Black Canon Collective

Category: Race

  • Summer Cyclo-cross – Bath 26th June

    It’s a bit like proper cyclo-cross, only there’s no mud.
    This Summer Series Cyclo-cross is all very informal and MTBs are VERY welcome. Round 7 of the Summer Series takes place at Odd Down in Bath – on the evening of Wednesday 26th June. My old friend Andy Stewart has organised the race and has been working on a cracking new course. It uses bits of the brand-new tarmac cycling circuit and the best bits of the old ‘Tumps’ course including the start ramp and first set of jumps and berm on the newly refurbished BMX track. But don’t worry, ownership of BMX skillz are not a pre-requisite – you can roll everything.

    **All Events Are ‘Go-Cross’ – No Need For Racing Licence**

    All details here: http://www.ukcyclocross.com/forum/topics/western-league-summer-cx-2013

  • Tickertape results – round 1 – Winter series 2011

    Today was ace, some track alterations to Spoons made for some very fun, fast, friendly and flowy ticker-taping.

    Curtis smashed it again and Neil whooped ass on his XC bike with not very downhill tyres.  Then afterwards Tim scared everyone on 143 by ‘letting it hang out like a fat girl in a bikini’ as Rob Warner would say.

    Full write up with photos to follow, for the meantime here are your results…….


     

  • Chris' Racing & Riding Blog

    Hopefully most of you know who I am now, I’ve started a blog about my racing & riding which will cover next years events, but to start off i’ve covered what i’ve been upto this year.

    CLIC24, Cheddar, Somerset 14/05/11

    First 12hr of the year was CLIC24 a charity “ride”, originally a 24hr only but this year it had a 12 and 6hr category, the course was 10miles of mainly bridleway, double track and a small amount of tarmac. Thought I’d start the race on my singlespeed 29er as I found it feels much less effort compared to my 26er. The  start felt relaxed after 3 xc races and I happily cleared the 24hr racer traffic and rolled through the start top 10. I kept a steady pace all day, feeling settled and comfortable, in the end I finished first in the 12hr solo by 2 laps, beat the 12hr teams and was leading the 24hr solo field. It felt a good start after the winter.

    Erlestoke 12, Erlestoke, Wiltshire 28/05/11

    2 weeks after CLIC was Erlestoke 12, originally a 6pm-6am race, now a more social 12pm-12am, the course was a mixture of fast flowing singletrack, spikey climbs and longer tarmac climbs. Felt quite a bit of pressure after a good ride at CLIC and hoping to perform well in the singlespeed category. Got another good start and stayed near the front, conscious not to race to hard from the start.

    With lots of support from the Black Canon guys and great pit work from my dad the hours ticked through, the small amount of raining making little difference to the course. As the day drew on I still felt good, but as the lights went on I had  a very grotty lap, getting back into the pits I had a bottle of water, getting back out on the next lap I felt much better. By then my 12hours were up, turned out i’d lead the SS class since the start, had won by 2 clear laps and came 5th overall. Some nice prizes from Charge bikes and a sit by the BCC fire helped me forget my tired legs and sore hands.

    Erlestoke 12 Finish

    Are You Tough Enough, Deepcut Barracks, Surrey 3/07/11

    After a nice break I found a Gorrick Based 4hr Enduro lap race with a singlespeed class to enter. During my warm up I noticed quite a few big names from the enduro world were there, including Anthony White of Cannondale/MT Zoom racing. Got another flying start, leading the whole field down into the first singletrack, which came out onto a road section, legs span like crazy so I lost touch with the leaders until we got back into the singletrack. The course was tough! Very little chance to rest and very technical in places, I was glad it was only a 4hr races. Half way through the first lap I manage to wash the front wheel out on a loose corner, as I collected myself up the then second placed singlespeeder went through, and that’s how the race ended, as hard as I pushed I could not bridge the gap to him. Great respect to him, Mr White only beat me by 15minutes or so and my time would have placed me 5th in the Open class.

    Bontrager TwentyFour 12, Plymouth, Devon 23/07/11

    After another little break of reduced riding I managed to get a later entry for Twentyfour 12 after writing it off for the year. Having raced Newnham Park years ago and briefly this spring I had a fair idea of the terrain, but after listening to report from people had pre-ridden the course it sounded tough, lots of climbing but a rewarding course. Having not done the race before I was caught off guard by how early people queued up at start! So I snuck in near the middle, from the off the course climbed straight up a grassy slope where I weaved through the hoards of gear’d riders who are incapable of riding quickly up hills!

