Ieuan Andy Davies takes top spot in the Ystwyth CC 10 mile time trial


With the sun setting majestically down the Rheidol valley, 27 riders, the highest number in 2017, took part in the latest Ystwyth CC 10 mile time trial.  On the challenging course known as the Cwm Rheidol 10, riders tackle the technical corners and climbs out to the A44 roundabout and back.  With a slight headwind on the outward leg, the riders were optimistic at the start line of the  benefit from the tailwind on the hillier return leg of the course.

A record 10 female riders competed in the event, many riding a time trial for the first time which is fantastic.  The first female rider home on a TT bike was Helen Marshall in a competitive time of 26min and 58 seconds, also putting her in 11th position on the night.  This was followed in second place by Emma Palfrey in 27min 14 seconds and third place went to Shannon Haird in a time of 29min 4 seconds.

In the two up category, Layla Skot Parker and Leif Skot took the win in 28min and 37seconds closely followed by Lowri Norrington Davies and Derek Rattray in 31min and 24 seconds.

In the men’s event, 15 riders took to the start line. With the sun setting, and feeling no side effect from a fantastic win on Tuesday evening at the Llandow circuit, Ieuan Andy Davies took pole position in a time of 22min and 39seconds, this was followed in second place by the consistent Danny Thorogood in a time of 23min and 14 seconds. In third place, following a few weeks absence, Andrew Poole produced a solid 23min 39seconds.

First roadie home saw Jack Woolley take 4th spot overall in a very impressive time of 24min and 1 second.

Riders were treated to free coffee and cake after the event, providing an ideal opportunity to discuss the evening’s event.

Thanks again, must go to Andy Hunt, TT coordinator and his team of volunteers and contributors to the Ystwyth CC bake off.

Cwmrheidol 10  12/7/17

1 Ieuan Andy Davies 22.39

2 Danny Thorogood 23.14

3 Andrew Poole 23.39

4 Jack Woolley (R) 24.01

5 Paul Jones 24.37

6 Martyn Saycell 25.10

7 Andy Hamilton 25.14

8 Shelley Childs 25.50

9 Scott Tomsett 25.54

10 Andy Starr 26.53

11 Helen Marshall 26.58

12 Endaf Williams (R) 27.03

13 Emma Palfrey 27.14

14 Dafydd Wright 28.18

15 Rhodri Duffee 28.19

16 Layla Skot Parker & Leif Skot (R) 28.37

17 Shannon Haird 29.04

18 David Wright (R) 29.05

19 Lowri Richards (R) 29.56

20 Ian Brandreth (R) 30.56

21 Heulwen Lloyd (R) 30.58

22 Derek Rattray & Lowri Norrington Davies 31.34

23 Nia Richards (R) 32.07

24 Kim Jones 35.29

25 Angharad Jones  (R) 36.13

(R) No tri bars


Llety Gwyn 10 5/7/17

In near perfect conditions, 25 riders comprising of 23 individual riders and one two-up competed on the Llety Gwyn 10-mile TT course.

With a slight cross wind, riders would not benefit from a supporting wind on either the out or return leg.

Having raced on Tuesday evening at Llandow, Ieuan Andy Davies took the top spot with an impressive 22min 25sec. Danny Thorogood took second in 22min 50sec with West Wales Cycle Racing Team rider Joshua Tarling getting third spot in 23min 24sec ahead of his dad, Mike Tarling.

Paul Jones and Andy Hamilton showed an impressive return to top form with some strong times.

Jack Woolley took the top spot in the road bike category in a very competitive 23min 50sec.

It was great to see 6 female riders, possibly the highest number of female riders challenging the TT course, taking the start line with Lois Brewer taking top spot in an impressive 27min 4sec. West Wales Cycle Racing Team rider Shannon Haird took the second spot in 27min 16sec and Leah Brewer took third spot in 28min 32sec.

Layla Skot Parker and Leif Skot continue to shave time off their two-up TT time.

Katie Miles took the win in the road bike category for the female riders in an impressive 29min 10 sec.

Thanks again to Andy Hunt and his dedicated team of marshals for providing a vibrant TT event.

