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Would they be welcoming to a club noob turning up and riding on their club runs? I saw some on the glendene site, but the distance varied and there was no indication about speed.

I don't want to get dropped on my first time out with them!

I think perhaps the Chelmer is your best bet - they run three groups a lot of the time, an A, B and C group with the speed and distance varying, the A group being the fastest. You could have a go with the C group and if its too slow you try the next one up. And like all clubs, I'm fairly certain they would welcome a noob with open arms. Don't worry too much about all these assertions that ***all ***clubs insist on helmets - mine certainly doesn't and I see plenty of riders on weekend club runs in cotton caps.

As far speeds - I would imagine the slower groups average around 15mph (could be slower) - if you want to mix it with the quickest riders in any club I would suggest you need to be able to ride at 20mph avg. for 50+ miles (obviously in a tight group this is a lot easier than doing that solo!).

Is anyone familiar with any clubs in the Brentwood/Chelmsford area of Essex?

Glendene CC - Brentwood
Shaftesbury CC - Mountnessing
Chelmer CC - Chelmsford

I booked on to my first 25 mile TT on 18/03. Lea Valley/32nd Assoc., haven't got my handbook to give a course code.

Lea Valley also said they put on 10 mile every Tuesday at Hog Hill if anyone fancies an alternative to Bexley.

E1/25b - love it, make sure you got a bit in the tank for the last few (uphill) miles. Big ring all the way...

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/294367

Dowsett did a sub 50 on there last year - Alex Dowsett of Team Sky starting the Lea Valley 25 on the E1/25b - 13th March 2011 - YouTube
- him setting off the 30 mph sign just after the start.....

Oh dear, missed the deadline for Shaftesbury Spring rides.

I'm fairly certain EOL is fine (the club treasurer would be more than happy, I can assure you!)

Seeing as I'm doing some half-ironman races this year, I need to get my TT on.

While I wait for my handbook to be delivered, does anyone know of any 50s in the general South East area happening this side of June?

Maldon and District - E21/50 - 27/5/2012

The OP mentioned a 102mm rim.

Great first TT time, Tom.

Warmed up with a deep section front wheel (102mm), but was too windy for me so switched to a standard rim.

Not sure a 102mm rim would be legal in any event (presuming its an event under CTT regs).

A quick question - have you recced this route? I'm fairly sure the section at 29 miles (between the bottom of Stock Lane and Stock village)is more farm track/footpath than public highway. I think you are better staying on Ingatestone Road then taking a left at Honeypot Lane to take the short but moderately testing climb up to Stock.

2 years in the making and you pick a day in the one week I am out of the country.....

Have a great ride guys, I'm looking forward to the write-up.

Could have, but I'm saving that special moment for a 111-mile sportive in April.

Touching. Cycling round the block 5 times at the end of a training ride to notch up your first century is the cycling equivalent of losing your virginity by way of a sordid short lived knee-trembler somewhere in a dark alley surrounding Kings-X. A century should be done properly; nice dinner, fine wine, candles, rose petals on the bed, you get the picture. Save yourself for the right ride. Other cyclists will respect you more for it.

Anyone know of any club 10's starting soon? Will try to do the Naverstock ones on a Friday night when I can but Fridays are difficult for me now

That course (E14/10a) is used on a number of other days midweek by quite a few other clubs (Glendene, Easterly, Ford etc...). If it's London East district you are after then pretty much everyone will be starting by the 2nd week of April and most are mid-week (the ELV one is quite rare being on a Friday). A London East handbook is your friend.

What's that big yellow ball?

More problems with your saddle?

Now you mention it, I never could understand what the fuck he was saying whenever I asked him the time (that was whenever he wasn't "away on the rigs").

Hmm, the woodworking thing etc. Perhaps you both have the same dad and he weren't commuting to London at all but pissing off to see his other family in Dorset and make em nice beds and shit, nick their picture discs and take em back to you saying he got them from London. Just an idea like.

you reckon I'll need a 27 even with a compact?

Tbh - I'll need all the help I can get for the L'alpe D'Huez climb at the end

I presume you're doing the etape? Depends on how much of this sort of climbing you've done in the past. Like Hippy said, not so much the steepness but the sheer duration that gets you. By the time you get to Plan Lachat on the Galibier you will (apart from a short descent into Valloire) have been cycling uphill for a very long time and then you hit the top of the valley and the road goes up the valley wall to the pass itself, some bits at that point are at 10%ish and you're now at 2,500m above sea level so you get a little bit of altitude effect as well. Oh, and it could be cool as well, last year on the Marmotte the top of Galibier was 16 degrees and overcast, Bourg D'Oisans was over 35 degrees and brilliant sunshine. But then you get the descent, especially after you join up with the Lauteret - it is awesome (except one or two of the tunnels!). A 34x25 on the Alpe at 80rpm avg cadence will get you from bottom to top in under an hour - you need to judge for yourself whether you think you will have that in you at the end of a long day in the saddle (that would be some ride). The 27 was my friend at the end the Marmotte, and I had a compact. There's nothing macho about small cogs and standard doubles when you're walking your bike up!

