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Davie Bell road race?


thejanullrichdietplan
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Just watching yesterdays stage in the Giro with the gravel roads got me thinking - did any of you race the Davie Bell RR back in the day?

Seems to have been years ahead of time (while simultaneously also being a throwback to an earlier era!) with the section along Carrick Forrest Drive and was a long standing and prestigious race in the Scottish calendar - however doesn't seem to have run for now for years.

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1 hour ago, thejanullrichdietplan said:

Just watching yesterdays stage in the Giro with the gravel roads got me thinking - did any of you race the Davie Bell RR back in the day?

Seems to have been years ahead of time (while simultaneously also being a throwback to an earlier era!) with the section along Carrick Forrest Drive and was a long standing and prestigious race in the Scottish calendar - however doesn't seem to have run for now for years.

I did it once with Mark Whithead. Absolutely brutal race. Scary descents  too. 

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Remember riding this in early 80s  Robert Millar won it from Drew Brunton in what would have been a photo finish these days  . They escaped at heads of Ayr when a horse unseated its rider and split race apart . I was in the break chasing and when we were coming down the  Nick of Balloch John Clanky Clark was descending like a demon we overtook the motorcycle marshals who couldn't keep ahead of us on the bends . Remember a hairpin bend with a bridge and my bars scraping the wall as we came round as my back wheel skidded on loose gravel . Cracking race with some tough climbs .  Ivy had Clanky , Ian Thomson , Davie Whitehall and Jim Mcmanus who took it in turns to attack break  all the way in from the NIck  .  Managed to get a 6th place on my first time riding it .

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21 hours ago, thejanullrichdietplan said:

Were you on 23c tyres for it?

 

Couple of years since i was down that way but i remember there being a couple of bits that were a bit sketchy with 40c on!

I was on Corima carbon with 21mm tubs. Bad choice for this race - crap braking and far too flexible front wheel.

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6 hours ago, Darryl Gunson said:

I was on Corima carbon with 21mm tubs. Bad choice for this race - crap braking and far too flexible front wheel.

What about that Herdy’s Habble race? Was that not carnage too?

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On 5/21/2021 at 10:23 AM, Kenny MacDonald said:

Remember riding this in early 80s  Robert Millar won it from Drew Brunton in what would have been a photo finish these days  . They escaped at heads of Ayr when a horse unseated its rider and split race apart . I was in the break chasing and when we were coming down the  Nick of Balloch John Clanky Clark was descending like a demon we overtook the motorcycle marshals who couldn't keep ahead of us on the bends . Remember a hairpin bend with a bridge and my bars scraping the wall as we came round as my back wheel skidded on loose gravel . Cracking race with some tough climbs .  Ivy had Clanky , Ian Thomson , Davie Whitehall and Jim Mcmanus who took it in turns to attack break  all the way in from the NIck  .  Managed to get a 6th place on my first time riding it .

Thats a cracking result in a great field!

On 5/21/2021 at 3:26 PM, Darryl Gunson said:

I was on Corima carbon with 21mm tubs. Bad choice for this race - crap braking and far too flexible front wheel.

21mm tubs on that gravel. Chapeau! I wouldn't even like riding 21 on normal roads these days

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