Llety Gwyn 10  5/7/17

1 Ieuan Andy Davies 22.25
2 Danny Thorogood 22.50
3 Joshua Tarling 23.24
4 Michael Tarling 23.40
5 Jack Woolley (R) 23.50
6 Paul Jones 24.17
7 Andy Hamilton 24.38
8 Martyn Saycell 24.53
9 Chris McClean (R) 25.39
10 Endaf Williams (R) 26.16
11 Andy Starr 26.24
12 Lois Brewer 27.04
13 Shannon Haird 27.16
13 Alan Haird 27.16
15 Rhodri Duffee 27.41
16 Ian Stevens (R) 27.57
17 Layla Skot Parker & Leif Skot (R) 28.02
18 Dafydd Wright 28.17
19 David Jones (R) 28.21
19 David Wright (R) 28.21
21 Leah Brewer 28.32
22 Katie Miles (R) 29.10
23 Llyr Morgan (R) 30.04
24 Kim Jones 33.36

Watch the Tour this Sunday with Ystwyth!

It’s been a historic start to this year’s Tour de France, with Geraint Thomas becoming the first Welshman ever to wear the yellow jersey – and he’s still wearing it as we write, three days later!

This Sunday afternoon, why not join Ystwyth to watch the Tour live at the Ship and Castle from 2pm onwards – and put your feet up after one of our Sunday rides, maybe? Stage 9 promises to be the toughest stage of this year’s Tour so far, as the riders reach the foothills of the Alps, with four classified climbs and 4,600m of ascent, including the Col du Grand Colombier.

We’ll see you there!

https://www.facebook.com/events/473839902968741

Club neighbours Clwb Seiclo Caron CC host a great ride for Ystwyth

With the sun shining, fourteen Ystwyth CC riders made the trip south to Tregaron to meet up with our neighbouring club Clwb Seiclo Caron CC. With the promise of new routes we were not disappointed. Gwion James from Caron had planned a great 70km route leaving Tregaron, taking in Llanddewibrefi, Lampeter and Cribyn, then leading us to a welcomed cafe stop at the National Trust’s Llanerchaeron. Fuelled up with coffee, cake and bacon baps we headed north onto a great back road to Pennant, then east to Cross Inn.  With regular regroups along the way we made our way back to Tregaron with the sun still shining.
On Saturday 15th July there is another chance to ride the roads in this area.There are 3 sportive routes leaving Tregaron, with 20 mile, 40 mile and 79 mile options. This is a good chance to ride a local sportive and support a great local event:

Thanks to Caron for organising and showing us some great routes in south Ceredigion.  

Nant Yr Arian 12 mile hilly time trial

7 riders completed the challenging Ystwyth CC Nant yr Arian 12 mile hilly time trial. In cool, calm conditions, the riders descend the 6 miles to the A44 roundabout before taking on the 6 mile ascent back to the finish line.

With a good mix of time trial and road bikes on the start line, the benefit of a fast technical descent is balanced with the ability to climb strongly.

This proved no problem for Ieuan Andy Davies who took the win with a strong 33min 10 seconds, followed in second place by Andy Hunt on a road bike, just scraping under the 36min barrier. Paul Jones took 3rd place with the remaining 4 riders closely grouped within 3 minutes of each other.

Next week the riders return to the Llety Gwyn time trial route.

Nant Yr Arian 12 – 28/6/17

1. Ieuan Andy Davies 33.10
2. Andy Hunt (R) 35.59
3. Paul Jones 37.44
4. Martyn Saycell (R) 39.09
5. Andy Starr 40.25
6. David Jones (R) 40.50
7. Leif Skot (R) 41.45

Ystwyth CC join Clwb Seiclo Caron CC for a Sunday Ride – 2nd July

Clwb Seiclo Caron CC have kindly agreed to host our Sunday Social Ride and Club Run on the 2nd July. 
The pace will be a steady 15mph average, with the ride leaving from Tregaron Square at 9.30am. This is a great chance to explore the roads further south in the county.

The plan is to go south from Tregaron, a flat 10 miles to Lampeter and then to make our way towards a popular stop at Llanerchaeron, and return to Tregaron. Total around 35-40 miles.

Riding in Ystwyth colours this summer? Let us know!

