Breaking news! New MACT CT uniform design is underway!
The new design will be totally distinctive - so will not be confused with any other Australian club or team.
Spectrum Graphics has the following design brief:
1) Use Vikings CC colours (+ others as designer sees fit)
2) Retain the Vikings logos;
3) Retro style design - in keeping with a 'Masters' team;
4) Use 'V' motif;
5) The only sponsors on the uniform will be Spectrum Graphics, MACT CT blogspot, and Green Grocer Goulburn (in recognition of past and future services);
6) AUSTRALIA around collar;
7) Designs required for gloves, long and short sleeves (arm warms will incorporate long sleeve design), shoe covers, cycling style cap, socks, bandana, and soft shell team street jacket.
Can people please email me expressions of interest for - please see web site: http://www.tineli.com/customcycleclothing.html
for the various options. I will put together a spreadsheet for the order. Hopefully we can get to 100 items and therefore achieve the cheapest price.
I would encourage all active MACT CT riders to consider ordering :
- shoe covers,
- 2 pairs of socks,
- cap,
- 2 short sleeve jersey (specify zip length, m/f cut),
- arm warmers,
- 2 bib knicks (specify m/f chamois shape),
- knee warmers,
- windtex vest,
- skinsuit (specify sleeve length + m/f chamois shape),
- gloves,
- soft shell casual jacket
See sizing charts: http://www.tineli.com/sizes.html
There will have to be some good co-ordination here. There still is a minimum order of 10 per garment, but within this 10 we can specify zip type (S/M/L) and M/F chamois.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Simon's story of the NSW Team Pursuit Championships
On Saturday 14th of February three teams from Vikings/MACT wound their way down to the Dunc Gray velodrome (via the Grocers Bike shop and Cafe in Goulburn, which has become a traditional pilgrimage) to compete in the NSW Masters All Ages Club Team Pursuit Championships — an inelegant title for an otherwise beautiful event.
Part of the beauty was that one of the MACT teams emerged victorious, more of which later. But the main appeal stems from the fact that all teams have spent the past few years going down to this race, gradually improving both their style and their equipment such that they have transformed themselves from something like this...
Knobbly kneed collection of old fellas
to this...(pick the one who didn't want to be seen in an aero helmet!)
Lean mean (and kitted out) pursuiting machine
Make no mistake, this is not a race of pure grunt. It takes a lot of practice to master fine details such as working together to keep a smooth pace, swap turns smoothly without wasting energy, hold a wheel very closely etc etc. And despite all the practice we still managed to look a little shaky at times (although my tendency to look down at the speedo did contribute to that, I confess).
But when it all comes together, the sensation is pure exhilaration. Feeling the pace and the g-forces going through the corners as part of a well-oiled machine is pretty amazing.
On the night all three Vikings/MACT teams performed well. The first team of Simon Claringbold (Club Prez), Bill Laing, Steve Jones and Gary Aisbitt were setting a fast pace, right up until they caught the other team, whose lead rider swung up the track in the path of our riders not once, but twice, costing them a lot of time. Still they managed a pretty good time 3.42 for the 3000 metres.
The next team up, comprising Al Bontjer, Gerry Elias, Jim Veal and Anthony O'Connor (aka Sluggo) also rode well to post a time of 3:51 (1o seconds better than last year) after being caught by one of the faster teams (though Jim Veal seemed pretty determined to catch and pass them back again!)
Al leads them out while Jim's on third wheel, with his 'let me at 'em look.
The final team (who was ranked 8th on the night) consisted of Neil Skipper, Michael Aisbitt, Mark Harris and myself (Simon Niemeyer). The first three are all either, World (Mick) or former National Champs so we had a pretty classy team, but we had to do a pretty good time to make the finals. We'd figured we needed to put in a 3 minute 28 seconds 3000m to be in the running -- which works out at a riding pace of around 54-5 kph. Despite a few hiccups and an uneven pace due to jitters (I remember looking down at the speedo at the end of my first turn when our pace was over 58kph thinking we might be going a tad too fast). But we managed to hold it together for a time of 3:28.7, which was good enough to qualify us in second place and make the final for the Gold Medal ride off.
