By Jim Kerr.

So this year’s time trialling has come to a sunny and hilly end. I thought I would try and give you a different viewpoint of this Horsham Cycling event. You will have seen Ferenc’s excellent weekly update on how well everyone is doing and who managed a PB (Personal Best) or as is more likely, his wildly expansive excuses to explain why Sam regularly been faster than him…
At the bottom of his reporting comes a note to say thank you to the marshals, spotters, pushers and timekeepers… who are these people? Well here it goes:

Back in the day when the club was relatively new, I got in touch with Stewart wanting to join. I foolishly agreed to a Thursday afternoon club ride, only to find that what I had joined was their SG3 equivalent. As a Social 1 rider, I think they quickly and graciously accepted I was not going to keep up. So onwards to Sunday Social 1. When you work weekends, your ability to join groups is limited…

….but I liked the people and wanted to do something to keep myself involved.

Then I saw a Sunday note from Stewart asking for volunteer marshals and helpers for time trials on a Tuesday night – I’ll give that a go.

I’d imagine that my first experience of Tuesday nights would be similar to many of you. Here was a group of friendly people who looked really fit and talked PBs and gear ratios and something called G10/84. I confess to confusion! On the other hand, as Stewart says, ‘Be a pusher. Hold them upright, what more can go wrong?’. Turns out a lot. More on that later. These excellent time trialists sometimes forget to pedal!! I watched and learned as Peter Delve and his son, James, timed each individual and I simply called out the race numbers as each person finished.

Then I learned something really important:

None of these people were racing against each other!!!

I just could not get it! If you are not doing that, what is the point? Turns out my perception was really off. These folks (lads and ladies) were really only racing themselves. Sure there was a prize for the fastest lady and gent but the racing committee have a handicap system and no matter how good or bad you think you are, you can always win. If you don’t believe me, ask Robbie Calder. Robbie turned up week in and week out and was always the slowest but was the first to jump up and cheer if he beat his previous times. I’ve never met a rider who laughed and had so much fun as Robbie did!

After a while, the team decided that they needed more timekeepers, so off I went to a course on an evening with Colin Ferry and Jason Baverstock where we were shown what to do and given a rigorous test of our ability. So onwards and upwards.

One frightening Tuesday night early in the season of 2012/13, it was my turn. Colin and I took turns to start riders on a small side road which is now Bohunt school. Riders road to the Crawley roundabout and back. 10 miles. We crossed the dual carriageway and stood in a layby waiting for the finishers. I was massively nervous. It all seemed to work out OK and I was invited back. (for the aficionados: If you go to the first layby beyond the Roffey roundabout, the secret code for illegal time trailing (Time trials were banned in 1890 and 1897), from when it was banned is still stamped into the kerb. Hence the reason a lot of these courses have code numbers. Blame F T Bidlake for the current one minute process – riders could only ride in secret, wearing inconspicuous clothing! Look it up!) 15 years later and we are still here. We kept going, even through Covid (bring your own pen to sign in with, leave your number in the disinfectant bowl, leave immediately you finish) and beyond. A number of people have come and gone in the process and the timekeeper team consists of me, Ken Cullern, Mark Corliss and Bob Wall.

The whole thing has led me to working with British Cycling road racing and to Cycling Time Trials UK races.

Now to the main point. If all of the above sounds really not for you and you are thinking nope, then when the season starts again, come and see us, give it a go – we can help you – or simply stand and cheer. If you are thinking you might be embarrassed, then I can show you my times (or maybe not to protect the innocent!) Alternatively we really would be grateful for anyone who wants to come along on a Tuesday night and just help.

If you came and cheered at the recent hill climb, you probably get the idea!

So what can go wrong? Alan Dolan, if you are reading this, you know I am going to mention your ability to sit upright on a bike. Dale, who I held onto at the start a few seconds too long and missed his PB by one second. The odd person who put the wrong number on or tried to confuse me by starting too early. The unnamed rider who went seriously off course and was about 30 minutes late coming back, having cycled about 20 miles! And of course there were the pedals that fell off, the saddle that fell off and the forementioned people who magnificently toppled onto the grass when they forgot to pedal when we said go!

I have people to thank along the way for helping me and Horsham Cycling time trialling other than those mentioned above. Past and present members:
So, thanks to Dave Manders, Peter Delve, Steve Gledhill, Alan Dolan, Steve Strickland, Ray Watson, Bryn Reeves, Tim Peters, Steve Copeland, Jon Fry, Tony Brown, Don Smith, Andy Dunstan, Julie Hill, Robbie Calder, Giles Hundleby and a host of others who over the years have given us their time. If I have missed you out here, the fault is mine but know who you are and have my thanks.

A special mention goes to Stewart who has been doing this organisational thing (and sometimes riding) as long as I can remember, and to my long time timetrialling partner Colin.