    As I had no pit crew I had little idea of my race position, but luckily 4hrs in I overheard the race commentator mention I was leading 12hr solo male, so I pushed on, after about 7hrs I had my usual feeling of feeling sick and getting slight cramps, luckily this eased as darkness well but I had lost first and was down to 4th, luckily some friends popped by to check my progress, I put them to use sorting my lights and lubing my bike whilst I ate. After that I put in two strong laps which bumped me back to 3rd, I rolled back in hoping for it to be passed 12am and leave me in third, unfortunately it wasn’t but I had called and end to my day, I went to bed thinking I’d been passed by 4th and 5th but luckily they had stopped before 12, leaving me in 3rd, I was very pleased as I had gone hoping to get some endurance back and came away with a podium and prize money.

    Bontrager 24:12 third

    Brighton Big Dog 6hr, Brighton, East Sussex 20/08/11

    I had been looking forward to the Big Dog all year as I used to live in Brighton and knew the trails well. I went down the day before to practice the course with an old friend, the course suited me well, not too rough and manageable climbs. The day of the race was very warm, riding around before the start I noticed a few familiar faces from the racing world, including defending solo champion Ian Leitch on his factory Cannondale Flash 29er.

    I had a mediocre start so was pleased when the first climb appeared and I could pass people. I rolled through the start/finish line to be told I was “atleast top 20” I was happy with this an continued to push hard up all the hills and enjoyed the fast singletrack. I began to struggle with heat after a few hours and wasn’t drinking enough, but I was in a solid 7th place so needed to keep my head. I managed to keep pushing and kept consistent lap times and had a great last two laps. After finishing I checked the lap board to see I’d came in 6th, was pleased with that as it was a shorter race to what I’m used to, so I was surprised during the podium presentation that I was called up for 5th place! A collection of nice prizes helped ease my headache and the drive home the next day. Definitely going back next year to push top 3.

    Big Dog Podium, even for 5th!

    Kielder 100Miles, Scottish Boarders 3/09/11

    A race only in its 3rd year but widely renowned as an epic, which meant I had to give it a try. So on the Friday we drove the 300miles in lovely sunshine to the Campsite, checked in and stuck my tent in the only dry patch of ground I could find! We went and signed on, where I was forced to buy a survival blanket and whistle, what had I let myself into….

    As the race is such a long way and they want everyone to get in before its dark the race starts at 6.30am! So I get up at 5am to discover it had been raining all night and was still raining, undeterred I dressed to suit and hoped the rain would stop. We assembled at the start, around mid pack, and followed the lead quad bike for about half and hour, luckily no one seemed keen in racing so I could make my way through the pack quite easily.

    So the race got going well, I had made my way forward and the pace was good, the rain was still falling but I felt good, then disaster my brake pad wore out after only 25miles! I only had one spare set so I knew I need to save these for the rear, so I plodded on, taking it steady down the descents and pushing hard up the hills, then after another 15miles my rear brake was totally shot, stuck in the new pads and proceeded to pass all the riders I had just passed =( I reached the 50mile point and felt so cold as I was soaked through, I put on another layer and pressed on.

    I reached the 65mile point and was relieved to find a tech station where I could get new brake pads for the front brake. I crossed the boarder back into the UK feeling better but still very cold, reaching the final feed station at 78miles I was ready to finish but I knew I had to keep going! 10miles from the end and I was knackered, I had been riding with another chap and we kept each other going, he left me as his brakes were working better than mine, 2miles from the finish and my front brake wore out again! So the last descent, which should have been really fun was taken with extreme care as to not crash!

    I crossed the finish line in 10hrs 53 minutes, 44th place out of 600 starters! and the 4th singlespeed rider. As the afternoon wore on the riders slowly came in, in the end 177 finished, less than 1/3!

    Singlespeed UK Championship, Pippingford, East Sussex 17/09/11

    My first SSUK Champs and I had been advised not to take it too seriously! Undeterred I headed out on a practice lap to check the course, it then started raining heavily and I could tell the course was going to be tough in wet conditions.

