A/C 6:15 A 30m+2, C 25m+2
B/D 6:50 B 30m+2, D 25m+2
Race Director: Alain Arbaut Contact: Email: arbaut@grapevine.net.au Ph 0400 493 148
Marshals: Greg Collis
Wednesday, 28th October: Track Racing
The Program for Wednesday is;
5.30pm – 6.00pm: Warm-up and free practice;
6.00pm – 6.20pm: 8-lap graded scratch race;
6.20pm – 6.50pm: 20-lap graded points race;
6.50pm – 7.20pm: Italian Pursuit.
Sunday, 1st November: Dog Trap Rd – Handicap
Reminder: You can pre-register online on the RMS: https://rms.actvets.cc/calendar or pay cash on the day (no EFTPOS).
Where: Turn off Barton Highway at Long Rail Gully Road, or sealed access from Yass River Road.
When: 9:00 am.
Sign on: 15 mins before scheduled start time wearing your registered number
Race Description:
Dog Trap Rd – 2 laps.
Race Director: Ian Preston Contact: Email: dandi@grapevine.com.au Ph 0407 230 741
Marshals: Shirley-Anne Taylor, Tristan Dimmock, Rodney Welch, Grant Shaw, Kurt Andrews
RACE REPORTS:
SFP Criterium – 20th October
Beautiful warm spring weather encouraged 122 riders to make up some large fields for Tuesday nights Stromlo Criteriums. Because of the almost windless conditions all fields stayed (mainly) together, despite some good solid efforts to break away by many riders across the grades.
First away were A and C grades. Among the 20 starters in A grade, the powerful Team Tiffen were out in force, facing off against Team Quon for the usual summer series grudge match. The other very strong riders in this grade were also out to show that they were not going to get pushed around, and so a series of powerful attacks kept the pace high throughout. In the end though, despite a very strong late attack by Lewis Cressy it all came down to a final sprint. Coming around the final bend it looked to be Gerard Tiffen about to continue his winning ways of late, but no, absolutely flying down the outside came Ben Morrison to take the win for Team Quon. Gerard held on to second, with Steve Crispin taking a good third place.
C grade had a strong field of 20 starters, and the pace was kept high all the way. There were many attacks, but nothing really stuck and so it too came down to a bunch sprint. This was taken out by Paul Watson from a resurgent Steve Jones, with James Tonkin coming home in third.
The biggest fields of the night were up next with B grade (31 starters) and D grade (31 starters) rolling to the line. With such strong fields the DS’s for all riders were undoubtedly yelling into their race radios to keep up the front. As such, both grades were hustling along at quite a pace, with B grade apparently averaging 41.5 km/h for their 28 minutes plus two laps. There was thankfully only one passing of D grade by B in the duration of the race, and with such large fields it shames me to say that the Race Director could not watch. But no, the skill levels of all riders were much greater than anticipated by the cowardly race director, and the passing maneuver was completed successfully. After all that, and despite a late attack by Terry Moore, D grade was decided by a bunch sprint, with the victory taken by Josh Quilliam from David Rowe and David Buckley in third.
B grade proceeded at a fast pace, but as the race director can attest after a weekend of chasing these riders around the countryside of Gunning, this is a grade that is very difficult to escape from. As it proved here; with (you guessed it) a bunch sprint taken out by Sean Ifland, who found the terrain of Stromlo Forest Park much more to his liking than the wilds of Gunning, from Simon Priest and Matthew Dunstall.
The final round of races were E, F and G grades. E grade went on their own, with F and G grades combined. These were, without doubt, the race director’s favorite grades. All races were ridden in a quick and orderly manner until the light became too feeble to be able to see properly, and then all grades were contested in FIERCE sprint finishes. The speed may have been lower than A grade, but the determination to win was easily just as high. E grade was taken by Alison Hale from Penelope Anderson, with Philip Anderson in third. F grade was Mike Hayes (hey I remember riding against you in A grade Hayesy!) from Chris Copeland and Robert Miller. G grade was won by the evergreen Michael Spoljaric (who distinguished himself by keeping up with F grade the handicapper should note) from Bernie Crowe.
Mark Harris
Track Racing – 21st October
Wednesday’s 21 October was the second track racing session for the 2020-21 season. Conditions were almost ideal for racing. It was cool with an initial breeze that dissipated over the evening. Attendance was quite good with 16 riders, 8 in A grade and 8 in B grade.
