GOODBYE TO THE BIG MAN - WE WILL MISS YOU!

HAVE THE WHEELS COME OFF FOR CERTINI?

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANN OWENS CS DYNAMO

The much vaunted re-match of the South West's two top cycling teams this year is being firmly led by Mid Devon Cycling Club (MDCC). So far in both Springtime Pursuits Andrew Parker of MDCC and Will Hornby have scored points whilst only new comer Kairn Stone has managed to get anything for Certini.

Having two riders in the scratch group whilst MDCC only have one may have something to do with it and the number of MDCC riders that are entering events may also have a factor to play.

Also James Smith Team Certini is still struggling with mechanical errors and failures. Rob Willcocks Certini has missed out on points two weeks in a row.

Next Week is the last pursuit but Team Certini have bigger fish to fry the day after in the Severn Bridge RR. Watch this space for more news!!

SPRINGTIME PURSUIT NO2

The second springtime pursuit is eagerly awaited tomorrow 24 Feb 07. Will the scratch group again catch the other groups or will they work together to stay away. A big factor will be the weather this week.

Who do you think will be triumphant??

SMITH - LAYS DOWN THE LAW!!!

James Smith wins Hilly 13 TT.

Smith - 32.48

Scott - 33.11

Bentlet - 33. 21

A bright but damp start met the riders for the PCCC sporting 13 on the 18th Feb 2007. Pre-race favourites Dave Bentley Elite Road Racer, Rob Scott upcoming youngster and James Smith 2nd cat RR who had raced the previous day in the Springtime pursuits arrived early to prepare.
The field also contained other riders who can upset the apple cart on their day.
The RNRMCA fielded a strong team but this did not include James Smith who is in the RN but riding for local team http://www.team-certini.co.uk/
As the riders started it became clear that the course after leaving Modbury would be difficult to negotiate following overnight rain. This did not stop Rob Scott from posting a leading time and putting 16 seconds into James Smith but Rob falling 2 seconds behind Dave Bentley. This urged on Rob Scott, which may have been his undoing because as he approached Kitterford Cross he was now 5 seconds down on James Smith with Dave Bentley still to arrive.
J Smith now turned his 55 front tooth chain ring to his advantage on the flat rolling roads into Ermington. At the finish Scott and Smith were discussing times but apprehensive of Dave Bentley’s previous win in 2005.
As it turned out Bentley posted a 33:21, which was 10 seconds slower than Scott and 33 seconds slower than Smith. A great season opener, opening many an eye to the winter improvements of Rob Scott PCCC who has only just started training.

RIDER OF THE WEEK

RIDER OF THE WEEK AGAIN!!!

Rob Wilcocks....

Rob has been firing on all cylinders this winter and is proving to be a name to watch out for this year. Everyone wishes him well for what could be a CAT 1 season??

MECHANICAL NIGHTMARE!!!

Hello all,

This is my bike after the pursuits on Saturday. Look at the saddle! This proved to be a nightmare but was only my fault.

PRIOR PLANNING PREVENTS A PISS POOR PERFORMANCE

Remember that

WEEKLY RIDER PROFILE

KAIRN STONE - ELITE DUATHLETE- PAIN SURGEON

Kairn has joined Team Certini this year and his hoping to give Road Racing his full attention. In his first Road Race (Paignton Regatta) Kairn came 5th. Not bad considering the opposition. A great climber, Kairn is also a very accomplished Duathlete competing at Elite level in various World and European Champs.

Kairn is also a big fan of the Hurt Locker!! See below

WEEKLY RIDER PROFILE

Gary Andrews

Gary has been riding for many years now and reached the dizzy heights of Cat 2 last year. He is married with one daughter. He is hoping this year to capitalise on some very hard training this winter. He has a wise head and can read just about every move.

PLYMOUTH ROUTES

Hello all,

Check out the website above and add your own routes really useful and easy to use.

