LondonSkaters Speed Team - Speed Skating & Rollerblading Club in London

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

It was wet and very slippery in places. I crashed in warm up not doing anything special and it made me rather tense that I completely lost it on the second lap right leg started to go very funny almost locked. That's the one with the injury so I quit rather than risk it. Was going crap anyway as I couldn't use my weight to push was sliping a bit in places. Ran into Nina who had cut a corner and was giving up and shepherded her back the start/finish line and we stopped there.

Shame Ghizlane only made 3rd, we almost had a clean sweep.

Christophe · Joined: 26 Feb 2004 Posts: 1652

Well done Guys!
Shame about the weather, new season starting like the previous one ended it seems...

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

No that bad in terms of wet but with the really crap surfaces and them washing bits of the course by spraying detergent(!!!) on it an hour before the race it was considerably worse than Berlin. However, it was completely dry by the time the 42km race started. Didn't stay until the end so I don't know if it stayed that way.

BTW did Hans crash on lap 2? You dropped about 20 places between coming round at the end of lap1 and coming round again to finish lap 2.

Alan · Joined: 19 Sep 2005 Posts: 642 Location: Hackney, London

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

So that was Nathalie Barbotin. I wonder why she skates hands on knees every time she went past? Seems to work for her but she looks constantly tired.

Natasha · Joined: 09 Jul 2004 Posts: 2973 Location: Basingstoke

I'll work on my photos this week, I took squillions of the 30k. Well done everyone, it was great to watch.

peterc · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 1284 Location: M3 somewhere

A rather unpleasant combo of Lille's interesting (London esque) surfaces, overnight rain and some shockingly slippy bits. I went down in the first lap on what amounted to a camber change. (Same bit had me slip on at least one push for the rest of the laps.) It then it started to dry, so bits were slow and slippy, other bits smooth, downwind and dry, so some amazing yo yoing speeds in my line.

My race.
Got a great parking spot on the warm up track thanks to Natasha choice of hotel, (also had a place to stay warm, change wheels, get sorted etc.) Not too much warming up, more grip checking, seeing people drop here didn't do too much for anyone's confidence.

Line was a bit better organised than last year, we were at least all behind the line at the start, but again the gun was the first clue we were starting. Was in good sight of the front of the pack after the first corner, trying to find wheels that looked like they could handle themselves was not easy but the second bend was okay and I started to relax a bit, got to the lane change and went down, no warning, no choices, rolled and back up and started chasing but the lead pack had gone.

The drop ruined my stride and confidence till the back straight started to dry giving me a chance to make up space and time on those in front. Spent the next few laps picking up the bits of other crashes and those between lines, found a few workers and set about chasing down Fred's group. A few laps later I saw his diminished line stand up and dropped it to catch him, I think the accelerating lifted the line and we started to put in faster laps, with a core of about 3 at the front, Fred clipped in and we carried on as it dried, 2 laps to go a pair we caught at the hairpin (they still can't take bends) went off the front and I followed, taking a few from our line and this upped the tempo for a lap or so, as the rest pulled in behind.

Glad some nice Frenchman told me that the last lap was on (I think he thought I was too slow) so was expecting something, but when Fred went on the back straight I got boxed and had to curb hop to make it past a young slow guy in front of me, that gave Fred and his chaser a 10m gap I couldn't make back on so rather stupidly stood up with 20m to go, pipped on the line by a person I'd discounted as not fast enough to hold me in the sprint.

Save the last and first lap I had lots of fun, and I'll go again, if nothing else because of the success we have there, how many other clubs had quite so much podium action? Okay, it's the girls showing us the way, but still, it's our race, we own it. (okay they do.)

Well done all, but mostly the girls.

Glenn · Joined: 05 Feb 2005 Posts: 1109 Location: ST Pauls

Seems like some fantastic results there despite the weather. Special congrats to Sol and Tanya - very impressive.

Ray · Joined: 30 Mar 2004 Posts: 806 Location: Dagenham

Some good pic are up here: http://flickr.com/photos/francois_and_marie/sets/72157604039849569/

I see Sol and Ghizlane and Peter gave the LSST colours a high profile.

I also see Hans, Tanya, Andy and Alan

Martyzz1 · Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 358

Well done Sol and Tanya!!! woohooo... oh god, reading the race reports... feels beginnings of inspiration....

peterc · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 1284 Location: M3 somewhere

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

I put my photos in the gallery this morning.

greazer · Joined: 07 Oct 2004 Posts: 330 Location: Haarlem

RollerTV video part 2 (160 MB Exclamation

) of the Lille open race, with minutes of Sol and Tanya! Very Happy

http://www.rollertv.com/roller/videos_payantes/080302_lille/080302_lille_open2.mpg

Cheers,
Andy.

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

Nice find Andy and nice skating ladies. Thumbs Up

ed! · Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 10:39 pm Subject:

Tanya / Sol, is that the equivalent to the Sebby and Gavin show?

You two made me laugh!!!