Guide To Time Trialling

CLUB EVENTS (Evening League)

Riders set off at 1 minute intervals and are timed over the set distance/course.
You must be a first claim member of a club which is affiliated to the Cycling Time Trials Association (for insurance purposes), and by joining Harrogate Nova CC, which is a member, you comply.
In club/league events you just turn up on the evening of the race in plenty of time, you then have to ‘sign on’ and are given a number which you pin to the back of your jersey (below the waist – usually over the pockets of your jersey where it can be seen by the timekeeper when you cross the finish line. It also assists the timekeeper if you can shout your number as you cross the finish line.
Riders are given numbers on a first come first served basis – so if you arrive 10 minutes before the start then expect to be riding towards the back of the field. Have a jacket to wear as you may have to wait around for quite a while before your turn, also you need a jacket to put on when you finish as you can soon lose body temperature after sweating.
In Club events we don’t mind what cycle clothing you are wearing but do advise that you wear a helmet. Most of the riders now have a flashing red light fitted to the rear of their bikes to attract motorists attention for safety reasons – but it is not essential.
Please try to look at the event map on the club forum before the race/ or familiarize yourselves with the course. Yellow directional arrows are put round the course at junctions and there are generally marshalls at some of the junctions. Please be discreet if you are needing to relieve your bladder before the event (not at the side of a main road or in view of the general public).
Do not warm up on the course once the event has started – there are usually other roads nearby. Neither should you warm down on the course after the event as the timekeeper doesn’t know that you’ve been past him/her already. Please be at the start timekeeper with a few minutes to spare.
Do not bother the timekeeper during the event – the provisional results will be available at the car parking area once all the riders have finished. The results are double checked later that evening and will be available to see on the club forum by the teatime following the day of the race.
Please keep your head up whilst riding and try to ride towards the side of the road (do not weave about the road) and take extra care at junctions – do not swing across to the wrong side of the road as there might be an approaching vehicle.
There are no refreshments available after the event so if you need a drink bring your own.
Most of these points are very elementary but if you are new to the sport it might help.
BE AWARE OF OTHER ROAD USERS & GENERAL PUBLIC – try not to harass other motorists by taking risks and doing stupid things like turning in the road without looking properly.
Please don’t bring the Club (or cycling in general) into disrepute.
We give up our time and effort voluntarily to put these events on – please respect that.

OPEN TIME TRIALS

These are events promoted by Clubs in which members from any cycling club may take part.
A list of these events can be found on the Cycling Time Trials web-site or in the CTT Handbook.
These events have to be entered about 2 weeks/or more beforehand (entries usually close 12 days prior to event) and must be on a special CTT form and accompanied by the entry fee (usually £8-£10). You can now enter the events online via the CTT website.
Most of the rules that apply to Club events also apply to Open events. However, you must wear the club kit of the Club you have entered under, or plain cycling clothing. No trade tops or clothing with some other name on (for instance tri-club clothing). The time-keepers can stop you riding if you don’t abide by these rules.
You will get a start sheet before the event (either by post or Email), which will tell you what number/time you are off.
A result board is usually situated at the headquarters afterwards and the event usually offers a prize list which generally covers all categories. Please don’t stop when you finish but carry onto the HQ at a more modest pace. When you get back to the HQ there are often refreshments available.