    As is customary at SSUK races you leave your bike and walk to the start line, in the meantime your bike is “arranged” mainly into piles of colours or brands. After the Le Mans style running start I quickly found my bike and got going, unfortunately I took a tumble and damaged my rear brake lever, at this point I thought it was race over, but I managed to get them working again I contuined racing.

    Eventually I crossed the line in joint 4th officially, the organisers only count the first 3, or 9th unofficially, and happy enough to be top ten, but wondered how well it could have gone. Always another year.

    Bristol Oktoberfest, Ashton Court, Bristol 15/10/11

    Had been looking forward to this race, partly because it was the last long race of the year, and because it had a singlespeed category. The format was 9am-5pm which meant an early start but less time for me to stand around fretting! Being a local race there was a few familiar faces to catch up with before the start, the start was a Le mans style running start, with such a big field it meant finding my bike and getting going quite frustrating, eventually I was going and trying to get through the field! The course was very fast and flowing man made singletrack, with a few long climbs but nothing too testing, i was expecting to struggle on the rougher sections but the 29er made light work of most of it, only struggling with a section of rock garden.

    Due to my poor start i found myself in 4th, the second and third laps went much better with consistent 28/29minute laps, this put me upto 2nd, where i was informed the leader was “2 minutes” in front, it took me another 2 laps to catch him, when i did overtake him he was looking spent, but I continued lapping at a consistant 30minutes, ensuring no one could catch me. As the day drew on i felt good and was enjoying flying through singletrack, trying my best to pass back markers in a polite manner, due to the amount of singletrack this proved difficult at times!

    I finished with 25minutes till the end, knowing i couldn’t squeeze in another lap, to my surprise I was only clear by 5minutes! I was happy to end the season with a win, gives me motivation to work hard over the winter.

    swooopppy

    Thanks for your time, and thanks for the support over this year.

    Chris

    you can follow me on @c_noble87 and http://chris-noble-mtb.blogspot.com/

  • TickerTape Retro DH – Results

    Sunday’s race was a bit special, firstly it was themed a Retro Race, and secondly it was the last in the winter series, meaning that final standings and pride were at stake. The track was different from anything else we’ve raced so far, although it shared about 40meters of BBMS the two couldn’t be further appart in terms of flow or feel. Based on MCC (the Dinner ’til Dusk descent) the track was marked wide to encourage line choice, and drawn out to make pedalling a necessity. With no real features to speak of we were pleased to be able to allow riders with open face helmets meaning that the event was accessible to many who otherwise wouldn’t have take part. A featureless track may sound a bit tedious, especially one with no bermed corners on a track that consisted of a wide loamy channel, but I can honestly say that it generated some of the most fun riding and close racing we’ve had all series.

    Now, as for the theme and dress code, well, lets just say that some people got more than a bit scared of lycra, peakless helmets and generally not looking super cool. It’s funny but this race also showed just how many riders we have who consider a non carbon v10 to be retro and their oldest kit is newer than any of mine!

    Thankfully the vast majority got into the spirit of things and took off their peaks and donned the funkiest looking riding gear they could find. Worthy of a special mention are Chris smith who was sporting the saggiest lycra bibs I think I’ve ever seen, (if he’d have worn his Rock Shox beanie I would have wee’d a bit) Dan Irons who looked like a pro GT rider from the 90’s thanks in no small part to the best looking bullet helmet ever made, the giro madmax, and Garry Newton who managed to make us laugh even more than normal by riding in both retro lycra and on a pair or Red Ritchy Zmax tyres that made him look like he was riding in different (far wetter) conditions to the rest of us. Hero.

    Now for the racing.

