there's also Southern Vets (http://www.southernvets.com.au/),
Hawthorn (http://www.hawthorncycling.org/home/default.asp),
Blackburn (http://www.blackburncycling.org.au/index.html),
and Carnegie out this side of town (http://www.carnegiecycling.com.au/).

The Southern Vets don't have a day license, and their license can't be used at most other club races, but I'm still not sure about other vet associations.

when you rock up to your first race they'll ask you what training you've been doing, have you raced before, etc, etc, so you won't necessarily be put in the lowest grade.

AUSTRALIAN Baden Cooke, riding for the Unibet.com team, has won the Grand Prix La Marseillaise cycling race in France.

The race covered over 140km between Saint-Cannat and Le Tholonet.


Advertisement:
Results
1. Baden Cooke (Aus) Unibet.com 3hr 17min 55sec, 2. Philippe Gilbert (Bel) same time, 3. Anthony Geslin (Fra) s.t., 4. Arnaud Coyot (Fra) s.t., 5. Bjorn Leukemans (Bel) s.t., 6. Antonio D'Aniello (Ita) s.t., 7. Steven Caethoven (Bel) s.t., 8. Ytting Bak Lars (Den) s.t., 9. Rene Mandri (Est) s.t., 10. Igor Abakoumov (Rus) s.t.

no way !!!

Stage 2 - January 31: Camel Race Track - Al Khor Corniche, 138 km
Results
1 Tom Boonen (Bel) Quick Step Innergetic 3.31.06 (39.223 km/h)
2 Paride Grillo (Ita) Ceramiche Panaria
3 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Milram
4 Stuart O’Grady (Aus) Team CSC
5 Marcel Sieberg (Ger) Team Wiesenhof-Akud
6 Rene Haselbacher (Aut) Gerolsteiner
7 Graeme Brown (Aus) Rabobank
8 Kenny Robert Van Hummel (Ned) Skil-Shimano
9 Aitor Galdos Alonso (Spa) Ceramiche Panaria
10 Robert Hunter (RSA) Phonak Hearing Systems

As far as I know most vets clubs are affiliated with Cycling Australia via their state assn. Looking at their website, Southern Vets appears to be a normal club setup in this regard and they race performance based graded crits except for club championships which are age graded.

Just front up, you'll love it.

The vets are a different association to Cycling Aust & it's various state bodies and not UCI affiliated. There are Masters categories in CA racing but this is not related to the vets clubs. Vets are part of the Vets Cycling Council which runs thier own show - and quite well from what i hear.

So, basically there are two bodies, the CA affliliated clubs, and Veterans clubs, and a licence from one does not allow you to race with the other. Vets licences are cheaper than CA licences in Victoria.

The president of Eastern Vets walked up to a mate & I last year while we had a coffee stop (he wasn't on his bike) and asked if we raced, and had we thought about vets....must have been my mate's greying hair coz I'm sure I look younger than my age (35)! :)

From cyclingnews.com :(

"Gerrans and Deignan injured
AG2R riders Simon Gerrans and Philip Deignan were in hospital in Aix-en-Provence last night after crashing in yesterday's GP d'Ouverture La Marseillaise.

Gerrans, the recent overall winner of the Tour Down Under, fell in the final sprint, fracturing his left collarbone, rupturing his acromioclavicular ligaments and sustaining head injuries that required several stitches. He will be transferred to today to a hospital in Nice.

Deignan fell on the final descent, some 5km from the finish and broke his right collarbone. He will undergo an operation today in Aix-en-Provence."

sounds very painful !! :(

Not a peep about UCI's awarding of Masters Track Champs to Sydney anywhere. Not at CA, not at CNSW. What gives?

uuummmmmmm, nobody cares ? :)

True.

But still, it would be nice to know whether it'll be held at DGV or Terrigal BMX Track. And roughly when (normally Aug-Sep, which is a bit bloody early for us: thank god for FNWTR). And who's responsible. One always needs someone to blame when things take on the shape of a crash at a T-intersection. :D

well true, you'll have a good head start on your training :)

That maybe true in Vic. but not in Australia ;) . The Vets here in NSW, Waratahs and the Newey mob are definitely affifliated.

Australian cycling is a secret society which is currently being opened up to the normal folk, even if ever so slowly. Kerry Ruffles is on the job but old habits die hard.
Jock if you knew the secret handshake you'd be kept informed. I could show you but then I'd have to kill you. :eek:

What is all this Vets stuff anyway? This this turning into the 'old farts re-living their youth' thread. :D

Mate, we gotta have some worthwhile debate occasionally here. You can talk about which jersey to wear only so many times.... :eek:

Fairy nuff. From what I heard or read somewhere a while ago the origins of split/difference in Vic was due to internal politics many moons ago, and my quick check of facts earlier didn't wise me up that Vics were different to the rest of Oz. Learn somethig everyday :)

Yes I sensed there was some sort of split somewhere when I tried to find info on the Master's Nats last year in Lancefield Vic. Cycling Australia were not too involved except that it was a sanctioned event but their website was totally devoid of info.
As a national assn. they don't seem too interested in anything much, beyond National track as is CNSW at state level.

Righto. Finally got to have a chat with el Presidente this evening. Very helpful bloke.
I'm going to go and watch the Saturday crits (can only watch cos I've got the kids). Like 531Aussie mentioned, he asked what sort of riding/training I'd done and took a guess that I'd start off in 'D' grade... it's not his call though... I need to see the club handicapper who'll set me up for some time with whichever grade he reckond I belong in and go from there.

Veteran licences are definitely only for Veteran clubs, but that'll do me fer a while.

All going well, I could be doing my first crit Sat'die week. I'll keep you posted.

Cheers fellas!

Bloody freakazoid Belgian at it again !!

Stage 3
Results
1 Tom Boonen (Bel) Quick Step Innergetic 3.34.50 (44.685 km/h)
2 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Milram
3 Matti Breschel (Den) Team CSC

good luck, they won't out you up too high until they know you have some bike skills so you'll end up in C at the most depending on what sort of nazi the handicapper is. :)

And so begins a new and bloody exciting chapter in your life :)
Good luck and definitely keep us posted.

jock, pshaw, did you race track last night? details?

Yeah, ripper fun. Scratch, 3 lap H'Cap, 1/2 field sprints, individual pursuit, 6 lap grade handicapped scratch, and team pursuits. Plenty of people in the hurt box :D

A bit untidy for me with 5, 4, 1, 4, DNF, and a clip across the ear for surging in the team pursuit. :rolleyes:

6 lap grd H'cap scratch was hilarious. The lads must've been a bit tired after their ITT, coz I went out hard trying to link up quickly with B Grade. I had expected everyone else to do likewise but they must've been a bit tired from the ITT: me and Pettigrew were off the front of the pack by at least 70m :eek: Game over. C Grade 1,2,3,4,5 easy

nice work !

What's with all the bike talk? I swear, this thread has gone to the dogs! :)

Saccy, you been spending too much time at www.realdoll.com. You can't just buy a bride, you have to nurture them through nine years of pain and suffering and then propose in a drunken fit at 3am.

See, I'm a traditionalist!

So true, except for the drunken fit of insanity bit.

I figured it was time after nearly 9 years of geniune ozzy bloke marriage proposal apathy. My missus was just about to dump me, I'm sure. Eleven years of marriage later she's probably wishing she had!!

But she's such a sweety. I got a leave pass to go training on DGV on Monday night, with none of the whining, bithcing or moaning that one should normally expect. Perhaps I should worry