Our club holds several one-off and series races over the year that are steeped in tradition. These are our "core" races that everyone wants to win, and only the lucky actually do!

The major races we hold are the World Cup, The World Championships, The Triple Crown, The Banana & Lady-Finger Pairs Teams Time Trial, the Mount Coot-tha Hill Climb, and last but definitely not least, the Charles Coin Memorial (aka the Laidley Wheels of Fire). The last year has seen the addition of what may become another lofty series to take out, the Tour de Uni.

The World Cup

Ahh, yes, the World Cup. A six-race series spread out over the year. Points are awarded for the first 5 place-getters in each race, with the overall-series leader taking out the coveted title. Like all club racing, this even is divided into (at least) two grades - A and B. In years the club has a large enough member base, a C Grade World Cup and a Women's World Cup are also held.

This year sees the World Cup become an even tougher series to win with race distances extended to let the true cream rise to the top! Whilst a normal A grade race is 15 laps and the B Grade race 12 laps of the Uni Circuit, the racing distance has been lengthened to 20 laps for A Grade and 15 laps for B Grade. If numbers are sufficient, C Grade and Women's will be 12 laps.

Past winners include Ben Litchfield, Fluff, and Drago.

The World Champs

The World Championships is the penultimate race of the club's cycling calendar. Traditionally this race is held as close the 1st of December as possible. That means either the last Saturday of November, or the first in December. This Saturday has to be one of the best going around. Race in the morning, and then in the evening is the inaugural Club Dinner which everyone turns up for.

The world champs is an all-in affair. And it's tough. Damn tough. 30 laps of gruelling endurance and will-braking cycling. Compared to the usual 30km race held each Saturday, the world champs is over 60km and you'll often see riders drop off in a steady stream. Dropping out early is nothing to be ashamed of. Far from it! Generally, the pace starts VERY high - say 50km/hr for the first one or two laps as the real big hitters in the club battle to stamp their authoritah on the peleton. If you can manage to sit in, and last the first 5 laps, it's then a case of hanging in for the long hall.

Because of the distance, you can expect to see a lot of breaks as riders attack and counter attack. Unlike regular Uni races where the breaks are pegged back for a final sprint (more often than not -) the distance of the World Champs allows for a good break to stay away.

The Triple Crown

This is the club's 3 race Autumn series. By the time the triple crown comes around, a lot of the club members have got a reasonable base training under their belt. Everyone tends to be rejuvinated by the Christmas break and this is when training begins in earnest. By March/April, you've got it or you don't.

The Triple Crown is all about variety - it's there to see who is the rider best able to win in different racing scenarios. The first race of the series is Points Score - a regular 15 lapper (12 lapper for B Grade) where the top 5 places get awarded points. The second and third races are where things really get interesting.

Race 2 is all about the sprint. The Elimination race sees the last rider across the Finish line removed from the field until the race is done to just two people. Mano-a-mano. Who's got the best sprint? Who has the freshest legs? Who's the cat and who's the mouse?

Race 3 is all about the individual. It's you and the elements as you try to power over a time trialling course to beat the clock. Held out at Brookfield, the time trial is a 7km out, 7km in circuit. Everyone meets at the UNI and we all ride out to Brookfield (next to Kenmore, about a 20-30min ride from the Uni). Once there, everyone vies for a starting position. No one wants to go first, and no one wants to go last! After the race everyone heads back to Uni for breakie and a good yarn.

The title is awarded for B and A grades (C and women's if number permit).

The Banana and Lady-Finger Pairs Team Time Trial

Everyone seems to love this race. But if you ask them point blank how they feel after they do it, the concensus is "I feel like buggery!". Go figure -) The Pairs Time Trials are a rear event on the club calendar because this isn't just an individual effort - you get to work with a partner. This makes the course slightly easier to bare, and makes sure you work for the entire 30kms.

This race is held out at Pinkenba, up near the Brisbane Airport. Like the Triple Crown time trial, everyone meets at the UNI and rides out together. It takes about 30 minutes on average to make this ride.

The circuit is along the industiral roads out there. Invariably there is a headwind on the turn back which just, well, bites! The circuit is twice over the 14km loop. The key to doing well in this race is to take it out steady - don't give it your all right to begin with. You've got two laps to complete remember! You'll find heading out you feel great because of the tailwind assisting. Always keep that in mind. Once you turn round for the second loop, this is the time to really hammer it. You can afford to go hard all the way because the tailwind makes the first 7kms pretty easy to deal with (remember you've got a partner whose wheel you can sit on!). It's that final 7km where you've got to grit your teeth, bite the bullet, and just suffer it out. Complain to your patner - it always makes me feel better :-)

The other key is to chose a partner of equal ability. You don't want to be dragging "dead weight", and it's unfair to expect you can just sit on all the way.

Trophies are awarded for the winning Mens team (Banana TTT), and the winning Women's team (Lady-Finger TTT).

After the race, we go for coffee in the cafe district of Eagle Farm. And boy do you need that coffee and seat to relax on!

The Mount Coot-tha Hill Climb

The Mount Coot-tha Hill Climb is just that a hill climb up Coots. Starting at the planetarium riders assualt the first big hill, before veering to the right making their way into to the valley past JC Slaughter Falls. From there, it's up the mountain to the pinnacle where the clock is stopped.

The secret is to never give it everything on the first hill. It is the hardest part of the course. Make sure you're in the easiest gear to begin with. Once you get past that climb, you can turn over the big gears decending into the valley before steadily rising Coot-tha.

If you ever go out for a training ride before hand, a good time to aim for is 13 to 14 minutes from the Planetarium to the Channel Ten station. If you're in awesome form, then try breaking the club record of around 10 minutes 30 seconds.

Winners for first across the line A, B, and Women's grades.

The Charles Coin Memorial (Laidley Wheels of Fire)

This is undoubtedly the clubs most prestigious event. We host this race for QCA so it sees a large number of representatives from clubs all over brisbane. Held out at Laidley, the course is closed down to traffic for the race. If you ever wanted to experience a big local road race - this is it! A, B, C, Masters, and women's grades.

The CCM is held at the beginning of June each year.

Tour de Uni

Much gravitas was heaped on the eventual winner of this race last year. To win you must be wily, cunning, cruel, and out doing as many of the darned races as possible - whether there's anyone to verify the result or not :-).

Yes, just envisage a 3 week race, sprinting for 60km/hr Poo-Farm sprint signs, gunning it up the famous Mont D'Utton and the perilous Col D'Ornoch. Realise the sweat, the toil, and the sheer lack of respect you need to give the other competitors. Then, and only then, can you begin to prepare for them infamous Tour de Uni. A race where the lesser rides move to France and perform in a piddly 22 day race held at the same time - le Tour de France or something.

Vivent longtemps la course du triomphe!