Month: September 2019

Another big field of 27 riders turned out to take on the 2.5 mile mill hill at Shoreham in the final evening hill climb of the season. The evening had taken on a distinct autumn feel with a fresh south westerly breeze giving an edge to the sunshine.

Patrick Brown took the win, with the rider from VC Venta finishing with a time of 7:50,  a full 20 seconds ahead of second placed rider Mark Day (URDT). Francis Schofield was the first Mitre rider as he came home 2 seconds later in third place.  Sharona Harrington was the first woman, finishing in a time of 10:16.  Full results below.

Attention now turns to the club’s hill climb double header on the 5th October. The open events start on Steyning Bostal with the first rider off at 11am. We then move over to Shoreham for the afternoon event on Mill Hill with the first rider off at 14:30. Please do come along to watch and let’s get a good atmosphere on the hill to encourage the riders up the steepest bits, cow bells and all!

These general principles for Brighton Mitre group rides go along with the group riding guidelines previously published and are intended to ensure that group rides are safe and enjoyable for all those who participate.  

They are specifically for all the non-led rides which take place every Saturday and now most Sundays too.  On these rides there are no designated ride leaders which means that we are all leaders and all have a responsibility for the safety of the group.  It follows that we are all therefore responsible for highlighting instances of poor riding so…

If your riding puts the group at risk, expect to be told.

We Ride as a Group

• British Cycling recommends that group rides are kept to a maximum of eight riders. This is an easily manageable number and makes communication within groups easy.
• On the road there may be times when groups come together – generally when there are a lot of traffic lights such as either direction along the sea front. In this case, it is generally better for the back group to slow down and allow the front group to distance itself.  If it’s clear that the back group is faster then the groups need to agree that they will swap places.
• Whilst it’s fine to ride off the front up the odd hill, the default is that we ride together as a close compact group. That means that some people will inevitably be riding more slowly than they might have done but as someone commented recently, “It’s a club ride, not a training ride”.

We Ride with Consideration for all Road Users

• We ride in a manner to make it as easy as possible for traffic to pass and with due care for pedestrians and horses.
• When we’re riding two abreast, we ride close to the kerb and close to each other. If we need to ride single-file to allow cars to pass then we do so and this means that EVERYONE needs to do so.  If even one rider fails to comply then it negates the purpose of the group riding singly.
• If we approach stationary traffic such as at traffic lights then we wait as a group. It’s simply not possible for a group of eight riders all to filter safely to the front of a line of cars even if you might do this as an individual rider.

We Communicate as a Group

• If you’re at the front then you’re calling out approaching hazards and obstacles. If you’re at the back then you’re calling out traffic behind and judging whether it’s necessary to single out.  Listen for calls and act upon them.

Mike Coyle (Brighton Mitre) took the win finishing in 8.04 on a beautiful evening at Mill Hill.

A light southerly breeze and warm evening sunshine welcomed a record 25 riders to take on the 2.6 mile ascent of Mill Hill near Shoreham.

Coyle proved too strong for the field, leading team mate Ben Huttly home by 15 seconds. James Bullen (URDT) came in third with a time of 8.21.

The 25 strong field also included 3 women with Janet Clapton proving the fastest in a time of 11.05.

Full results below:

We return to Mill Hill this Tuesday (03/09) for the final evening time trial of the year, with the first rider off at 7pm.