Author: Sean Leckey

Last night our Wheelbase Yorkshire store in Ilkley hosted the Tacx Hill Climb Challenge, with a Tacx Flux S Trainer up for grabs.

Tacx goodie bags were given out to all those who attended the open event which involved a timed virtual hill climb ridden on one of the Tacx smart trainers. The fastest time set on the night was by Sam Lashley, who completed the 349m in a rapid 45 seconds, holding an average power of 651 watts and two seconds ahead of second placed Ben Granger.

About the climb

Gold Hill in Shaftesbury is one of the most iconic and well known hill climbs in England, made famous by Ridley Scott’s 1973 Hovis Bread advert. Although only 349m long, the course packs a great deal of punch – easing you in with a steady tarmac section before ramping up when the cobbles hit.

The latest Tacx smart trainers are in stock and available to buy from our stores and online.

 

Celebrating 25 years of Tuesday Evenings in June, the 2020 WHEELBASE Lakeland Lanequest series will be something a little different…

Running each Tuesday evening from 2nd June through to 7th July, the opening event will start from Wheelbase, Staveley – usually the final event location.

Overall league positions will this year be determined from the best 4 of the first 5 events, and overall series prizes and “Cut the Cake” will be presented after event 6.

This 6th and final event will be a special “one-off fun and party event” Lanequest from our first ever venue, The Manor House, Oxen Park- with a re-run of the FIRST EVER Lanequest from 14th June 1995!

As in 1995, the route covers mixed terrain: 75%/25% on/off road, and there will be special prizes afterwards, in addition to the final 2020 overall league winners’ prize giving from events 1-5, and “Cut the Cake” ceremony.

To commemorate our 25th year, longstanding sponsors Wheelbase will be presenting a special commemorative gift to celebrate 25 to everyone who rides this event.

Afterwards we party: a live music band will be playing – so get your dancing shoes on!

 

Lakeland Lanequest 2020

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Road Racing is back and what an opening weekend we had!

The British road racing season started in earnest this past weekend and our Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli lads were at the sharp end of the action across a number of races. On Sunday Wheelbase rider Joe Reilly got his hands in the air at the SBHub Secret Training Grand Prix on the Pimbo circuit in Skelmersdale. Joe was followed closely over the line by another of our riders, with Ben Granger crossing in 5th place.

The results at Pimbo on Sunday were made even more impressive given how the two riders fared in separate races the day before. At Lancaster’s Salt Ayre circuit Ben made the early break alongside 3 other riders and with 45km remaining put in a blistering attack which saw him solo to victory, holding a gap of around 15 seconds to the line. Joe was in action at the 59th Eddie Soens Memorial race in Liverpool where, among a high quality field, he finished in 5th place. Both riders gave their reflections on an extremely successful opening weekend. Chapeau lads.

Joe Reilly:
“Eddie Soens: the first few laps of of Eddie Soens the 15 riders in the Scratch group completed a hard chain gang to close the two and a half minutes to the front groups. Through attrition, attacks and some very pesky crosswinds I made it to the lead breakaway of 7 with 3 Ribble riders. Cat and mouse resumed on the last lap and the bunch were hot on our heals, catching us on the last corner. I was on the shoulder of a Ribble lead-out man as he swung left, forcing me to go out wide and loosing ground to the front leaving me chasing in the sprint but securing 5th.

Pimbo: A fast start made for some great racing and myself and Ben were in the main breakaway of 13 riders. 100km of chaingang and some freezing rain showers were found ourselves in the final few laps, with Ben constantly attacking it gave me to opportunity to sit back, saving my own energy but also managing to disrupt the chase to give him the best chance possible.
It all came together in the last lap It was on for a sprint, with a long straight the finish I knew it would entice people to go early and so used them as leadout men and managed to secure the win.”

Ben Granger:
“At Salt Ayre on Saturday I got in the first move of the race on lap 2, which looked very strong with me and 3 other riders. I didn’t fancy taking these 3 riders to the line so attacked 45km out and solo’d to the finish holding an uncomfortably small gap of 15 seconds to the 3 chasers all the way to the line.

