TIME TRIALING
Time trialling is a pursuit sport. Riders start at one minute intervals and ride a set course at their best possible speed. The immediate aim is to catch and overtake as many of the riders who started before you as you can and, of course, to avoid being caught by those who are started behind you! The actual prize is to complete the course quicker than anyone else, but out on the course, the competition is stiff as you try to gauge your performance against other riders and it is only after the time-keeper has computed the results that you really know how you have ridden.
There are 2 levels at which you can time trial. Club events and open events.
Club events are informal and are part of the club calendar, primarily for club members though riders from other clubs are sometimes welcome too (subject to Covid restrictions) contact John our
Open events are run under the auspices of CTT (Cycling Time Trials) which is the UK's time trial governing body. Anyone can pre-enter for these events by sending off an entry form and the nominal fee (usually £7:50). All the events are itemised in the Annual CTT Handbook and are organised and run by cycle clubs from all over the UK. With popular events the field may be oversubscribed in which case selection will normally be based on past performance and less able riders and novices may have to go on the reserve list or be refused.
Time Trial courses vary greatly and include such events as a 24 hour distance trials and '2 up' paired trials, but the norm is for 10, 25, 50 and 100 mile or kilometre courses. The terrain will vary too with sporting courses that would suit any road race through to flat or 'fast' courses along dual carriageways.
Virtual Tuesday TTs on Zwift, at 7.10pm.
Course: Tick Tock, Wattopia.
Tick Tock is a clockwise loop covering Fuego Flats and portions of the Ocean Boulevard tube. This is the second-flattest route in Wattopia, with just 2.6 meters of climbing per kilometer of road with the only 'pitchy' bits being in and out of Fuego Flats, and in and out of the ocean tunnel. See here for more details. Remember Nick's advice - know the course!
What you need to participate:
You don't need a smart turbo, but you do need:
1) A turbo (contact
2) A Zwift account (please be honest with your weight/height and if required calibrate your trainer - see advice here)
3) A Strava account (please join the 'Verulam CC' club on Strava, as this makes it easier to get the results)
And of course, a suitable PC/Laptop/Tablet/Smartphone with a reliable internet connection! Note: internet connections are not 100% reliable, if you have a drop out or someone turns off your PC its called an 'electrical' (as opposed to a mechanical), it's the equivalent to having a flat tyre or a red light
Who will win the Verulam Lock Down Virtual TT Championship?
To enter request an invite from
Before the day:
1) Use the Zwift Companion app to accept the invite from Martin
2) Log in to Zwift and select a TT bike from your garage. You must do this to have your time included in the club lock down competition as all need to ride a virtual TT bike on the day (no drafting benefit)
3) If you wish (recommended) choose the bee (yellow and black) design jersey (on Zwift), this way you can more easily spot other VCC members in the virtual world.
On the day:
1) Log in to Zwift and select Wattopia. The Meet Up button should appear above the menu button. Select this and join the growing cluster of VCC riders awaiting depart time.
2) (Optional) At the same time join the Zoom meeting (you'll need another connected device!) where you will be able to chat to fellow riders both before, during (perhaps!) and after the ride. Join up details will be shared on Slack on the #zwift channel.
3) At the set time all will depart together. This is NOT the start of the TT, that is about 2.5km later, so use this to roll out and warm up.
4) The start/finish line for the TT (the point timings are taken from/to in Strava) is the finish line of the short sprint in the ride. It's directly under a rocky archway and is marked by a red inflatable arch too. It's quite easy to miss, especially on the return when your eyes are full of sweat, so concentrate! And please ignore any other messages about the group ride finishing, you will still have around 2.5 km to go! YOU HAVE BEEN TOLD. If you don't go through the start/finish the 2nd time you will get a DNF ...so its full beans until the start/finish arch! Total distance is approximately 20km, including the roll out, so keep going until it's done!
Results:
Check the results spread sheet here or on slack.
BIG thanks to
