Cyclists brave the rain for skills test
West Lothian Clarion event for young members
A British win at the Tour de France and Olympic cycling success inspired West Lothian Clarion to organise a special event.
The skills test and race day was held at Ingliston for its youth members.
Some 50 riders aged six to 16 took part, with 15 volunteers running the event.
The club hired the Ingliston track but couldn’t book the weather - although the rain didn’t deter some hard-fought racing, with riders demonstrating good bike control in the wet.
Youth Section Secretary Ewen Fulton said: “We want to develop both the bike handling and fitness of our riders so we introduced a skills test this year where riders had to pick up bottles off the floor and slalom around cones, even standing still while balancing on a bike.”
“It was absolutely chucking it down, but the riders were still gripping the tarmac at high speeds around the corners.”
Club road coach Matthew Ball added: “The youngsters seemed to relish the wet weather, they all tried their hardest. I felt more sorry for the volunteers and parents who had to stand around in the pouring rain.”
“As well as coaching the the club could organise this event in Linlithgow rather than having to travel out of town and hire a track if the proposed track at Kettilstoun was built.”
“We’ve got a massive waiting list and we’d love to open up these activities to more riders, both adult and youth. The proposed track would make Linlithgow a hub for cycling in the central belt but also allow more people to enjoy cycling safely.”
West Lothian Clarion was formed in 2008, and is one of over 30 local sections in the national Clarion. It organises regular social club runs and racing events.
The Youth Section was added in 2010 and now has over 80 members.
It is affiliated with Scottish Cycling and part of the Go Ride initiative to help develop cycling skills in the next generation of riders.
Among other activities, the Youth Section holds weekly training sessions covering three cycling disciplines: Road, Cyclocross and Mountain Biking. It also organises a five race series.
All of these sessions are run by volunteers the club currently has 10 qualified coaches ( with more being trained), as well as other volunteers who assist in the running of the club.
There is currently a lengthy waiting list for membership, but the club hopes that once the new coaches are available, this will allow them to start offering places to some of the young people on the list.
For more information about the club visit www.westlothianclarion.co.uk.