In the Gold Medal event we were pitched against the much fancied Bicisport team, which has traditionally cleaned up this whole event in the recent past. Bicisport is a top tier, cashed up team with a lot of classy riders, one of which is about to attempt a second go at the world hour record in our age group. Now, almost no-one thought we were going to beat this team (including, I must admit, myself) and this is what makes the victory even more special.
We started our run very well, though we may have gone out a tad too fast. We pulled ahead of Bicisport by half a second or so and held that for the first 1000m. In the second 1000m they worked their way back up until they passed us to gain a .3 second gap. This is where Neil Skipper, tenacious as ever, stepped up and put in a blinder over two laps to edge us back up toward the front. We were all starting to suffer by this point...I mean, check out this photo!...
... but we could smell victory and weren't about to give up.
When Neil pulled up Mick sensed that we needed to do something special to pluck victory away from the heretofore undisputed champs. So, with-teeth-so-gritted-I'm-amazed-he-didn't-get-lockjaw Mick wound the pace up even more as part of a sacrificial effort to drag the team up to the opposition. And this he did! Now spent, Mick swung up the track and yelled out "off" so that the three of us remaining knew that it was now up to us to keep it going for the last two laps.
The other team was starting to panic by this stage, maybe not being used to being put under pressure. They lost contact with the fourth rider and then, for a time, their third. (The time for the pursuit is taken from the rear wheel of the third rider, so you need them to stay in contact.)
The opposition gets the whiff of defeat.
I then tried to lift the pace even more, sensing that we weren't quite yet over the top of the other team enough to get the win. I gave it all I had, but when I swung up after a lap I realised the Mark had fallen back off my wheel ever so slightly and and had been pushing a fair bit of wind, giving it everything he had to stay in contact. (We've since realised from the photo's that Mark's 'wings out' position must have cost him some serious watts, making all this even more impressive.)
Check out the wings on this fella! You'd think forgoing the aero helmet was handicap enough!
Mark then went on to bring us home. When we crossed the line we heard two loud 'bang's in quick succession (indicating when the teams finished). So we knew it was close. It took two laps rolling around the circuit for us to realise that we'd won!! I swear it's the first time I'd ever punch the air and raised my arms in victory, but this one was particularly sweet. All of us were elated and we rolled around the track a few more times to soak it all in as we congratulated each other. The commissaires, usually quick to sweep riders off the track after their event, dropped officiousness in favour of a sense of occasion and gave us our moment of glory, congratulating us as we rode down the shute back into the centre of the track.
Ah, sweet victory.
More photos from Action Snaps and Ernie Smith here
Full results from the team pursuits and carnival.
The Vikings masters group was extremely competitive, had fun and were an approachable part of the community. The Vikings squad can be commended for riding well as a team in both the pursuits and the scratch and handicap races in the carnival.
Part of the beauty was that one of the MACT teams emerged victorious, more of which later. But the main appeal stems from the fact that all teams have spent the past few years going down to this race, gradually improving both their style and their equipment such that they have transformed themselves from something like this...
Knobbly kneed collection of old fellas
to this...(pick the one who didn't want to be seen in an aero helmet!)
Lean mean (and kitted out) pursuiting machine
Make no mistake, this is not a race of pure grunt. It takes a lot of practice to master fine details such as working together to keep a smooth pace, swap turns smoothly without wasting energy, hold a wheel very closely etc etc. And despite all the practice we still managed to look a little shaky at times (although my tendency to look down at the speedo did contribute to that, I confess).
But when it all comes together, the sensation is pure exhilaration. Feeling the pace and the g-forces going through the corners as part of a well-oiled machine is pretty amazing.
On the night all three Vikings/MACT teams performed well. The first team of Simon Claringbold (Club Prez), Bill Laing, Steve Jones and Gary Aisbitt were setting a fast pace, right up until they caught the other team, whose lead rider swung up the track in the path of our riders not once, but twice, costing them a lot of time. Still they managed a pretty good time 3.42 for the 3000 metres.
