Welcome

We would like to give a very warm welcome to our new members: Ben Suen, Tomas Parizek, Matt Vears, Jack Wharton, Giancarlo Scarampi, Ash Collins, Mads Rosenfeldt, Hannah and Jean McQuarrie. We invite them to Say hello on our forum. 

Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 update
If you put yourself forward for a Club Challenge team place, you can now see whether your name came out of the hat for a place. All Club Challenge entrants must pay by 5pm on 27 April. Payment instructions are on the forum.

Great Escape update
There are just 20 places left for our 200km audax on 15 May. If you want to take part book online now to avoid disappointment.

Summer schedule (to the end of BST 2016)
Here's a reminder of our full summer weekly ride schedule:

• Tuesdays: Club ride (Radlett Revolution), 6.30pm
• Wednesdays: Club ride (North London Hills), 6.30pm 
• Thursdays: Club ride (Fixie Loop), 6.30pm and VeloPark session, 6.30pm
• Saturdays: Regent's Park, Outer Circle, 7.00am and 8.00am
• Sundays: Club ride, 8.30am, A, B and C groups

Any of our rides can and should split into different groups to accommodate different speeds and ensure the rides are cohesive.

Time trial season is here

Time trialling, or "the race of truth" as it is commonly known, is a perfect way to experience the thrill of competition while really testing your fitness. No need for special bikes or equipment. No tactics, crashes or road race-type chaos. And, most importantly of all, no excuses. Standard distances are 10, 25, 50 and 100 miles.

This year our club is running a series of six 10-mile time trials for club members. These are either free or £2 (South Mymms events) for members to take part in. Plus there's an open 10-mile event. The club events include solo, 2-up (pairs) and 4-up (four person) team races to choose from. Everyone is welcome to race, whether a beginner or an expert. We also need volunteers to run them, email Aidan Farrow if you can help. Here's the programme:
 
    30 April Club time trial #1 (solo) South Mymms
    28 May Club time trial #2 (solo) South Mymms
    25 June Club time trial #3 (mixed 2-up) South Mymms
    23 July Open time trial (10-mile solo) - Brogborough (F15 course)
    30 July Club time trial #4 (solo) South Mymms
    20 August Club time trial #5 (mixed 4-up) VeloPark
    22 October Club time trial #6 (hill climb) Swain's Lane

There are also two reasonably local weekly time trials that you can try:

- The regular Tuesday 10-mile time trials at the VeloPark, run by Lea Valley CC, they start in May and continues into late July. 
- And the Brickendon 10s run by North Road CC every Tuesday, 7pm from Brickendon Village Hall, and run from April to the end of August. Entry on the line for £5. The course is the 9.2-mile Brickendon course.

We’ve also been invited to take part at the London Phoenix open time trial on Saturday 30 April at 2pm. The race is on the Brickendon course and costs £8 to enter at http://www.ctt.org.uk/Events-List. First rider off at 2pm. The deadline for online entries is 19 April, so be quick.

The Cycling Time Trials site is a also great source of information and has a national calendar of races.
 
Happy racing everyone.

Some FAQs on time trials

If you've never done a time trial before, here is a list of tips from Bike Radar. And there is also a how to ride your bike faster guide on the Resonance FM Bike Show, as well as a good introduction for total beginners on the Cycling Time Trials podcast (look for the 16 Nov 2014 episode).

Time trials are very welcoming events and will feature everyone from people on high-tech machines to juniors and vets on regular road bikes, so just pitch up and have a go!