Pix

just wondering how baffled a tank has to be before it can't find it's way home

Cute huh?  

This size of car reminds me of Goggomobiles and the time in the 50's when petrol was as scarce as hen's teeth during the Suez crisis.

And finally, before I leave I have to remember to take my camera into the supermarket to the brekky food aisle since one part of it is labelled "Adult Cereals"...hmmm pornographic muesli.....naked porridge?

the pursuit

well I must have worked hard 'cos I had pursuiter's cough.  The only fly in the works for me was that, unlike in aus, we weren't allowed to have cyclocomputers uncovered and I'd planned to monitor my cadence.

So....same old same old...too fast a second lap, hang in for another coupla quick ones and then gradually die.....with a faster last lap of course....

I had hoped to aim for a sub 3 minute but ended up with a 3 min 02.5secs which was .1second faster than the other W65 and so at the insistent bidding of all the other old farts, I went to claim a W65-69 World Best Time since there wasn't one posted.

First up they were hesitant to allow it because I'd not been chaperoned from the get go...then I pointed out that the results had not been available and so we didn't know which of us was the  faster.  Then the  UCI person was most unhelpful, pointing out that the W60+ record was faster than mine....so a discussion ensued.  I pointed out that I held a W65-69 hour record and that men's records went well beyond 65-69, I held in reserve the fact of the  W65-69 time trial already established best time by an American for a counter punch but it wasn't needed and I spent the next hour drinking 4 bottles of water before nature allowed me to provide a sample for drug testing.

The saddle issue appears to have eased with all passing as long as they are level.

More on saddles+jet lag

Spirit levels are out at the Manchester velodrome and saddles are being tested for conformity to the "your saddle must be level " rule. 

At the time of writing  we didn't get to see any saddle being rejected but apparently the Adamo saddle got through..I recall some time ago there was concern  that the UCI would kick up about the forked nose of this saddle.

.  
Jet lag
Weirdly this year I am plagued with jet lag, something that normally hits me hard on the return to Aus leg but not going over to Europe. There's  not much I can do about it except go with the flow and hope to be awake at race time!

There's been 1 day of racing but sadly I can't find any results on the web page........

Saddle update and more on the older age class numbers

Well, the indications are that the saddles mentioned in yesterday's post are extremely suspect but it may well be that the weight of numbers will be in the athlete's favour.....ie there so many riders with that particular style of saddle (or one very much like it) that refusing their usage would wipe out too many competitors.

If our information is accurate, my feeling is that they can't ban them for this competition since there aren't enough replacements available but that notice will be served on the masters community to change saddles for the 2012 Worlds....more info as it comes to hand.

Re: the shabby treatment of older age classes re needing 6 to create a grade, the advice from my UCI contact here in Manchester is that we need to speak to the UCI through our National Federations and our national UCI rep.  To remind you...I'm 67 years old and I have to race the scratch against W45 and unlike the past 4 years, there will only be 3 medals for the first 3 past the post.  My pursuit is with W50's and my TT W55's. 

To compete in UK,  an Australian has to pay $A2000-3000 airfare if travelling cattle class ~$5000 if in business class.  Add entry fees, accommodation and sundry expenses and you have to wonder why you'd bother if you end up riding against women  ~22 years younger. 

Something needs to be done to get the UCI to listen to us , but it'll take a loud and strident voice from all parts of the globe to get it to change it's mind.  Should you decide to take up the cause, you also need to know that at  the UCI World TT Road Champs during September this year in Belgium  medals were presented on the podium to women who had less than 6 in their class and indeed one class only had 1 competitor....

The words disenfranchised, discrimination, shabby treatment, intransigent, ageist and sexist keep popping into my mind...can't imagine why. 

Bring back the UCI Masters Commission!

Be-eautiful Manchester

Well now, that was a good flight and I might just use this combo again.... I was on Emirates flight EK407, Melbourne to Dubai departing at 22:25. It's  a 14 hour flight  which passes much quicker than most 14 hour flights 'cos you immediately sleep away many hours of it due to your body clock insisting sleep is a priority.  The flight originates in New Zealand so that there are less crowds waiting to go through the system..ticketing, customs, security ...everything.   Although being picked out to be checked for explosives for the nth time leaves me bewildered...do I REALLY fit the profile?

The experience started off brilliantly with me being waved through to the 1st class check in counter cos my bike box wouldn't fit through the maze/corridor they'd set up for us cattle class drones.   Then after explaining that I'd inadvertently been given a window instead of my usual aisle seat the Emirates lady said they'd put a note on my data and if there were any aisle seats available she'd call me... there were and she did.  100% gold.