The next team up, comprising Al Bontjer, Gerry Elias, Jim Veal and Anthony O'Connor (aka Sluggo) also rode well to post a time of 3:51 (1o seconds better than last year) after being caught by one of the faster teams (though Jim Veal seemed pretty determined to catch and pass them back again!)
Al leads them out while Jim's on third wheel, with his 'let me at 'em look.
The final team (who was ranked 8th on the night) consisted of Neil Skipper, Michael Aisbitt, Mark Harris and myself (Simon Niemeyer). The first three are all either, World (Mick) or former National Champs so we had a pretty classy team, but we had to do a pretty good time to make the finals. We'd figured we needed to put in a 3 minute 28 seconds 3000m to be in the running -- which works out at a riding pace of around 54-5 kph. Despite a few hiccups and an uneven pace due to jitters (I remember looking down at the speedo at the end of my first turn when our pace was over 58kph thinking we might be going a tad too fast). But we managed to hold it together for a time of 3:28.7, which was good enough to qualify us in second place and make the final for the Gold Medal ride off.
In the Gold Medal event we were pitched against the much fancied Bicisport team, which has traditionally cleaned up this whole event in the recent past. Bicisport is a top tier, cashed up team with a lot of classy riders, one of which is about to attempt a second go at the world hour record in our age group. Now, almost no-one thought we were going to beat this team (including, I must admit, myself) and this is what makes the victory even more special.
We started our run very well, though we may have gone out a tad too fast. We pulled ahead of Bicisport by half a second or so and held that for the first 1000m. In the second 1000m they worked their way back up until they passed us to gain a .3 second gap. This is where Neil Skipper, tenacious as ever, stepped up and put in a blinder over two laps to edge us back up toward the front. We were all starting to suffer by this point...I mean, check out this photo!...
... but we could smell victory and weren't about to give up.
When Neil pulled up Mick sensed that we needed to do something special to pluck victory away from the heretofore undisputed champs. So, with-teeth-so-gritted-I'm-amazed-he-didn't-get-lockjaw Mick wound the pace up even more as part of a sacrificial effort to drag the team up to the opposition. And this he did! Now spent, Mick swung up the track and yelled out "off" so that the three of us remaining knew that it was now up to us to keep it going for the last two laps.
The other team was starting to panic by this stage, maybe not being used to being put under pressure. They lost contact with the fourth rider and then, for a time, their third. (The time for the pursuit is taken from the rear wheel of the third rider, so you need them to stay in contact.)
The opposition gets the whiff of defeat.
I then tried to lift the pace even more, sensing that we weren't quite yet over the top of the other team enough to get the win. I gave it all I had, but when I swung up after a lap I realised the Mark had fallen back off my wheel ever so slightly and and had been pushing a fair bit of wind, giving it everything he had to stay in contact. (We've since realised from the photo's that Mark's 'wings out' position must have cost him some serious watts, making all this even more impressive.)
Check out the wings on this fella! You'd think forgoing the aero helmet was handicap enough!
Mark then went on to bring us home. When we crossed the line we heard two loud 'bang's in quick succession (indicating when the teams finished). So we knew it was close. It took two laps rolling around the circuit for us to realise that we'd won!! I swear it's the first time I'd ever punch the air and raised my arms in victory, but this one was particularly sweet. All of us were elated and we rolled around the track a few more times to soak it all in as we congratulated each other. The commissaires, usually quick to sweep riders off the track after their event, dropped officiousness in favour of a sense of occasion and gave us our moment of glory, congratulating us as we rode down the shute back into the centre of the track.
Ah, sweet victory.
More photos from Action Snaps and Ernie Smith here
Full results from the team pursuits and carnival.
The Vikings masters group was extremely competitive, had fun and were an approachable part of the community. The Vikings squad can be commended for riding well as a team in both the pursuits and the scratch and handicap races in the carnival.
Monday, February 16, 2009
NSW Team Pursuit Championships 2009
Hi All,
CONGRATULATIONS!!