They're not as steep as the climbs over here though. They just go on for a lot longer.

What Hippy says is all true, but if you're doing the Galibier you will look back on your 25/27t decision with either regret or relief as you look up to your right when you approach Plan Lachat!

I've noticed some shoddy ride reports slipping in here of late...like 'garmin stats only' shoddy.

Guilty as charged. Saturday was a great day to take the usual ride over to Epping for some hill work. Mott Street was the main event, slowly rising up from the Lippets Hill junction to the short sharp ramp under the trees that saw the rear wheel slipping on a surface still slighty greasy despite the spring sunshine, resisted the urge to spin out too much on the short shallow stretch in the middle and then got on the gas again up to where the school sign signals the really steep part is about to begin but the end is in sight. Added a bit of spice with a left turn at the top, quick drop down, right and right again to take Wellington Hill back up to High Beech. Went straight through High Beech and down Claypits at speed, trying unsuccesfully to keep hands off the brakes through the two fast right handers. Upshire was its usual deceptive self, drag up, steep bit then drag up again to the top. Crown Hill proved again a good test, its not so long or steep but relatively rare in this area in that it crests onto a long flat (if badly surfaced) straight, always a good challenge to pick up your speed as you crest and keep up the pace on the flat to Epping Road - I more or less managed that on Saturday, the competitive edge in the group that creeps in this time of year providing just the right impetus. A right onto Epping Road then a left at the first roundabout, dropped down real quick (no setting off the speed camera this time though) into Theydon Bois, a hard left into Piercing Hill, the first little rise after the left turn taken out of the saddle carrying as much pace as possible from the descent (accompanied by a shout of 'give it some' from WVM in stationary traffic on other side of the road - obviously not trying hard enough), settled back down in the saddle for part 2 - a nice steady rise to a short sharp (badly surfaced at the bottom) drop to lead onto part 3 - the longest section that eventually delivered us up to the right hand turn and fast descent down Ivy Chimneys road and into Fiddlers Hamlet. Theydon Mount was the last real steep bit from here but was pretty much over before I’d realised that it had ramped up. The Abridge section was a last minute addition to take advantage of the best conditions of the year so far and a chance for the longish, steady, never too steep, climb up Hoe Lane to Lambourne End. One final little slog up Oak Hill Road and Tysea Hill and it was back to the gentle flattish countryside Essex is famous for. Felt good after 60 miles and having broken off from the rest of the group time-trialled the last 6 or 7 miles home at an average of just under 22.5mph. A pretty much perfect day's riding.

A good ride out to Epping to take in some hills..

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72540167

Beautiful conditions.

I love the look of surprise when I fly past lycra-clad dudes, hipsters and couriers alike. Is this a crime?

If you scream, "BOOOOOOM, HOW DO YOU LIKE THEM APPLES, HUH?" as you pass them, then yes*.

*Actuallly still a crime if you only do this in your head

I'd give it a go (for the right price) - about .2mm difference in spacing as I understand it.

The Hainault Hilly was fucking cold, and fucking hard work on the fixed gear. I sort of lost the will to live at one point. Another massive leap up the field for me, compared to last time, so I'm happy. I was 18th, and CatMan off the forum was 13th.

TBH, I've had enough of hilly courses now, and am looking forward to more gently undulating semi-sporting stuff. Want to see what happens when I get the chance to find a rhythm on the fixed…

Chapeau. That was a good ride on that gear - with a 13-24 I ran out of gears both ways in a number of different places. First time back on the TT rig since last season and I feel beat up right now. Bring on the sub-1 hour E1/25 rides!

As per the title....

Yep, thats me - good luck to you too. I shall go back to deliberating whether to run the disc with a 24t or go for a deep section with a 27t on the back, both options which admittedly now look a little weak in comparison to the 47-14...

If there were 90 riders, with a 10am event start, finishing around 1pm isn't that bad for the last few riders off.

I'm not sure how I'm going to cope with the 47x14 fixed, so despite being off about 11am, you never know…

I'm off 10 behind you, I reckon you'll be ok, only really Theydon Mount and the small kick up to the right hand turn into Banks Lane on the way out to Toot Hill that'll have you gurning on that gear I think - both mercifully short though. Be warned, if you havent ridden this route recently, the road surface between Banks Lane and Mount Road is seriously shit, gravelly (particularly the junction with Banks Lane) and loads of pot holes pretty much the entire length. The better line is over to the right on the way back, but if people are still on course (me!) and on their way up, that line may not be available...

^Hainault Hilly 50k.

If you're still out on course at 1pm you are bang in trouble!