The DYNAMITE! Files

London Dynamo Newsletter #1, 02.04.04

WE’RE OFF!
The man in the official BCF jacket has graciously ushered us off the start line, and so we begin the inaugural edition of the London Dynamo Newsletter. Like a nervous cat 4 rider in his first race, the handling of this weekly organ is remarkably poor and tactically naïve – but with a gentle tailwind of goodwill from you, the kind reader, we’ll pass the chequered flag without the help of St John’s Ambulance. Here comes the first bend…

…AND I WOULD HAVE GOTTEN AWAY WITH IT IF IT WASN’T FOR THAT PESKY KID!
Damn and blast! MARTIN WILLIAMSON missed his moment of glory when he let three riders escape at Barcombe on Sunday – which, at 90km of twisty road, was this week’s toughest race for London Dynamo. He correctly predicted that two of the trio would fall back – but he didn’t realise that the third rider was a certain Heathrow-based wonderkid who didn’t need any help to eventually win by a country mile. Martin, who later featured in a brief two-man break with Sigma’s Niall Digby before finishing third, notes ruefully: “If I knew it was Lewis Atkins, I would have chased.” But he refused to be down in the dumps over his thwarted chance to draft into second place or even clinch the top spot. “I had a great race,” he beams, “grinning all the way.” You’re not supposed to enjoy yourself, man – this is cycling! Hopefully TOM DAVIES, who finished 20th, provided a counterbalance to Martin’s unaccountable happiness by grumbling throughout the day.

THE THRUX OF THE MATTER
London Dynamo’s quiet man TOM HEMMANT came third at Thruxton’s cat 3 race on Saturday, giving him this week’s second biggest result for the club. Well done, sir! But despite contesting a bunch sprint to bag eight points, the humble rider was keen to shine the limelight on two other Dyna-mates, RICHARD DOLBY and CHRIS CHAPMAN, who came 6th and 9th respectively in the cat 4 event. Tom reveals: “Chris and Richard are both new members who have joined within the last two weeks and this was their first experience of road racing.” Step forward at the next Parkride, boys, and receive a hearty handshake from club secretary PAUL ‘CANNONBALL’ CALLINAN, which I’m sure you’ll agree is an ample reward for such a great effort.

QUAD A BUNCH OF IDIOTS
Meanwhile, the cat 4 race at Eastway was livened up by the unannounced arrival of two men riding a quad bike. The pair shot along the strait, dangerously close to the riders, before disappearing into the foliage – but not before CHRIS CAMPBELL exchanged ungentlemanly words with them at full volume. Hopefully, the women riders present covered their ears. Chris ended up a respectable 12th while his race mate ALEX BALFOUR came a none-too-shabby 14th. The 2/3/4 race saw RORY PARK put in a few training laps before graciously retiring while pocket rocket RUSSELL SHORT decided to spare his opponents an early season drubbing by declining to engage in the sprint. That’s right – leave ’em wanting more, Rusty!

WHAT DO POINTS MAKE?
Headaches, apparently. With so many great results flooding into Dynamo Towers, our club secretary Paul is finding it difficult to keep track of how many points each of you is accumulating. Nevertheless, he has kindly agreed to run a season-long points competition in association with London Dynamo Newsletter – which, obviously, will appear in future editions of this very publication. Extra marks will be awarded for crashes delivered with style and flair. Exactly how often the tally will appear in the Newsletter is undecided – but every week looks unlikely as its just too much work. But hey – if it turns out to be once a month, then it’s something that everyone will really look forward to, isn’t it?

IT’S ALL OVER!
We’re now back in the clubhouse tucking into the fruitcakes and fig newtons – and despite a cat 1 rider sneering at our lukewarm bottle of Lucozade Sport between swigs of his PSP22 bidon, it has to be said that this has been an enjoyable and valuable experience for everyone involved. As new Dynamo member GUY POWDRILL might say, it’s been a tough Newsletter, but a fair one. Don’t forget you can meet all, some or perhaps two of the stars mentioned in this missive at the second Dynamo social evening this Monday at A Bar 2 Far in The Griffin Centre, Market Place, Kingston, from 7.30pm onwards. Bike parking is available, apparently. And now, with the sun gingerly peeking out, coyly inviting eager cyclists all over London to come out and play, it only remains for us to remind you about…

THIS WEEK’S RIDES
SATURDAY
The Parkride, Roehampton Gate, 9am. Three to four laps of Richmond Park split into fast/intermediate/steady.

SUNDAY
Hampton Court bridge, 9am for Surrey Hills ride. 50ish miles at a steady pace. Bring a pump, inner tubes, drink and a watch set to British Summer Time. (Rusty and Paul!)

WEDNESDAY
Richmond Gate, Richmond Park, 7:30pm. Steady two hour ride to Surrey and back.

AND REMEMBER…
London Dynamo Newsletter would be nothing without you, the noble reader. So remember to keep those results and reports coming in. Deadline is Wednesday morning for Friday’s mailout. news@londondynamo.co.uk.

This entry was posted on November 21, 2010 at 2:31 am and is filed under DYNAMITE! filed.