Simply an awesome, but seriously long, day!
All teams rode very professionally and with great skill. I believe, from what I saw, heard and read (researching previous results), that all the teams improved, and can continue do so in the future.
Support races were again dominated by the group, with some outstanding, selfless team work.
Some standouts for me, and there's quite a few:
The Vikings masters group was extremely competitive, had fun and were an approachable part of the community. Well done.
Thank you all so much for making the whole cycling experience fun and fulfilling for me (hang on, what am I saying? I was in big time pain). Let's keep it up, and improve on what we do.
Michael
ATTENTION! coming soon to a computer near you... Sydney Sunday Training plans; Team Sprint training, selection and qualifying; and National Championship preparation, plus much, much more.
CONGRATULATIONS!!
Simply an awesome, but seriously long, day!
All teams rode very professionally and with great skill. I believe, from what I saw, heard and read (researching previous results), that all the teams improved, and can continue do so in the future.
Support races were again dominated by the group, with some outstanding, selfless team work.
Some standouts for me, and there's quite a few:
- Neil's 2 lapper in the final.
- Mark- totally stepping up for the final (must have been the 96") then pumping everybody in the scratch race.
- Simon "Mr Cool" Niemeyer's casual attitude and consistency ... and riding a 98"... WHAT!!
- Steve Jones- now this guy is THE improver, LOOK OUT!! Hope to see you more on the track during the year. (Kerry is very welcome to just us too)
- Simon Claringbold- another super improver, please keep in touch with the track as it will help your road riding too.
- Allan "The Train"- leading out Bill in the scratch race and h'cap.
- Jim- getting back in the groove. Steady, Steady, Softly, Softly.
- Bill- A great night all round. Team pursuit, h'cap, scratch, fantastic. What a competitor!
- Sluggo- always thinking about the money, doing "the job" and consistent effort in team pursuit. Good to see you back after tough times.
- Gary- not mudding (himself), and keeping his cool (for a change) after a shocker whilst trying to pass the other team.
- Gerry- great team pursuit and team spirit, and great pushing and support. Might have to work on the team calling though:-) Can't wait to see you at NSW individual champs (don't forget the team sprint).
- Me- not passing out after qualifying.
The Vikings masters group was extremely competitive, had fun and were an approachable part of the community. Well done.
Thank you all so much for making the whole cycling experience fun and fulfilling for me (hang on, what am I saying? I was in big time pain). Let's keep it up, and improve on what we do.
Michael
ATTENTION! coming soon to a computer near you... Sydney Sunday Training plans; Team Sprint training, selection and qualifying; and National Championship preparation, plus much, much more.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Truly awesome effort by all on Saturday 14th February.
Congratulations MACT CT Team 1 for an outstanding performance in winning the NSW Masters Team Pursuit Championship.
The ride to qualify second fastest was superb. Then to really pull out all stop in the face of adversity, to respond to the pressure of being nearly a second down, and to lift to come back and put even more pressure on the favored opposition, then to see the opposition crack, it was electric!
Let's see the photos!
What a great night!
Congratulations MACT CT Team 1 for an outstanding performance in winning the NSW Masters Team Pursuit Championship.
The ride to qualify second fastest was superb. Then to really pull out all stop in the face of adversity, to respond to the pressure of being nearly a second down, and to lift to come back and put even more pressure on the favored opposition, then to see the opposition crack, it was electric!
Let's see the photos!
What a great night!
Friday, February 06, 2009
Masters 2/3 Crit Re-Run
To all masters men 2/3 - 2009 ACT Criterium Championships
2009 ACT Criterium Championships – Stromlo
The event re run will be Thursday 19th February 09
Grade, Race length, Start time
Registration from
The course will be Stromlo Forest Park Criterium Circuit in a clockwise direction.
Entry Cost is $10.00 per rider,
Those riders who had entered previously will be provided a credit for this event.
Other Masters 2 / 3 riders may enter and participate.
You will need to show your 2009 membership and or proof of renewal
Peter GOUGH
M_0418_452_434