DAVIDSTOWN

Imagine a place where anything can happen, crazy scenarios could come true? A place where gladiators hold off the baying crowd occasionally, where dreams are begun and realised, where hard work might actually pay off. Davidstown is such a place! I have to hand it to Slaney Cycling Club, having a novice racing section is the only way to allow people get a taste for racing in relatively sane conditions. Open races are not nice places for newbies! Have to say I've had some great fun in Davidstown. Over the years, theres been ding-dong battles and great rivalries. Its a calm environment, a friendly place where people generally leave their egoes at the door. And get racing. And if you don't you'll be humbled.If theres one thing I've learned its that you shouldn't be the first to blink. Theres always some donkey [usually me] who works through in the pace line all evening just so many others can profit. Just because someone is escaping up the road does not make you morally responsible to chase it down! Of the half dozen teams racing, you must remember that they are laughing at the back while you pant at the front. DO NOT DO THE BULK OF WORK!! Another handy tenet is to have a shot in the sprint. You'll be surprised how many people come back in the finishing straight. You might just pick up a top ten or better through perseverence. Oh yeah, don't forget to get something out of the racing; A bit of work, an attack, a pursuit, a sprint train. Get involved and get something back. They are training/ league/ novice races. I know this year I'll be attacking and having fun, getting fit for the open races and getting my heart and lungs used to the strain of racing hard. I'm really looking forward to catching up with the whole community that is Wexford cycling too. Lots of banter on the move. I suppose everyone has something in the back of their heads that they plan to do at the leagues. Thats good. Its gonna be tough on everyone trying to gauge their efforts. In the novice race its a tough call measuring your effort not to arrive into the finishing straight running on fumes. In the other race its a tightrope, getting the over fifties back, not over-cooking the effort, watching the shadows. I won't be at Davidstown when I'm fifty but I admire their section at the league simply because theres no room for slacking. Its as honest as it gets. And I wouldn't begrudge them any win. But I'll leave it all on the road trying to prevent it. Just remember, don't be a diva. Leave it all on the road. Respect everyone of every category because we've all been there. Bring the temporal parietal lobe of your brain with you. Thats where the spatial awareness is. It stops us from swinging around like five bar gates in the wind. Don't forget that all the organisers and marshalls have lives, are voluntary and don't need to deal with silly stuff. Finally, don't forget how cool it feels to RACE.