The National Womens Teams Series
Hillingdon Ladies Day
Thank you for a great day. It has given me lots to think about and really inspired me to get out there and RACE!
Many thanks for a very well run and productive training day yesterday. I thoroughly enjoyed the event and it was so nice to see so many competitive girls. I am keen to do some road racing These are just some of the comments made after a the inaugural Women's Team Race Series race tactics training day on Sunday 22 February.
Held at the London closed racing circuit of Hillingdon and led by coaches Graham MacNamee and John Leitch, with help from Stuart Caldicott, the day started with a session in the classroom explaining that the 37 riders who signed on would be split into groups - each with a different coloured bib - and would try various road race tactics.
Each group was led by an experienced rider such as Jeanette Caldicott who was able to explain the tactic given to that group and get the riders working that tactic.
The onto the circuit in cold and windy weather but mercifully without rain. Each group tried their tactics and then stopped to change tactics with other groups then it was off again.
Next came small races where each group mixed together repeating the tactics they have just learned and again the 'race' worked really well with each group working on their plans.
After 2 hours on the bike it was back to the classroom for a question/answer session that covered much of what has been learnt and the riders went away with plenty to think about with the new season approaching; it was a pity that many got caught in the major accident on the M25!
WOMEN'S RACING TOOK A NEW DIRECTION
CONGRATULATIONS !!!
TO SURREY LEAGUE LADIES WHO ARE THE 2008 TEAM SERIES CHAMPIONS. IT JUST GETS BETTER! It is been an exciting year again for the Women's Team Race Series with some excellent racing and again my thanks go to all the race organisers who make this Series possible, we really do owe them our heartfelt congratulations on providing the races.
The main news is that all the race organisers have agreed to put on their race next season plus we have a new event at Oakley which is on the Bucks/Oxford border - so we must be doing something right.
After so many years dominance, Team Luciano have struggled this year and we have seen the emergence of Surrey League, ably organised by Charlotte Blackman, consistently place riders in the top half at the finish of races to rightly claim their first ever Top British Team. But they did not really 'run away' with the Team Series but were pushed very hard by Lisa West and her Twickenham CC team who up until the finish of the final race were in there battling to get those vital points plus Fatbirds CC and other teams.
The 2009 season will see at least 2 newly named teams in the peleton but I am sure that the regular teams will be even more determined to haul themselves up the league table of points so we can look forward to another cracking season; I have been impressed at how hard some of the races have been fought for and even lower down in the peleton, riders are working hard for extra points for their teams, which is really what we have sought to achieve with the Women's Team Race Series.
To all the riders, thanks, I have had great fun this year!
Jon Miles
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