Christmas 2009 - Training

Dear All,
Please note that the final coached sessions for 2009 will be;

Swimming
LEH 15th December
Hampton 17th December

Track
St Mary’s 16th December

Turbo
Hampton studio 23rd December

Core
Hampton studio 21st December

Activities will resume in 2010 on;

Swimming
Hampton 7th January
LEH 12th January

Track
St Mary’s 6th January

Core
Hampton studio 4th January

Regards
Jeff

Thames Turbo is now StarMark and Club Mark accredited

Months of hard work behind the scenes by the Thames Turbo committee has resulted in us being awarded both the Star Mark and the Club Mark accreditation.

Triathlon clubs in England and Wales can work towards achieving one of a number of recognised standards. These standards establish that the club is operating to best practice and is a safe and effective place to take part in triathlon. The benefits of becoming accredited are:

• Clubmark Acknowledgment that the club meets the needs and demands of athletes
• Increased revenue opportunities from new members and/or events and local funding streams
• Safe and effective training and competition environment.
• British Triathlon qualified coaches
• Clear club structures

There are three accreditation schemes available in England and Wales:

• Un, Dau, TRI (Junior clubs in Wales)
• Clubmark (Junior clubs in England)
• STAR (Senior clubs in England and Wales)

The common principles of the accreditation schemes are to enhance the club by providing a clear structure and pathway for club development. Obtaining the accreditation scheme will signify that the club has satisfactorily met a minimum level of standards recognised by triathletes, parents, coaches, Welsh Triathlon, Triathlon England and British Triathlon as a quality Triathlon Club.

More information can be found on the British Triathlon website.

2010 Club Championship Races

For 2010 we have identified a number of races across the year as Thames Turbo Club Championships. It’s a great opportunity for a big Club turn-out and a chance to beat some close rivals (ask Marcus and Straggler or the Chairman and Brian Hood!). The Championships though are intended to encourage all members at all levels. The more members we field the more enjoyable the racing!

 
Last year we had 86 Turbo’s enter at least one Club Championship Event. Lets see if we can get over 100 this year!
Just enter the races in the normal way and make sure you register as Thames Turbo.

Club championship races for 2010 are: 

Duathlon: Emberton Duathlon (10km/40km/5km), Emberton Country Park, Milton Keynes, Sunday 11th April 2010. http://www.big-cow.com/public/race.aspx?id=955 

Sprints: Eton Half Olympic (750m/20km/5km), Dorney Lake, Sunday 23rd May 2010. http://www.humanrace.co.uk 

 Olympic: Worthing Triathlon Standard Distance (1500m/40km/10km), Sunday 18th July 2010. http://www.rawenergypursuits.co.uk/HTML … athlon.htm

 Half-Ironman: The Vitruvian, Saturday 4th September 2010. http://www.pacesetterevents.com 

Enjoy the racing!

Club Captains for 2010

Congratulations Ryan and Holly Tomlinson who have been re-elected for a second year as the Thames Turbo Club Captains and  James Brown and Nick Clements who will be jointly acting as our Race Team Captains for the 2009/10 season

These roles are demanding  but exciting. They are going to need your full suppport. Holly and Ryan time will be really concentrating on drumming up support for and organising the Club Championship Races, and the National Relays.  James and Nick will be focussing on all things ‘team’ and ensuring  that we retain our London League silverware and much much more!

Here’s to Turbo victory both personal and for the club, at all levels and all distances in the forthcoming year.

Nigel Clemens

Chairman

Club Ride - Do’s and Don’ts

Turbos!

This article was written by Warren and Sarah Anne Evans. It’s a little gem!

Please take time to read it even if you are a regular at the Sunday rides it helps to remind ourselves of how we should cycle as a group and the responsibility to other road users and fellow cyclists.

Club Bike Rides - Do’s & Don’ts

Please take time to read this important post. (A Word document of this post is attached and is available for download).

Sunday bike rides are one of the most popular sessions at the club and the number turning out on even the coldest of days is amazingly high.

But with the larger groups of cyclists comes the high risk of danger, we need to make sure the Turbo club rides are safe, as well as good fun training.
Our club rides are unsupervised and the Club is not responsible for our safety.
As triathletes we compete as individuals but the Sunday bike ride is all about cycling as a pack, working together to get up those hills and staying together for the duration of the ride, no one gets left behind. When cycling with others, we all have a responsibility to look out for others’ safety as well as your own.
Here is a list of essential basic things to remember to keep it safe while cycling on your own and within groups. It is divided into the following sections:

· Do’s
· Don’ts
· Calls
· Hand Signals

Please apply these rules next time you are out. You will be expected to adhere to them, and will be reminded by your fellow cyclists if you don’t.

Do’s

- Follow the Highway Code at all times - it applies to ALL road-users.

- Wear a cycle helmet, you will not be allowed to ride if you do not have one.

- Ensure your bike is road worthy, brakes are fully operational and that your tyres are pumped up to the recommended PSI (as written on the tyre).

- Divide into smaller groups - be prepared to split into groups 10-12 maximum to be safe. Set off in these groups from the pool allowing adequate time between each group so that you don’t bunch up. For example, 08:05 fast group, 08:08 medium group, 08:10 Slow group.

- Cycle a maximum of two abreast in 2 close parallel lines where appropriate, focus on keeping it neat and tidy.

- Ride with 1ft approx. between your front wheel and the back wheel of the rider in front. There should also be 1ft between your shoulders and the rider beside you.

- Be prepared on small or busy roads to ride in single file.