The 8-lap A grade scratch race started at a brisk pace that deterred attacks until mid-race. Ben Robey, Tony Beasley, Steve Hirsler, Wayne Benham and Warwick Wilson took turns at the front. On lap 5 John Paul De Sousa accelerated with Steve Jones, Hamish Anderson and Wayne Benham in hot pursuit. After a short while, Warwick Wilson also jumped out to join the lead bunch. The lead bunch soon had a 50m gap on the field. Warwick was dropped as the lead bunch accelerated into the final lap. The bunch strung out slightly on the bell lap with Steve Jones taking a good win from John Paul DeSousa and Hamish Anderson.
In the B Grade scratch race, riders swapped the lead in an orderly fashion for the first four laps. On Lap 5 James Newhouse upped the pace. As the bell lap approached Ken Birch attacked, pursued by Ian Drayton and Bruce Griffin. The trio soon gapped the field and headed into a 3-up sprint. Ian Drayton took a close sprint win from Bruce Griffin and Ken Birch.
The evening’s second event was a 2-lap handicap. The A and B grade fields were mixed into two races. It seemed that, overall, B grade riders had a slight advantage on handicap and took all the podium places. In Race 1, James Newhouse took the win from Phil Anderson and Ian Drayton. In race 2, Phil Coulton took a close fought win from Ken Birch and Graeme O’Neill.
The track session closed with an all-in, Italian pursuit. This was an extremely competitive event. Both teams rode flawlessly. Team 2 established an initial lead that looked decisive around mid-race. However, Team 1 held steady and pegged back most of the lead over the latter half of the race. When Steve Jones took over for Team 1’s final lap he seemed likely to make up Team 2’s slight lead. However, Team 2’s anchor rider John Paul De Sousa kept up a hot pace and held out Steve by a narrow margin (around half a wheel). It was a good race to watch.
Major place getters were as follows:
8-Lap Scratch: (A Grade) Steve Jones, John Paul De Sousa, Hamish Anderson. (B Grade) Ian Drayton, Bruce Griffin, Ken Birch.
2-Lap Handicap: (Race 1 A&B Grade) James Newhouse, Phil Anderson, Ian Drayton. (Race 2 A&B Grade) Phil Coulton, Ken Birch, Graeme O’Neill.
Combined Italian Pursuit: Winner Team 2 (Tony Beasley, Hamish Anderson, Warwick Wilson, John Paul De Sousa, Phil Coulton, James Newhouse, Alison Hale, Phil Anderson).
Season Point Score Update:
Steve Jones (30), Phil Coulton (30), James Newhouse (29), Bruce Griffin (28), Phil Anderson (28), Hamish Anderson (27), John Paul De Sousa (26), Warwick Wilson (23), Ken Birch (22).
Graeme O’Neill
Corin Time Trial – 25th October
Most can be forgiven for thinking this weeks road race would be cancelled noting the wild weather on Saturday. However Sunday proved to have enough of a reprieve to allow racing to proceed, and 13 riders took on the challenging climb up Corin. Conditions were ‘less than ideal’, with a swirling wind and light rain, but protection could be found on the climb, and most riders warmed up quickly. Some might even say the racing was ‘hot’.
There were no time trial machines, no aero helmets, and not a disc wheel in sight, but there were plenty of light frames and light riders. A grade was won by Brad Peppinck. B grade won by Rowan Walker (with the fastest time of the day – 36:51), Michael Fawke took second and Al Raitt third only 1 second further back. Michael Carr was slowed by a few extra grams in his arm warmers, while Owain Tilley forgot his long socks. C grade was won by Rodney Welch, followed by Peter Balint, then Wayne Donchi. No D graders. E grade won by Penelope Anderson. Full results can be found in the RMS.
A big thank you to Graham for driving the van, registrations, timing and results. Thanks also to Mike Hayes for signage and to Ian McVay for sacrificing his race (again) to be the designated first aider. We really need to have more first aid options in the club, and the race committee needs interested people to get involved. We rely very much on a small group, and they are not always available week in week out.
Thanks again to all involved, and for making a great event in difficult conditions.
Peter Young
Race Referee
