Month: April 2019

Hi – shame about the weather Wednesday night, as well as no racing it meant we missed the chance to ask you all to help out (or race) tonight at the Friday Night Vets and Women’s League. Truth is we desperately need some helpers for this.

Why should you help?

We can only book the track on a Wednesday or Friday evening due to the lease the cricket club has with the council. If we don’t book it on a Friday night and run races then it won’t be long before the cricket club look to take over Fridays as well and with the track in use only one night a week the council will become even more hesitant to look after it. At least that is our fear.

So if you value racing at the track please do come and help us keep it going and please let us know by emailing volunteering@scrl.co.uk

Oh and a few more racers wouldn’t go amiss. Pass it on to your club mates. If they fit the age/gender categories then this is a good opportunity to give track racing a try.

It is with regret, but probably no surprise, that tonight’s racing is cancelled. In windier/warmer conditions the track might dry near to start time but with the track unlikely to dry, and more rain possibly on the way we have to admit defeat.

Don’t forget that the Vets and Womens series starts Friday!

The forecast is good (not even very windy) and the first meet of our 18 week league is almost upon us! With that in mind, here’s a couple of gentle reminders.

Volunteers

As always, we always need volunteers for all aspects of our racing, especially marshals. Please see our volunteers page and offer your services if you can.

Youth riders new to fixed gear

For those youth riding fixed gear for the first time, remember to make sure that you are using the appropriate gear limits for your age group. There is a guide to setting and checking youth gear limits on the British Cycling website here. You must also have completed an accreditation session.

Registration

If you raced last year, we will have printed out your registration form already and all you have to do is turn up, pay your registration fee and sign it. If you did NOT race last year, you will need to register anew. Click here to go to the registration page. Please note that if you wish to race this Wednesday the online registration deadline is passed and you should print out and bring along your registration as per the instructions on the registration page.

Licences

Don’t forget your British Cycling licence! When you sign your registration form and pay your registration fee WE MUST SEE YOUR BRITISH CYCLING LICENCE and also IT MUST BE VALID UP UNTIL OR LATER THAN 14th AUGUST 2019 (the end of the season).

If you cannot produce a valid licence we will have to charge you for a day licence if you want to race.

Payment

Please remember to bring not just your race fee for the day but also your registration fee! CASH ONLY PLEASE

Category	Bring	To Pay
Youths	£10	£5 registration + £5 race fee
Juniors	£13	£5 registration + £8 race fee
Seniors	£15	£5 registration + £10 race fee

Remember it’s still early April!

Don’t forget it can get chilly down at the track when the sun starts to set, so don’t leave those winter coats and blankets at home just yet!

See you Wednesday!

Yes – just over a week now to the start of the 2019 track season at Preston Park. Racing starts on Wednesday 17th. So this Wednesday we have a pre-season warm up plus an opportunity to sort out your registration etc for the season. The track is booked so a chance to make sure you and your bike are ready. There is a small charge to help cover the cost of the track hire.

While you are there why not also sort out your registration so things are not quite so busy on the first evening. You do need to complete a registration form but if you raced last season then we have already printed one for you so all you need to do is check we still have all the right info, complete details about you BC licence (please bring your licence with you if you have one), sign and hand over £5. In exchange we will give you your race number for the season. Deal!

If you didn’t race last year then you can complete the registration form online at https://scrl.co.uk/register/ or you can download the form and bring it along (please note we won’t have printed out any online registrations received after 8pm Tuesday).

Riders do need to be accredited before they can race. There is another accreditation session this Friday then just one more on the 3rd May. A big thank you to the experienced riders that answered my plea for help last Friday, you contributed to a very successful session and apologies if you were charged for the evening, if you were then either claim a free session this Wednesday or I will sort out a refund. Help please this Friday as well!

Big changes this season with just 5 race categories. Check this and the new race program for the season on the website and make sure you know what a Tempo race is. Maybe we can practise some on Wednesday.

We have three accreditation nights planned at the start of the season, all on Friday evenings (5th & 12th April and the 3rd May). As part of the process we could do with some help from experienced riders to help form “friendly” bunches etc. If you are free (1st session is tomorrow evening) then do come along and help, the sessions start from 6 and there will be some free track time you can make use of for warming up for the season as well.

If you can let me know you are coming it helps (treasurer@scrl.co.uk) but will be more than happy if you do just turn up.

Thanks – Dave