The racing and sportive season is in full flow and it’s great to see reports and photos of Ystwyth riders participating in all sorts of different events. If you’re riding in any event or race over the summer, or are simply having an adventure, be sure to let us know either on our Ystwyth FB page or by email ystwythcc@gmail.com

Don’t forget, also, to let us know if you want any photos to be added to our #ystwythjerseychallenge, as part of our 65th anniversary celebrations, whether you’re riding a sportive, racing, time-trialling or just enjoying a ride home or away. The closing date is 3rd December 2017 and the winner will receive a £65 voucher kindly donated by our sponsors Summit Cycles. The full jersey challenge album can be seen here 

Dai Clarke riding the Fred Whitton Challenge in Ystwyth colours, May 2017
Elaine Rowlands in the Back O’Skiddaw sportive in early June

Gethin Howells during the Granfondo Stelvio Santini sportive in northern Italy, also in early June

Aberystwyth Rapha Women’s 100k, 23rd July

The Rapha Women’s 100k is a celebration of cycling community and collective spirit among riders across the globe. Since its inception, the Women’s 100 has inspired cyclists across the world to come together and ride 100km on the same day. 
On Sunday 23rd July the Ystwyth Club Run, Social Ride and Beginner Ride will join in supporting the Aberystwyth Rapha Women’s 100k led by Mel Gaul. 
Both women and men are encouraged to ride in suport of this event, and you can also register your intent to ride with Rapha here http://pages.rapha.cc/womens100 to receive information about the event worldwide.
The proposed route, from Plascrug Leisure Centre to Aberdyfi and back, is available here https://www.strava.com/routes/9267699 
There will be plenty of different paced groups and encouragement on the day, along with a support vehicle, and no-one will be dropped or left behind. We’ll also have a proper stop to refuel at Aberdyfi half way. However as this is a long ride we would also encourage riders to ensure they bring sufficient drink and snacks. Further information given by Ystwyth CC to its riders on what equipment to bring etc is available here https://www.bc-clubs.co.uk/ystwythcc/index.php/club-rides/

So why not set yourself a challenge and join us on the Aberystwyth Rapha Women’s 100k on Sunday 23rd July?

Ystwyth Juniors’ Summer Cycling Series

Friday evening, 23 June, will see the start of Ystwyth Juniors’ Summer Cycling Series at Blaendolau – another brand new series of events from our ever-growing junior club. Ystwyth Juniors’ usual Friday evening skills sessions have been attracting 60 to 70 riders in recent weeks, which is remarkable considering that the club is only a year old.

This summer series will be for school children and adults alike, with a number of different routes catering for youngsters through to adults.

This is a three-round series, followed by a fun evening and presentation. At the presentation there will be an award for 1st, 2nd and 3rd in each year group but also a trophy for the school that scores the most points based on the first 5 finishers in each race.

The emphasis will still be on fun and participation. Courses and sign-on will be ready from 5.30pm with the first race at 6.15pm.

Time Trialists enjoy the summer heat

Bathed in glorious sunshine, 25 riders registered to compete in the Llety Gwyn 10 mile time trail. With a supporting tail wind on the outward leg, riders were optimistic to make good time to the turn around point and battle the return leg home.

In the absence of Ieuan Andy Davies and Danny Thorogood, competition for the 1st spot was going to interesting. Martyn Saycell crossed the line with the fastest time of the night with a 24min 38 sec followed by Paul Jones and Paul Brewer both clocking a 25min 12 sec.

First road bike rider saw Adam Hughes just pip Hywel Davies to take the spoils.

First female saw Lois Brewer take the win in 27min, with Leah Brewer taking second in 28min 16 seconds and Katie Miles third in 29min 02 seconds.

In the two-up battle, Lowri and Aled Richards just retuned ahead of Layla Skot Parker and Leif Skot.

A great nights riding in excellent conditions shows that the Ystwyth CC time trial scene is growing from strength to strength.

Llety Gwyn 10. 21/6/17

1 Martyn Saycell 24.38
2 Paul Brewer 25.12
   Paul Jones 25.12
4 Dan Field 25.27
5 Adam Hughes (R) 25.29
6 Hywel Davies (R) 25.37
7 Andy Hamilton 26.08
8 Derek Rattray 26.09
9 Andy Starr 26.33
10 Ian Stevens (R) 26.43
11 Lois Brewer 27.00
12 Johnny Ryan 27.11
13 David Jones (R) 27.29
14 Rhodri Duffee 27.33
15 Lowri Richards & Aled Richards (R) 27.54
16 Layla Skot Parker & Leif Skot (R) 28.11
17 Leah Brewer 28.16
18 Paul Tedaldi 28.40
19 Dafydd Wright 28.46
20 David Wright (R) 28.50
21 Katie Miles (R) 29.02
22 Llyr Morgan (R) 30.06
23 Kim Jones 35.42