Mike in the National Championships

Mike Cubison OUCC Member 1997-2001 I was newsletter editor 97-98, Secretary 98-2000 and Captain 2000-2001. What you are up to now? Still in Manchester researching car pollution, until Feb 2005. What you plan to do next? Going over to stick it out with the Rednecks in Colorado. Same line of research, but with much better mountains and much, much, much better weather. And the bike? Not ridden it for a month! But Colorado has a huge cycling scence so I dare say I will have a run at the state track champ! Best ride this year? On the road I grovelled to 12th in the divs (95miles!) , and finished the Tour of the Border (90miles x 4, even worse!), which I was dead chuffed with, being a trackie who can't climb. But was happier to break top ten in the National 20k scratch, finishing with Bryan Taylor for the 2nd year running, once again we were the first full-time-job riders, which is as good as I ever hope for...

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members? Try your hand at everything, road, time-trials (did I say that?), MTB, track, cross, trials - it's always fun on any bike, and if you want to compete then you need to find out which you're naturally best at! Don't waste time trying to lower your '10' time if you're a sprinter!

If you want to get in touch email me :-)

Dave Ryan

Dave Ryan was a member of OUCC for many years in the 1990's, who was tragically killed by on oncoming motorist in Albany, USA, in summer 2004. A quietly spoken character could not hide his affection for adverse conditions and exceptionally long, hard rides, particularly if he was allowed to go on the front for the whole duration. Modesty prevented most of his fellow cyclists realising he got the top first in his year, and at the time of his death he had just been given a big grant from the American Health Department to work on the next generation of MRI cancer scanners. Dave's dependable, polite demenour will be missed as much as his back wheel in the headwind past Stadhampton. More information and a great picture of Dave in his Dunlopillo top holding a glass of wine is on his club's website or at his memorial website.

Chris Kenyon

OUCC member 1998-2005

OUCC star Chris Kenyon finalises a lucrative pay deal for riding the 2005 Tour with race director
Jean-Marie Leblanc.

What you are up to now? I'm a GP in central Oxford and so am College Dr for many. Can't see that changing much in the near future.

Are you are still riding? Yes, I'm still riding, nowadays usually focusing on doing the Etape du Tour most summers with an occasional race or time trial leading up to it. However, as you can see, in 2005 I'll be doing the whole of the real Tour de France on the front. This is why Lance has been reported in the press as considering focusing on other goals this year.

What’s your best memory of OUCC times? OUCC is that they were the people who got me into races and time trials for the first time at the ripe young age of 38. In fact it was Nick Pashley (seen also on these pages) who nudged me into joining OUCC after seeing "Cycling Weekly" in my waiting room. I distinctly remember saying to myself "why have I never done this before?" during my first road race. When, three miles before the finish, I was suddenly on my own watching the others disappearing up the road and being unable to catch them, perhaps I realised why! I've enjoyed it ever since although as I've become busier and busier with work and my lovely family it's been increasingly hard to find the time to get the miles in...... Maybe when I retire........ I'd like to end by paying tribute to Dave Ryan whose loss I have just read about and whose quiet humour was always a joy. His strength as a bike rider was pretty impressive too! I was very sad to read about this, and to be truthful, rather angry about the motorist.

Drop me an email if you want to get in contact - Chris

Andrew Salmon

OUCC Member 1995-1999

I was Social Secretary 96-98 and Captain 98-99.

What you are up to now? In 2003 I got married to Chloe Jones, also of OUCC fame, after first meeting her at a Varsity race in Cambridge in 1996. After 5 years in management consulting I currently work for ABN Amro Asset Management in their strategy team.

What you plan to do next? Current bike-related plans involve riding my bike more, renovating our shed and buying a tandem. Unfortunately I need to pay for a new roof for the house first, so those may take a while

Are you are still riding? Yeah, Chloe and I still ride almost every weekend, though I currently don't trouble any of the local club riders when I get to the front. This year one of our best rides was on Dave Ryan's birthday with some of our contemporaries from the club. We were blessed with excellent weather and re-visited some of Dave's
favourite training routes in the cotswolds.

What’s your best memory of OUCC times? I have so many great memories of both racing, travelling to races, training. Some of the racing moments were less successful than others, but they make me smile.

• My four BUSA team time trials - While never stong on paper, we always managed to get into the medals by riding as a team. My least successful effort was my first, when I managed about 2 miles out of 25 with the team.
• 'Will Andrew Salmon please leave the track' and Nick Pashley's impression of this after taking team orders in the points race and dropping back 3 laps in order to take sprint points from Cambridge. I managed 7th the next year after a truly scary race.
• Steve Farrell chosing to go to a Strangler's concert instead of speaking at our dinner.
• Various bits of minor demolition, including a collapsing ceiling in Museum Road after a 55mph stint on the rollers in my room (and a leaky radiator), Dave Ryan removing Jim Henderson's garden wall.
• Early season training rides
• Losing Stuart Miles in the middle of Snowdonia

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members?

• Never buy tubulars.
• Despite budgetary constraints, buy new shorts before the old ones become see-through
• Avoid riding close to people who fall off. You know who they are.
• Take advice, particularly from people you train with who have been riding for a while.
  

Do email me if you want to get in contact - Andrew.

Chloe Salmon
OUCC Member 1996-2000

What you are up to now? I am a Market Researcher for small ualitative agency in London, Acacia Avenue.

What you plan to do next? Can't tell you as husband also an alumnus and likely to read site!!!

Are you are still riding? Yes, very amateur, but still faster than triathletes (of course!)

