Westbury Wheelers

Ted Walcroft (March 2011)

For as long as I can remember, I have always been a rider; whether it had 2 wheels or 3, I was happy to give it a go. Yes, cycle, motorcycle or  Scooter (j’adore Hardcore) it was always part of my life, if not my lifestyle. From kiddies tricycle with wooden blocks on the pedals (so that my little legs could reach them) through racing motor bikes and sidecars to triathlon bikes, road bikes and off-road bikes. However, despite my 2 wheel orientation, I did not become a committed cyclist until much later in life.

Competition cycling was always on the horizon of my sporting endeavours and I closely followed the efforts of British cyclists in the Tour de France. The efforts of Brian Robinson, Tommy Simpson and Barry Hoban were followed in the national press (first in the Express, until I found better coverage in the Telegraph) and later Sean Yates, Malcolm Elliott, Robert Millar (the climber) as Le Tour began appearing on ’the box’. The advent of fantastic coverage in the mid to late 80s and the antics of Millar, Roche and Kelly sparked a rejuvenation in my feelings for competition cycling.

As a youngster I knew no-one who was interested in cycles other than as a form of transport. Every day I would complete a 10 mile round trip to school and back on my Raleigh ’Palm Beach’ with sit up and beg handlebars, Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub centre gears and sensible saddle. I did suggest to my parents that a ’racer’ would get me through the traffic quicker, but they thought the ’Beach’ was a more cost effective cycle; after I crashed and wrote it off, they felt sorry for me and went out and bought another Raleigh Palm Beach…….

My school developed my sporty side and I played for the school rugby and cricket sides before winning various county championships at boxing and pole-vaulting. This kept my attention away from cyclesport; the purchase of motorbikes when in the sixth form saw me ditch cycling. The Army widened my sports as I competed at national level in Biathlon Skiing and ran in championship winning cross country teams and orienteering teams. Past rugby related injuries began to catch up with me and  running became less pleasurable, so when a friend suggested we take up triathlons ’because they don’t have much running in them’, cycling came back into my life. Realising that I needed advice and training partners, I joined Westbury Wheelers.

Soon the joy of working in a ‘chain gang’, group riding and Time Trialling unfolded before me; as I reached ’vethood’ my triathlon skills improved through no small part to the Wheelers and I twice won my Army colours for triathlons (we trounced the Navy and RAF 2 years running in the Inter-Services Triathlon). The Wheelers encouraged me to also try road races, randonnes and various cycling weekends and holidays; the Club became a big part of my social life providing me with a great bunch of friends and, of course, a lovely wife.

The ‘Ginger Whinger’ introduced me to  cycle orienteering and we became an effective ‘Trail Quest’ team, winning a number of national events in our age group. Following on from this I started Action Five Zero, organising on and off road ’quest’ type events and a few ’enduro’ type events. Some of the competitors from these events and some of the Wheelers also joined me in the Picos de Europe (Spain) for cycle holidays.

My cycling has declined recently due to health issues, but I’m looking forward to having a great 2011 with Westbury Wheelers.

Favourite past bikes: Road - Raleigh Dynatech 700, MTB - Saracen Kili Team.
Current bikes: Road - Orbea Aqua, Raleigh ‘Special Products’, dRibble. MTB -  Klein Attitude Race, Specialised MP4, Kili Team
Favourite Past Motorbikes: Road - Moto Morini Corsaro. Off-Road - 250 Maico GS
Current Motorbike: Triumph Sprint RS 955i

ON THE AUBISQUE - THE EASY WAY

Favourite Injury: Snapped Anterior Crusciate Ligament
Current Injury: Broken Collarbone
Favourite Tool: Felling axe (to use on my all time most unfavourite bicycle - Ribble)
Favourite film: The Big Lebowski
Favourite Group: Rammstein
Favourite Number: Steak and Kydney
Favourite Food: Pi