BDCA 50 mile TT and Competition record

Saturday 28th June 2014 was the BDCA 50 mile TT. Matt Bottrill (Drag 2 Zero) set a new 50 mile competition record of 1.34.43 on A50/6. Average speed of 31.67 mph (50.97 km/h)

I was third in a pb of 1.39.36 (30.1 mph). Paula Mosely was fastest lady in 1:51:47. Female comp record is Julia Saw (1.46.46)

Matt Bottril’s bike with lots of aero stuff.

Matt Bottril and BTTC

After finishing 2nd in the BTTC 2013 champs behind Alex Dowsett, Bottrill never hid the fact his main goal of the season was the BTTC champs in Wales last Thursday. Despite being on tremendous form and being well prepared, Bottrill was perhaps a little disappointed to finish 6th, 4 minutes behind a flying Bradley Wiggins. (Results at Velo UK)

It’s still an excellent result – there are many good pros who would struggle to finish 4 mins behind an on form Bradley Wiggins (4 minutes behind Wiggins would have been 17th in the 2012 Olympic time trial). Also a different course may have suited Bottrill more. When I spoke to Matt he was in philosophical mood, saying he made him realise how big the gap to the top pros was. Bottril said he was going up the climb in Wales at 475 watts, when Wiggins went past like a train. God knows what watts Wiggins was doing up there. (Also nice to see Wiggins regain his descending in the wet form.)

UCI rules

Given the hilly nature of the course, I was  disappointed to be engaged up in Yorkshire for the BTTC champs. I’d much rather be racing courses like the BTTC champs than dragstrips like the A50. However, hearing about the UCI mandarins and their incomprehensible 10 cm rules – which caused a lot of problems for the amateurs, did make me feel a little better for not being there. A love these 45 page UCI clarification of their rules, which makes everything as clear as mud. They say the next BTTC champs might be in Isle of Man – do I want to travel there, only to risk the UCI declaring the bike illegal?

50 mile record well deserved

The 50 mile TT record is a great achievement for Matt Bottrill. A deserved reward for a few years of great effort and dedication.

There are some great names on the role of 50 mile TT comp record holders, not least:

• Ian Cammish (1.39.52 – 1983 before tribars),
• Graeme Obree (1.39.01 – 1993),
• Michael Hutchinson (1.35.27 – 2008) and many more.

 

 

 

 

A 30 mph ride for 50 miles

Last year, I did a 1.41 on this course, but that included getting lost and perhaps losing a minute going wrong way. I always wondered if I could have done a 1.39 that day. There was unfinished business.

The A50 is always fast. But, today was a particularly good day. Very light wind, though a touch on the cold side (at least for skinny hill climbers) I set off at a fast speed and steady power and once you get on the dual carriageway you start flying along. The only problem is that you seem to have to come to a stop at every roundabout and then re-accelerate.

After 10 miles you start to ‘climb’ ‘concrete mountain’. It’s called concrete mountain by testers, though the hill climbers union will say any mountain you can cycle up at 29mph, isn’t really a mountain. Perhaps, one summer I will forsake British dragstrips and go and ride proper mountains in the Pyrannees. But, not just yet.

There are long drags on the course, but it doesn’t particularly feel like you are going up hill. It’s all fast. The turn comes around 20 miles, and you go down the long drag. If anything there was a mild headwind, so not as fast as last time I rode on here, but still chance to spin away at the 56*11. At 30 miles I had 58.55 on the clock, so I knew I had a good chance of a sub 1.40. But at 30 miles, you turn off the dual carriageway for about 8 miles of single carriageway to Rocester. This road is a bit slower and has been recently chipped. There were also an extra two roundabouts before the turn. I saved my biggest effort for this leg and did over 300 watts. In the last 10 miles, I struggled to keep the same effort, with power finally starting to dip. But, there was still enough to keep average speed above 30mph and I stopped the clock in 1.39.36. A 30mph ride for 50 miles. 5 consecutive 10s of 19.54. If that sounds fast it wasn’t quite as impressive as Matt Bottrill’s course record of 1.34.43 which is 5 consecutive 18s. Adam Topham looks strong favourite for BBAR competition with another impressive ride, covering the 50 miles in 1.38.27

BBAR

I’ve got a good start to my first BBAR campaign – 30 mph for a 50, 28 mph for a 100. Just a 12 hour to grind out. The BBAR is not a competition for a specialist hill climber, but it’s still fun to ride for two hours at 30mph. But, that might be it for flat dragstrips for the year – pretty soon it will be time to get hill climb bike out!

