Rothesay Weekend of Cycling
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The first event at the Rothesay Weekend of Cycling 2021 was the Serpentine Hill Climb sponsored by Fyne Homes. The fastest FWCC rider up the hill was Sean Barron recording 2 minutes 28 seconds for 33rd position – somewhat unkindly the results sheet records his speed as 0mph, it looked a bit faster than that. Allan Duncan was 10 places back in 43rd in 2m43s and Scott Gourlay was FWCC’s 3rd finisher recording 3m15s for 62nd place. Completing the club’s representation was Steve Donaldson warming up for the 2up in the afternoon by finishing 70th in 5m04s.
Event two in the afternoon was the 2-Up Team Time Trial for the Jim McAlister Memorial Trophy sponsored by Janet McAlister. Our first team of Rob Graham and Sean crossed the line in 53m45s for an average speed of 22.326mph and 18th place. Next up were Jim Goldie and Scott who averaged 20.397mph for a time of 58m50s and 38th place. Steve and Dougie Macdonald caught Gordon Graham on the final hill before finishing in 44th with a time of 65m15s and an average of 18.391mph. (editor’s note – Gordon was spectating at the side of the road offering much needed encouragement) Club casualties were Allan and Callum Higgins who unfortunately suffered a puncture after only 4.5 miles and our mixed team blend of youth and experience, Charlie Nunn and Mikey Devlin, who didn’t make it to the start line.
There are unofficial accounts of a pub race on Saturday evening but in the best tradition of on tour reporting, what happens in Rothesay stays in Rothesay.
Sunday morning saw FWCC with only one rider in the 10 mile Time trial sponsored by Bute Backpackers. Allan Duncan was 28th in 24:42 for an average of 24.291mph. It’s a beautiful course with reasonably good road surface so it’s hard to explain why the whole field recorded times which would be well outside best performances – perhaps the dead turn at the ferry terminal at Rhubodach, or the long drag up at the end account for it but they didn’t affect the enjoyment of cycling amongst the best scenery Scotland has to offer. Our only other entrant, Gordon Graham, was sabotaged by his dentist on the previous Thursday and didn’t start.
In the Novice 20 mile Road Race, Dougie Macdonald failed to make the first group after the neutralised first mile but got into a group of 5 for a second tour round the island following Saturday’s 2up. In a desperate attempt to gain some credibility he won the sprint for 1st woman finishing in 17th (first and only 0-60) – unfortunately there were some issues with the timing chips and the Strava segments are not matched to the course, however, as a best estimate it looks like the time was 59m40s and an average speed of 32.8kmph. It was an exciting race to be a part of and, despite the inevitable presence of some ringers at the sharp end, I thoroughly recommend it as an introduction to bunch racing.
The last event to finish was the 40 mile APR – apologies if FWCC had riders in it that I haven’t reported on (feel free to add details if this is the case) but in my post race recovery mode I didn’t spot anyone in club colours and at the time of writing the results have not been published.
Even with the restrictions imposed by covid 19 and the impact that had on the social side of the weekend this was a great event. Perhaps next year I’ll be able to share the experience with a few more FWCC members!
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