    Sam Chedgy managed to put in an good early time that meant he was fastest for the first quarter of an hour, but it wasn’t long before some more riders started penning up their times and the board started to fill up… Curtis Saunders struggled to get to grips with the idea of non-bermed corners as he managed to come off his bike on almost every run due to his kamikaze like corner commitment. Ben Irons suffered a mechanical right at the start meaning that he was reliant upon the generosity all day so had his work cut out. Chris Smith put in some fast times right from the start, but then decided to play cat and mouse rather than over exert himself, something he may now be regretting. Liam Arkell was, as has come to be expected, flying up the leader board with his Pocket Rocket style and ability to chip away every run. I was off the pace except for one flying run, only to find out that the watch hadn’t recorded a time, gutted, Steve Corner impressed on his first ever TickerTape, looking to improve and learning fast. Andrew Armstrong also managed to put in a great performance in his first TickerTape taking 15 seconds off his time and giving his son a run for his money too. Chris Marsland put in some fast runs and looked suitably retro (as always) before racing Simon Truelove in a pump race in tribute to Chris’ home from home, Bath BMX . Ric Mclaughlin chickened out of wearing the MBUK skin suit but seemed to be having a great time racing his test Moerwood. Ric’s done two TickerTape special events now (Triple Crown and Retro) so he was familiar with the set-up and soon managed to take over 7 seconds off of his time. With over 30 riders competing the board managed to fill up pretty quick and has become an almost unreadable mess (hence the lack of results spreadsheet from me so far), thankfully Calum’s groupies didn’t want to race or else we would have needed to use the blackboard too.

    As for the results, well…

    Chris Smith was pipped to the win by Curtis who has owned every race he entered this series and Liam wasn’t far behind in 3rd. Steve Corner was awarded the King of the Hill T shirt for an awesome first attempt, and Curtis was awarded the Rose Bikes RAD award for his all out committed style over the day.

    As for best dressed, well I awarded that to myself for being more french that almost anyone could deal with.

    Thanks to everyone who helped set up and pack away, to Shimano for the race tape and Rose Bikes for the prizes.

    The Series round up and overall results will be published shortly…

    Check out the ace photos taken by Dan Irons of Facade Photography there’s also an awesome video by Liam Arkell showing the track in full, and some footage of lycra clad messing about taken after the race.




  • A new TickerTape champion is Crowned!

    Autumn is the best time of year by far, only in autumn do you get the perfect mix of soil conditions, light and temperature for all day riding with your mates. Not too hot, loads of grip and stunning colours everywhere you look. On sunday we were all lucky enough to be soaked in oranges and greens as we took part in the TickerTape Triple Crown, a special DH race event that we throw once a year. The format isn’t that different from the monthly TickerTapes we run, just that instead of one there are three tracks, only one run can be timed on each, and its the overall that counts, nothing else.

    For the first time ever we charged for entry so that we could raise some much needed cash to pay towards our new Freelap Timing equipment (5 more watches), at £10 a pop we raised over £300.

    With the promise of sausages, prizes and the chance to ride with some well known faces the day was well attended and the excitement clear to see. Ric McLaughlin (from MBUK), Chris smith (from every cover of MBUK), Jim Davage (from just about every DH race in the South West), his brother (from Jim’s roost) and Grant Fielder (from anywhere but a DH race) came along to sample the delights of some homegrown rider run DH racing, and I think it’s fair to say each one of them loved every minute of it.

    BBMS was the first track on the menu and it certainly tested people with its tight, almost annoyingly rooty and off camber stop startedness. But that’s the point, it’s a test and IT’S a hard one – no time for razzmatazz just precision and an ability to flow where there’s little on offer. Grant Fielder took the win by a good margin over the rest of us, he seemed just as surprised as he was happy but then this was his first ever DH race – a great start and one that made everyone else refocus – none more than Mr Smith who was trying to remember why he’d bothered to invite Chopper after all. It should be noted that although not successful, Ben Batt managed to ride BBMS faster than anyone else, BY FAR, and although not fully comprehendible he had a flat rear tyre. Jim Davage was the first to raise question over Ben’s mental stability, which was definitely in question for most of the afternoon. Neil Cousins looked slow but in a quick way, riding accurately on his trail center bike but then being slowed on his race run, knocking him out of contention for the overall.

    On to SPOONS and the all new line into the newly extended rock garden. There was little being said other than “that’s flipping lush now…!” and it’s times like that when all the hard work that goes into dig days is really appreciated – the rock garden was a raving success. The change in track type was also very welcome; riding the fast and jumpy SPOONS was ace, we were warmed up and dialled-in. The step-down is always impressive to look at and drew quite a crowd by this point, something that really adds to the atmosphere and race like feel.