 

Results

 

1	Matthew Bottrill	www.drag2zero.com	37	01:34:43
2	Adam Topham	High Wycombe CC	45	01:38:27
3	Tejvan Pettinger	Sri Chinmoy Cycling Team	37	01:39:36
4	Joel Wainman	Team Swift	40	01:40:09
5	Ian Holbrook	Stone Wheelers	45	01:41:32
6	Paul Gamlin	Northover Vets Team	42	01:42:05
7	Steve Irwin	Kingston Wheelers CC	43	01:42:35
8	John Morgan	Preston Wheelers	37	01:42:57
9	Daniel Barnett	www.drag2zero.com	40	01:43:19
10	Mark Turnbull	TORQ Performance	41	01:43:21
11	Ben McIntosh	Crewe Clarion Whs	17	01:43:23
12	Richard Spink	Bristol South CC	37	01:43:24
13	Ian Cox	North Lancs RC	44	01:43:39
14	David Ellis	Mapperley CC	47	01:44:07
15	Jon Wynn	Northover VT Rudy Project	47	01:44:17
16	David Watson	Coventry RC	44	01:44:24
17	Barry Charlton	Swinnerton Cycles	48	01:44:28
18	Billy Oliver	RST Sport/Aero-Coach	33	01:44:32
19	Neil Skellern	Team Swift	50	01:45:26
20	Jason Seabridge	Mercia CC	40	01:45:57
21	Joe Costello	Walsalll RC	55	01:46:15
22	Michael Westwell	Mapperley CC	34	01:46:19
23	Matt Stell	Ribble Valley CC	36	01:46:49
24	Scott Westwood	Walsall Roads Cycling Club	42	01:46:52
25	Dael Sidwell	Lutterworth Cycle Centre RT	40	01:46:54
26	Duncan Mullier	Harrogate Nova CC	44	01:47:22
27	Paul Edwards	Walsall Roads Cycling Club	32	01:47:57
28	Paul Robinson	Lyme Racing Club	50	01:48:05
29	Ian King	Velo Club Long Eaton	48	01:48:45
30	Matthew Rowley	Oxonian	46	01:48:46
31	Mark Sanders	Mid Devon CC	55	01:48:50
32	Michael Garner	Birkehead North End CC	32	01:49:03
33	Tim Davies	Icknield RC	46	01:49:21
34	Michael Wills	Hinckley CRC	55	01:49:23
35	Ross Barton	North Notts Olympic RC	34	01:49:48
36	Will Bamber	VC Norwich	29	01:50:00
37	Paul Holdsworth	Hounslow & District Whs	50	01:50:22
38	Phil Brown	Walsalll RC	62	01:50:37
39	Stephen Howgill	Leicestershire RC	50	01:51:34
40	Simon Wix	Worcester St Johns CC	51	01:51:49
41	John Dowling	Hemel Hempstead CC	57	01:52:06
42	David Spencer	Fibrax-Wrexham RC	41	01:52:09
43	Randle Shenton	Team Swift	56	01:52:16
44	Tony May	TMG Horizon Cycling Team	56	01:52:34
45	Mark Donnelly	Birkenhead North End CC	38	01:52:37
46	Chris Lea	Buxton CC	42	01:52:38
47	Peter Wright	Rugby Racing CC	49	01:52:38
48	Andy Horner	Bury Clarion	50	01:53:26
49	David Thompson	Scarborough Paragon CC	46	01:53:27
50	Dave Bates	South Pennine RC	66	01:53:49
51	Peter Leonard	Southport CC	62	01:53:50
52	Paul Mapletoft	Kiveton Park CC	50	01:53:56
53	Steven Hollwood	Kiveton Park CC	52	01:53:57
54	Chris Ledger	www.zepnat.com RT	52	01:54:11
55	Tom Cox	Northover VT Rudy Project	59	01:54:19
56	Roy Flanagan	Rossendale RC	57	01:54:29
57	Peter Lavine	Coalvile Wheelers	59	01:54:39
58	Martyn Bowers	Stone Wheelers CC	43	01:54:53
59	Antony Stapleton	Chelmer CC	48	01:55:06
60	David Evans	Worcester St. Johns CC	57	01:55:16
61	Stephen Cooke	Lindsey Roads CC	51	01:56:36
62	Roger Wrenn	Manchester Wheelers	70	01:56:56
63	Gerry McGarr	Gloucester City CC	62	01:57:15
64	Nick Hall	Bury Clarion CC	52	01:57:22
65	Neil Allonby	Chronos RT	44	01:58:28
66	Stephen I’Anson	Buxton CC	58	01:58:43
67	Andrew Halliday	Westerley Cycling Club	42	01:59:28
68	Nick Hanson	Seacroft Wheelers	48	02:00:20
69	Barrie Whittaker	Lyme Racing Club	57	02:02:38

 

 

 

My ride

Average power – 296 watts

• Increasing power until 40 miles.
• Biggest power (300watts for slowest part of course 28.8mph)

Related

• National 50 mile TT 2014