A 2 hour change over time in Dubai was unstressed and not too long.  I needed a carry bag of some sort for all the books and newspapers I was buying and was stunned to find a really nice coarse woven  Dubai touristy one that cost me all of $2!! once again 100% gold, must have been a mistake  since everything in that airport and indeed all airports is mega expensive.

The second leg from Dubai to Manchester was 7 hours long with action near by in the shape of a sick toddler making the trip seem much shorter.   Thankfully that distraction took my attention from the truly disgusting coughing that was going on 2 rows back.

Manchester airport came out neutral...on the positive side...my bike box emerged before all other stuff which has to be a record but, and a very big BUT, just like Geneva airport they make you pay for your trolley at the baggage carousels, which is totally ridiculous for an international flight.  Luckily I had  UK pound coins from previous trips, but very obviously not everyone did.  I can't imagine how I'd have got my bike box into the arrivals concourse without a trolley.


The Stables is just as I remember it as are the main characters here, even the taxi driver remembered us from 4 years ago!

However I was annoyed to find that the competition program had altered to such a degree as to inconvenience me slightly and others a huge amount.  My race program was Tuesday - pursuit, Thursday - Scratch and Saturday TT  with a Sunday flight to Italy.  Now my program is (officially changed  only yesterday) Tuesday - Pursuit(W50+), Scratch(W45+) - Thursday..... OK so far, but the TT(W55+) is now on Friday.  I'll not change my flights as it's not worth the hassle, but another of our group has a worse tale...her pursuit was to have been on Saturday with family coming from Ireland, Scotland and even also from Aus to barrack for her...now, 'cos she's a W50 it's been moved to Tuesday.

The lack of older women attending this event is critical and clearly something needs to be done, since I can envisage others looking at the entries and deciding they wouldn't waste their time, effort and money. Hey..would you fancy riding the Scratch in a bunch of ladies who are up to 22 years younger than you?   I'll be lucky not to be  dropped on the neutral lap and lapped before 1km.  With my ambivalence around the Pursuit following a bad 6 lap test last week, I can see this event for me might shrink to the TT only plus alot of lobbying for older women.

Apparently the main focus of UCI measuring so far has been to do with saddles and once again 1 of my group is in strife because of this...we hear that those saddles with a droopy nose are not allowed, so it looks like the Selle SMP glider and chrono will not be allowed....more on this later.

Luckily this became evident before I left Aus and so I took the Specialized Jett saddle off my road TT bike and brought it with me..situation hopefully saved.

So...with jet lag in full flight...it's 4am and I've been wide awake for 3 hours, I'd better get back horizontal and try to read myself into a somnambulic (?sp) state.  I've already finished Robbie McEwan's autobiography "One Way Road"   and now move onto either Markus Zusak's "The Book Thief" or Lee Child's "The Affair".  I was disappointed that the many of the pix in Robbie McEwan's book were nearly all pretty well the same photo..him winning with an identical winning pose.  It was good to read some of the back story to his time and issues with various teams, but it did get a bit tedious.  That said, it's not the worst cycling biography I've read!

I have a drinking problem!..and now I have your attention!

yup, and although this is being typed with a glass of Merlot to hand, it's not an alcohol issue I'm talking about ..it's a general hydration issue.

I seem to lack the trigger that tells me to drink and on a normal day, after my brekky coffee or 2 have often gone the whole day before I remember I'm s'posed to drink.

This being the case, before racing a Time Trial when I don't carry a bottle, for about 3 hours prior to my start I have my countdown watch set to have a drink every 10 minutes. 

I've even been known to do the same during a long race, when the stress of racing means drinking sometimes takes a back seat. 

If I end up having kidney issues..this is why.

Packing again.

My itinerary of Melbourne-Manchester-Rome-Florence-Rome-Melbourne has caused a few issues with packing, since the bit from UK to Italy only allows me 20kg rather than the 30 kgs I have for the long haul part of the trip.  So modifications have had to be made  and I now have a Qantas box instead of my usual Neil Pryde bike bag and will probably freight it home from Manchester.

However these problems don't upset my audience one little bit, they just know I'm off somewhere and they'll have to suffer Alex and/or Phil looking after them

They see me packing and  immediately develop signs of separation anxiety..one of the signs being that I'm never lonely!  Bubble cat here on one side and Princess Pippi on the other...no pix 'cos before I could get the camera she'd nicked off to steal some more food!

Did a final 6 lapper today but it was terrible..hopefully a real bad dress rehearsal still means a good main event.....