Sometimes it is just too much!!!

The Danger of Stereotyping Cyclists

Posted 4 Feb 2007

I guess many cyclists will have shared my anger at the anti-cycling pieces in the Sunday Times, 4th February. In the In-Gear (formerly Motoring) section of the paper, actor Nigel Havers has had another of his regular pops at cyclists, whilst the letters column of the same section features an anti-cycling diatribe for the second week running.It feels personal, it's annoying and it's highly frustrating. But above all that, if you sit back and think about it, it's a stance which is pretty dumb. Yet it's one we hear and see a lot more often than we should in the supposedly intelligent end of the national media. Nigel Havers has been on this soapbox more often than our small screens of late, so it's not even original on any level, yet he's at it again and editors seem content to keep paying him to do so.But, do you know, it's not the accuracy of these pieces which gets to me. I'm realistic enough to accept that cyclists are not all angels. Some cyclists jump red lights (a recurring theme in the letters columns of papers nation-wide). Some cyclists ride on the pavement. And, sad to say, some of us look pretty ridiculous in the garb we wear for cycling - the practicality which is usually lost on non-cyclists.No, it's the underlying thought processes which disturb me. There are some 2 to 3 million bikes sold in the UK every year. Cycling is the third or fourth most popular form of exercise, depending on your source. And yet, the kind of rubbish these articles contain is built on the generalising of cyclists into one big group. The term for this process is stereotyping. The authors take their personal, negative experience of one or two cyclists and extrapolate from that and ascribe the same characteristics to all cyclists.It goes like this: "I saw a cyclist jump a red light today - therefore all cyclists are red-light jumping law breakers". Or, "I nearly got run over by a cyclist on the pavement today in a congested London street - therefore all cyclists are pavement users and a threat to personal safety throughout the land."A bit thick, isn't it? Nigel, if you're reading this (I'm not holding my breath on that one) it's a bit like watching and disliking one of your sitcoms and deciding not to watch anymore TV on that basis - or reading a poor article and deciding to boycott a newspaper as a result.

And the really thick bit is trying to stereotype the country's several million cyclists. We are all prone to stereotyping, it's a human trait (I've just done it myself, in saying that). We like to organise and pigeonhole information and people. It can be fun, but it's rarely fair and when we discriminate on the grounds of race, gender or disability, the underlying stereotyping, which usually drives the prejudice, is actually illegal.Of course, stereotyping is common amongst Road users - we all know what the stereotypical white van man is like, or the taxi driver or the BMW/Volvo/Range Rover etc driver. And, in the majority of cases, stereotyping by vehicle, or indeed any other criteria is totally unfair and inaccurate.Sadly, however, I think the stereotyping of cyclists is altogether more damaging. It not only tries to marginalise and ridicule the largest and most vulnerable minority on the roads (I exclude pedestrians as non-road users). It also undermines the credibility and even the legality of the one form of transport which could genuinely make a contribution to reducing the ecological impact of road use - the one form of transport which we ought to be actively encouraging and making easier and more socially acceptable. White van driving doesn't need promoting - it's a practical necessity of the way we distribute goods these days - and BMW, Volvo and Range Rover driving is not actually something which you would want to promote for anything other than commercial reasons. But, at a time when it should be as fashionable as it is practical, cycling is actually in danger from the ill-considered output of an ignorant few.And I hope the editors who commission anti-cycling pieces will wake up at some time in the near future and realise that lumping together several million cyclists is not just thick, it almost criminal in today's fragile world.To conclude, I'm going to generalise about cycling and about cars, without straying anywhere near stereotyping.: - Cyclists very, very rarely kill people they collide with - Motor vehicles kill thousands on our roads every year - Cycling does not contribute to global warming - Motor vehicles are a major contributor to global warmingAnd next time you see a car driver doing something foolish, consider just how ridiculous it would be to condemn all motorists on the evidence of that incident alone.