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F YOU EVER WANT TO SEE GROWN men nervous as hell then there are really only three places to go - a maternity ward, vasectomy clinic or the starting line at the Eddie Soens Memorial Handicap Race. Obviously, this is a cycling magazine, so there will be no nappies or surgical scissors here - just a nice, calming reportage of what has become regarded as the first big race of the year that all the top-level pros want to add to their palmarè’s. You can literally cut the tension in the air with a pair of scissors - whoops, sorry - in the carpark before the start, as riders rub embrocation on their legs and begin that pre-season ritual of eyeing up who has the most toned and tanned legs as a result of spending two weeks training in Mallorca. For us mere mortals, translate that into ‘not stick thin’, it’s a good chance to get up close and personal to the cream of the British cycling crop. Maybe even blag a bidon or two. After all, plenty of big named teams like Rapha Condor JLT, Raleigh-GAC and Genesis Madison head to Aintree in March for the Soens. But where did it all begin? Well, named after one of Liverpool’s most famous cycling coaches, the Eddie Soens Memorial Handicap Race has heralded the start of the racing calendar for more than half a century. Melling Wheelers first breathed life into this popular early season classic back in 1962, when it was originally held on a circuit further down the road at Bickerstaffe. Eager to keep up with the times, the Wheelers ditched their 25-mile time trials in favour of hosting a road race and who better to name it after than their famous coach, Eddie. Doug Dailey MBE, race winner in 1963, 1964, 1970 and 1977, said: “For many years, the Melling Wheelers had promoted an early season 25-mile
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time-trial on the East Lancashire Road and it was traditionally run on the first Sunday in March. “We had been doing this event for years, but it was decide that we would move with the times and stop promoting the medium gear 25 and actually run a road race. “A very prominent member of the club was the late, great Eddie Soens. The race was originally called the Eddie Soens Criterium, then it became the Eddie Soens Handicap and with the passing of the great man, it became the Eddie Soens Memorial.” Bruce O’Prey, from Liverpool Premier, had the honour of winning the inaugural race, which was organised by Eddie’s son, Bill, who admits that he may have underestimated the distance of the circuit somewhat. Bill said: “I organised the first one, which was 52 years ago. The main problem was that I didn’t measure the course correctly. “It was on the course in Bickerstaffe and I made an assumption, through years and years of riding a bike, that it was a five mile circuit, so we had 10 laps to make it a 50-mile race. “There was a guy called Bob Memory, who always rode a motorbike and he went round the course. He stopped after one lap and said to me ‘look at the speedo on this - do you realise it’s seven miles round, not five?’. “The race was in the afternoon, so we ended up riding a 70-mile race not a 50-mile race. I have to tell you that in March, when you’re using a 76-inch gear, which is very low, it was nearly dark when the race finished, as it went on an hour longer than it should have. “After that, I thought that I best not do it any more and so I left it to Ken Matthews. From then on, Ken organised the race and it was a good event, but at least the first one was interesting, to say the least.” Over the years, the great and the good from a cross
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RIDING IN THE BUBBLE
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Above: A ndy Tennant says goodbye to his mum Right: A lex Peters and a potter in Stoke
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As we near the top of the Pen-y- Pass climb, it’s time for me to leave. Roger apologises for the quiet day and pulls over. I say my thank you’s and I’m out of the car. Straight away, I’m out of the bubble and back into the real world. I feel like Ray Liotta in the scene in Goodfellas, when he’s picking up his newspaper from the mat and bitching about not being special any more. The clatter of the helicopter fades as it crosses the summit and down into Llanberis. As I walk down the climb to the waiting lift home, the crackle of race radio is still in my head. It’s still in my head two days later. Many thanks to: Kellie Parsons; Roger Hammond and Team Madison Genesis; Volvo cars and Simon Branney, from No Bull Communications.
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Above and left: Cav warms up
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Wiggins gets in the zone
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GLASGOW FIXIES Words and photographs by Brian Sweeney This article was first published in Spin Cycle Magazine, Issue 6, 2013