What’s your best memory of OUCC times? Andrew!

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members? Women CAN ride bikes and we win lots more competitions than men! Everyone should try the track.

Chloe

Tom James

OUCC Member 1988-1996.

I was Treasurer 89-90, Secretary 90-91,and Captain 92-93.

What you are up to now? I live in Salisbury and work for Salisbury District Council – doing something vaguely IT related. No chemistry in sight!

What you plan to do next? Renovate my house. Plus get out on my bike a bit more, and get Katharine's fitness levels up so she can do some more strenuous cycle touring (though 300 miles in 8 days across Brittany and Normandy last summer was a pretty sterling first effort).

Are you are still riding? A bit, mostly in the summer and touring. Last reasonably hard tour was across France (St Malo - Nice) in September 2003. Also rekindled riding on the track (after nearly 10 years off) a few weeks ago with an afternoon at Calshot; riding there more regularly next year might be an option, though probably just to keep fit. Plus I'm sure we'll manage a couple of cycle tours next year; I'm thinking about 2 weeks around the Loire valley in spring as the next step on the ladder for Kate, and 2 weeks around the Tarn in the autumn.

What is your best memory of OUCC times? Too many ... Club runs were always good for a laugh (well, when it didn't rain). Anyone else remember a certain (future) multi-national champion turning up for a ride with cheap sweatshirt and hiking boots? After he gave us a kicking on every hill, we were suitably impressed. Then there was the time Dave Ryan won the BUSA 50 mile championship - for women ... Though the occasion when he got a swift move on coming home from Cirencester was all too real: only Dave could hurry home from an 80+ mile ride in order to go rowing in the afternoon. (I'm not making any of this up!) And - topically - the legendary "cook your own" Christmas meals in Magdalen, complete with exploding chestnuts and staged delivery of food due to tragically underestimating the cooking time for a turkey - year after year! But mostly I remember the camerarderie of a good bunch of people and a very friendly club.

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members? Get involved with everything - racing, touring, club runs, social weekends, be on the committee. Your time there is short and you can't go back ... Plus don't be scared of yellow and white roads; they're much more fun than red ones.

I have a somewhat irregularly updated website and my up-to-date contact details are there.

Cheers, Tom

Nick Pashley

OUCC member 1994 - 1998

I was Treasurer 95-96, Captain 96-97.

What you are up to now? I work in Madrid for EADS CASA as an assistant programme manager on the Airbus A400M programme

What you plan to do next? Go where the wind blows me.

Are you still riding? I still ride, although not as much as I would like. I am a member of Real Velo Club Portillo (Madrid) and go out on their club rides in the sierra north of Madrid. I have done El Camino de Santiago this year on my MTB with panniers and stuff, from Ronces Valles to Santiago de Compostela. Quite cool cos this year is a Xacobeo year (well religious - more so than myself!). I also MTBed around Guatemala in August and went on an MTB holiday in Fuengirola (southern Spain) in October. My bike collection expands at an alarming rate, the result of romantic memories of English weather. In addition to two wheels, I also own two unicycles, a 20 inch wheeler and a 24 inch wheeler MUNI.

What is your best memory of OUCC times? So many... Ranging from rides to races and to social events... The appearance of "The Hair Master" at one of Jim's parties, which resulted in Andy Salmon loosing his hair... When I woke to see Andy Salmon peeing in Brenda Allen's new Dr Marten sandals on a touring weekend in Wales... Two more Andy Salmon peeing events, "pissed, no toilet, no problem"... The famous Christmas Dinner at Magdalen... Tom James chucking up after the Varsity Dinner in St Cross... Dave Ryan fighting with Tom Peel in Exeter MCR and with Steve Morse at Jim Henderson's party... Taking Matthew Anand (OUCC Commonwealth Games rider) to hospital after the horrific crash at the BUCC Track Champs.

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members? On top of the worn out shorts note from Andy, make sure the seam is in line and symmetrical when you put them on... For cyclo-cross in muddy conditions, pour tons of oil on your SPDs (a 5l can works a treat) and you will never have clipping in problems...

Do drop me an email if you want to get in contact - Nick

Steven Morse

OUCC Member 1994-1998

I was Racing Sec and Treasurer

What you are up to now? I work at RM in Abingdon in their Information Systems dept. Live in Wallingford. Have worked here since leaving Brasenose.

What you plan to do next? Stay where I am. Only bought a house last month!

Are you still riding? No. Stopped in last year of Uni due to back problem.

What is your best memory of OUCC times?

• OUCC DIY Xmas dinner at Magdalen and classic food fight that ensued
• Stuart Miles going AWOL/crying in Norfolk when he didnt want to eat tomatoes in Spag Bol we made for him.
• Bodo Maas and his leather jacket/old Raleigh Banana bike he rode everywhere
• 80 mile chaingang rides when Tom Peel was captain in Jan/Feb to get fit for rest of year
• Manchester track champs and seeing 3 of 4 man pursuit team in heap at finish line
• RTTC awards dinners courtesy of Jim Hendersons feats
• Andys "shoe" incident
• Organising 10 mile time trial, one of many we put on
• First ever bike race, on Stanton Harcourt 10 mile circuit in freshers week
• Being made to cycle round with Chloe Jones on Islip circuit at 12 mph as she only just started riding a bike proper (even she now sees funny side)!
• Cross dressing party - the looks walking though South Parks were most amusing.
• Many, many more...

Do you have any deep thoughts or wisdom for current members? 80 mile chaingang rides in Jan/Feb to get fit for rest of year!

Do Drop me an email if you want to get in contact - Steven