    Puppets next and is a very different track, it’s actually pretty simple (top and bottom), the middle is totally different though – it’s tech and steep and feature filled, to ride it fast you need strength and full commitment, you need balls! As you’d expect there were a few spills on Battery Hill none more impressive than Marjory’s over the bars as she approached the infamous weeeeeboing! berm. But she got straight up (well almost) and finished her run to loud claps, and cheers of “PEDAL!!!” from every one of the other riders. It was Marjory’s first ever DH race and, like her, the other DH newbie (Grant Fielder) managed to crash on PUPPETS ending his hopes of the overall win with a frustrating DNF. Jim Davage and Chris Smith had put in fast runs, but both knew that it was out of their hands, with all eyes on Rob Lewis would mr SouthernDownhill.com be able to hack it?!?! The answer was yes – ragged but very quick thanks to death grip and determination Rob took the win by a margin of around a second giving him the overall title to boot!

    Beans went to Marjory for being harder than the rest of us, to Ben Batt for his disturbingly aggressive riding style, Ben Irons for being far too quick and frustratingly smooth on a hardtail, and to Liam Arkel for being the fastest of the rippers by some way. The wheels were won by…um….cough, cough….well, me. I managed to guess closest to the overall time and given the fact that I did the same last year but gave the wheels away – well I figured that for once I would take something away from a TickerTape, after all we all had as much chance as eachother! ; )

    So that’s it, The BCC TickerTapeTriple Crown DH Jam – a day of racing bikes in the woods with friends.

    Thanks loads to Ben Irons for making all the number plates and timing sheet, to Andrew Grace for cooking all the sausages, to Keith Jepson (Max Bikes PR) for donating the wheels, Finlay Paton (ROSE Bikes UK) for providing demo bikes and all the other prizes, Madison for giving us all the race tape, and to everyone who helped set up and pack away.

    what now? Well we’re about to launch a 5 race TickerTape winter series (starting this November) so watch this space…

    Supported by:

  • TickerTape – Sunday 18 July

    It’s TickerTape this Sunday.
    We’re riding Spoons.
    The course has been modified (for this month only) to add a little spice, and mix things up a bit.
    The changes add speed (to the fastest trail we’ve got) so lycra and bullet helmets may be an advantage.
    I’m joking of course, bullet helmets help no-one. ever.
    Timing starts at 11 and will run until 3.
    As always, there’s plenty to play for so bring some beans* and your shouting voice too.
    Members only, full face helmet and a working bike needed to take part.
    Oh and some beans, don’t forget the beans!

    *Beans have been proven to be far more effective than Gnar, Shred, Rip and even Gunning It.

  • Dinner 'til Dusk (2) – 25th July

    Sunday 25th of July will see the second Dinner ’til Dusk event at The Allotment. Utilising much of the same course as the last time (but with an all new, much less brutal, main climb) the event will run from 14:00 until 17:00 with the course open for practice from 13:00.

    For those of you who are unfamiliar with the event it is a mini- enduro. Each solo rider or team aims to do as many laps of the course as they can in the three hours with prizes awarded for the riders who have given the most ‘beans’ during the event, whether through determination, enthusiasm or by helping to generate a great atmosphere.

    While it is helpful to know in advance who is and isn’t coming (to build the essential culture of teasing and abuse) it is fine to come along on the day with no warning and no teammates!

    The event is suitable for anyone: downhillers, social XC riders, stag dos, corporate team building groups, nuns, pirates…….

  • Dinner 'til Dusk – yeaaahhhhhhhhh!

  • set2rise… we can't wait!

    This is fast becoming a classic and we can’t wait for this years event!

    Check out our write up from last year here


  • Dinner 'til Dusk

    Tired of waiting all year round for set2rise? Keen to prove that the only reason you’re at the back on night rides is because you don’t know where you are going? Wish you owned a full face so that you could get your (non)competitive fix at the allotment?

    Cross country riders – be sad no more! From Sunday the 25th of April 2010, you too will have your own non-competitive (yeah right!) event at which you can spend the afternoon at the Allotment whizzing around adapted versions of the Allotment’s trails.

    The event in question is “Dinner ’til Dusk” a three hour mini enduro where solo racers and teams lap the Allotment and surrounding area on a twenty minute circuit containing singletrack, fast descents, badger attacks and less climbing than descending*.

    The event is open to all, but as all cross country riders know, downhill riders are too chicken and too lazy to compete. Ideally the teams will either be solo riders or pairs, but if people want to take part as a bigger team please get in touch.

    The event will start at 13:00 and will finish at 16:00 giving plenty of opportunity to change into dinner jackets and ball gowns for the evening’s AGM.

    Hope to see you there.

    *not true.