- Riders at the back of the pack to shout “Car back, single file” if there are vehicles behind. Listen and act on their calls, DON’T look back and check for yourself, as you will move off your line and may cause an accident.

- Lead cyclists to navigate and point out hazards in the road by either shouting or using hand signals. Listen to them and act on the calls, and most importantly, repeat them for the cyclist behind you.

- Ride directly behind the wheel of the rider in front. If you cycle in the middle of the two wheels in front of you, you WILL push the cyclist on your outside into the path of passing vehicles.

- Brake as gently and smoothly as you safely can when riding in a pack

- Cover your brakes at all times.

- Talk to each other. Point out either with hand signals or shouts, all potholes, manhole covers and other dangers in the road that could cause punctures or accidents. Follow the hand signals and calls of the riders in front as they will have seen the danger before you and then you can all communicate down the pack.

- If you are the back of the group and either see someone dropping or are being dropped it is your responsibility to call to the cyclists in front that the pace is too high. The pack must communicate this up to the front. The lead cyclists will not be aware if you start to drop. Ask them to slow down, it is your ride too.

- Ride at a steady pace, keeping the pack as a compact unit

- Check over your shoulder for other riders or traffic before moving out to the right

- Slow right down when passing horses, and pass them as wide as it is safe to do so.

- If you are on the front, remember that people are following your calls. If you make a decision to pull out on a roundabout or junction, you need to call “Clear” or “Wait” to warn the pack of hazards.

- If you are feeling tired let people know. Accidents happen when people are tired and lose concentration. Everyone gets tired, let people know so they can slow the pace down and tuck you in the pack to carry you home ;o)

- Cycle with confidence. If you’re nervous you will tense up and then are less likely to be able to respond to things quickly.

- Always cycle in your comfort zone. When the groups are organised take a look at the cyclists in your pack. You might be able to cycle with them for 1 hour at their pace, but can you do 3 hours? Be realistic so that you enjoy the entire ride and don’t end up bonking after 1 hour, then forcing the pack to slow down for you

- When cycling at dusk or night wear appropriate reflective bright clothing and ensure you have working lights on the front and rear of your bike.

- Dress in appropriate clothing for the weather

- Bring everything you might need. Prepare for every eventuality. For example, puncture kit, tyre levers, inner tubes, pump, allen key set, helmet, waterproof jacket, food, water, money, credit card, mobile, contact details in emergency.

- Plan your nutrition according to your ride duration. You will burn on average 500calories per hour when cycling. You should be drinking one 750ml bottle of water every hour. You must have enough food to last the entire ride (riders may not wish to stop, especially if it’s cold or wet). Individual’s energy needs are different, but a guide for a 3 hour ride might be 2 bananas, 1 sports bar, 1 jam sandwich, 1 gel for emergency pick-me-up! Water is required as defined above.

DON’T

- Overlap wheels, or nudge in between the wheels of the riders in front. You will come off if they move off their line

- Ride on tri / aero bars in packs as you will not be able to brake or steer quickly

- Make any sudden movements/changes in direction off your line when in the pack. You are responsible for the cyclist behind you, they are following YOUR wheel they need to trust you.

- Ride off the front. This is a group ride, not a race. If you want to go faster then let the others know what you are going to do and if no one wants to join you then go off and enjoy your ride alone.

- Stop pedaling if you are on the front, even on downhills. The cyclists behind you will read this as you slowing and could be forced to brake and bunch up.

- “Zone out” on the wheel in front. Keep aware of everything that is going on around you, look ahead and that way you can avoid most hazards.

- Whip round the outside of the pack to get to the front unless in an emergency. Shout up the pack any communication. If you do need to get to the front then make sure you check in front and behind for cars, remember three abreast will push you out into on coming traffic.

- Pull out at junctions without looking, having heard the “Clear” call from a fellow cyclist. Check whether there is a vehicle coming yourself.

CALLS

These are some calls you might hear. It is essential that you repeat them down the pack so everyone can hear:

- “Car Up/Front/Back”
Keep tight to the cyclist next to you, and be prepared to cycle in single file

- “Hole”
Upcoming pothole to avoid. This can also be followed by a direction i.e “HOLE LEFT”.

- “Slowing”
Usually accompanied by a hand signal. The cyclist in front needs to slow down for some reason.

- “Stopping”
Brake!

- “Wait”
Usually at junctions to indicate there is a car coming

- “Clear”
To indicate that a junction is traffic free. You must check yourself and not rely on others.

- “Heads Up”
Hazard ahead, pay attention.

- “Single out/ single file”
Get into single file safely and promptly

HAND SIGNALS

These are some hand signals (other than the obvious left and right turns!) It is essential that you repeat them so everyone can see and pass it on:

- Single hand in the air (up or down)
Rider is signaling that he/she needs to stop or slow down. Usually followed by the call ‘Slowing’, ‘Stopping’.

- Pointing down at the road
This is to point out hazards such as pot holes, manhole covers etc. PLEASE copy this signal, it stops accidents and punctures.

- Arm out left or right
Everyone in the pack needs to indicate when turning left or right

- Left arm signaling behind back
Signal the cyclist is about to move out into the road, e.g. to pass a parked car, to go round debris in the road.

All of this will be enforced and reminded to you on our club rides. Please take it on board and keep our cyclists safe.

If you are new to bike riding, check the forum posts for an appropriate group.
Happy and safe riding! See you out there.

*TTTC recommends that anyone who rides on public roads has appropriate Cycle Insurance cover (e.g. as provided by your BTF membership or the BCF/CTC).