We ride with Brighton Excelsior
James West rides with a friendly club keen to encourage young riders
We used to be considered a bit of a rabble, but we are much more structured these days.” Martin Naylor, communications director for Brighton Excelsior CC (BECC), says before we set off on the Sunday club run. “Rides used to be 130-mile affairs, on and off roads, with a pub stop at lunch and in the evening,” Bob Harber, club chairman, confirms.
Despite that glimpse into the past, I could be forgiven for expecting a fairly gentle ride out when Alan Redman arrives for the Red Run on his Moulton Speed, which Naylor jokingly describes as a “suped-up shopping bike”. However, it becomes clear that wheel size is no impediment to Redman’s speed: it turns out he has completed a number of tough events on that bike.
“I only joined the club six months ago, as I often thought clubs could look a bit menacing when they are racing along, but I’m really glad I joined, as they are such a brilliant bunch of people,” he explains. The A27 blocks the coastal meeting point from the South Downs, but a wooden footbridge across the River Adur and a crossing controlled by traffic lights, with immediate access to the leafy Coombes Road, means there’s no need for riding along bypasses here.
That relaxed atmosphere continues throughout the ride, and the aim of inclusivity is often apparent. Many of the club members focus on triathlon, and have joined the club to improve the cycling discipline. The first three riders I speak to on the day, Mark Potter, Lydia Jordan and Claire Buckley, are all triathletes who welcome the challenge of a 50-mile ride at a good speed and the benefit it brings to their cycling.
When Jordan, who hasn’t been out on the bike for a few weeks, gets dropped on a rise just outside Barns Green, 25 miles in, everyone happily stops to wait for her. As Naylor says, “Brighton Excelsior is a friendly cycling club. People are welcome to join our rides and they won’t get dropped. Our ethos is to try and help everyone to become a better cyclist and get more from their cycling, competitive or otherwise.”
At the end-of-ride cafe stop, I meet 17-year-old Jack Churchill, who originally joined BECC’S youth section, VC Jubilee. Jack had just got back from the Black Run, a 60-plus mile route with an average speed of over 30kph — the first one of the winter. About 12 people joined
the run on this occasion as a number of other riders were taking part in the cyclo-cross at Herne Hill.
During the summer Churchill is more regularly found racing the junior circuit. “I raced Tom Pidcock and was close to him on the final climb on one race, but he just kept going when we got to the top, while I blew. The club is great for young riders.”
Chris Hodge, youth coach and a club member for 10 years, is keen to highlight the benefits of the youth section. “A few years ago, numbers on the club run were low, sometimes as few as six on the Sundays. But we had some initiatives aimed at young riders, and that side of the club has bloomed. A number of parents have also joined the club as a result of their children being involved. We’re in a good place now.”
One of those parents is Ros Greene, mother of 2015 junior Madison champion, Amy Smith, who I ride with while a digger looms on the 15 per cent ramp of Coombes Road. It’s little surprise to see Ros struggling — she’s also a swimming teacher and has done an hour of lessons before the club run this morning!
As members attack the undulating three miles of Coombes Road in a good-natured charge to the finish, the camaraderie of the club shine though once again: Claire Buckley, one of the triathletes, has a loose rear wheel, so a number of members help to attach it, despite knowing they won’t be first back to the cafe. Inclusivity has won the day, and it feels like it’s standard procedure at BECC.