Towy Riders Cycle Club

Welcome to the TRCC time trialling page, set up with a view to point you in the right direction and offer some advice with regard to this form of cycle racing.

The Club, being the adult arm of the junior Towy Riders, is in its infancy when it comes too competing, but there are a number of riders within the Club already putting themselves through the mill both locally and nationally and we hope that this can develop and progress to other members in time.

​

What is time trialling?
 

In a nutshell; the purest form of racing your bike - it's just you and your bike travelling a set distance between a starting and finishing point against the clock (i.e. AS FAST AS YOU CAN!). Due to this crude description it is no surprise that you will find it described by participants and organisers alike as "THE RACE OF TRUTH" - you're on your own - no hiding. The discipline takes place on public roads so safety is paramount so when the phrase "riding as fast as you can" is coined it is done safely and with regard to other road users and within the highway code. But don't be put off by the seriousness of competition - the discipline is fun as you are competing against yourself (until you start looking at the times of others around you and competitive spirit kicks in!!).

There are two types of events, "Club" and "Open"; the former are organised weekly or fortnightly by local Clubs for their members and those of neighbouring Clubs, whilst the latter are open to riders across the Regions. All competitions take place on courses throughout the UK at set distances from 10 miles through to 24hrs (yes honestly - riding for a whole day) and the courses are identified by numbers based upon the Region where they are held (e.g. the South Wales Region which TRCC falls into has the letter "R" before all of its courses). A list of all events within the Region (and outside) can be found on the Cycling Time Trials (CTT) website. Not only are there individual events but there are series of events run both Nationally and locally where you can challenge yourself against others from outside your Club. These include "The Celtic Series" within the South Wales Region, Welsh Cycling Association distance events and also National Championships.

How can you compete in time trialling?
 

All you need to begin with is a bike (in good working order), a helmet, legs and lungs - as simple as that in respect of equipment. What comes later as the bug bites is a more exotic bike, exotic equipment and a training plan!. Anyone can participate as long as you are a member of an affiliated Club (to the National governing body - Cycling Time Trials - CTT) and that you are aged over 12 years old (the minimum age for competition. For those aged between 12 and 18 years old you must have parental consent to take part in both Club and Open events.

If you log into the CTT website there are useful links within the Home Page to give you further advice and information - these can be found under "ABOUT" - "BASIC INFORMATION FOR BEGINNERS" & "YOUR FIRST TIME TRIAL". To compete in the Open events there are links under "COMPETITION" which includes a method of entry online as well as Start sheets and Results.

What is TRCC doing to progress time trialling?
 

The Club are affiliated to CTT, so there's a start - as long as you are paid up member then let's begin the quest. By being affiliated riders and the Club are covered by third party insurance when competing on sanctioned CTT events. As mentioned, some current members are actively competing so advice can be sought by linking in with them.