At Pimbo on Sunday, I saw the main break go early which I realised I needed to be in, so did a big effort to quickly bridge across with one other rider, to form the 14 man break including me and Joe. We rode smoothly for 100km and lapped the remains of the bunch before the attacks started. I was fairly aggressive trying to get away late on and covering most of the moves which caused the break to split into two 7’s, with me and Joe both making the front split. Joe comfortably won the sprint to take the win, and I rolled in 5th. A pretty perfect start to the season!”

Photos from Ellen Isherwood and Dan Monaghan.

 

That was some DEMO! Thanks to everyone who came along to our Big Demo Weekend in the Lake District – we had over 150 riders over the course of the weekend test riding 160 of the world’s best mountain bikes from 11 of the industry’s biggest brands!

After a couple of challenging years with the weather the Lake District turned on its charm and gave us glimmers of sunshine mixed amongst the (to be expected) Cumbrian drizzle. Guided by the team from Cycle Active, the riders took to the trails and bridleways of the Kentmere valley, set in the South Eastern corner of the Lake District national park.

We’d like to say a huge thank you to all who attended, to all of our brands for supplying us with the world’s best bikes and to the guides for getting everyone around safely. We can’t wait to do it all again next year!

Photos from Jerry Tatton. Full gallery on our Facebook page

 

Bookings are now live for our Big Demo Day at Hamsterley Forest

WHEELBASE BIG DEMO DAY Sat. 21st March 2020 Hamsterley Forest, County Durham, DL13 3NL

Book now at http://www.bigdemonortheast.co.uk/

We are bringing our Big Demo event to the North East. Based at Hamsterley Forest, we’ll have bikes from some of the world’s best brands – Cube, Specialized, Cannondale, Nukeproof, Mondraker, Yeti, Focus and Merida. On offer will be a selection of full-suspension, hardtail and electric mountain bikes to test out on a choice of two courses around the stunning Hamsterley Forest trails. The event will be run from the Visitor Centre, see map for location.

Your £5 booking fee will be donated to Hamsterley Trailblazers who do a fantastic job of maintaining and developing the trails of Hamsterley Forest, making it a centre of excellence for mountain biking in the UK.

Saturday 21st March 2020
We will have five rides running throughout the day which will follow a choice of two signposted trails.
Ride times:

9:30 – 10:30

11:00 – 12:00

12:30 – 13:30

14:00 – 15:00

15:30 – 16:30

Enjoy the ride!

SALES LEDGER /ACCOUNTS ASSISTANT – FULL AND PART-TIME

We are looking for a Sales Ledger / Accounts Assistant to join our accounts team. This is a great opportunity to work for a business that has grown significantly over recent years.

Key duties and responsibilities would be
– Reconciliation of all income sources.
– Ensuring processes and procedures for information are followed efficiently.
– Key data into company accounting system.
– Check all financial transactions for accuracy.
– Resolve queries in a prompt and timely manner.
– Work closely with stock manager to ensure accurate stock and sales data.
– Preparing monthly reports for the Finance Director.
– Other general accountancy and administrative support to the Finance Director.

What we are looking for from you
– Experience/knowledge of bookkeeping practices is essential.
– Basic Microsoft Excel/Word skills.
– An understanding of accounting systems.
– Ability to communicate with customers, suppliers and colleagues.
– Ability to work under own initiative and as part of a team.
– Working with spreadsheets, sales ledgers and journals.

Location
Wheelbase HQ, Staveley, Kendal, Cumbria LA8 9LR UK. Only 15mins from the M6 motorway and 10mins from Lake Windermere. 5mins walk to Staveley train station.

Salary
We offer a competitive salary, dependent on experience.

Hours
Hours and days of work negotiable.

How to apply
Please send your CV along with a covering letter to jobs@wheelbase.co.uk

Closing date
Sunday 22 March 2020

Entries are now open for the 2020 Sam Houghton MTB Challenge in aid of Cancer Research UK

The Challenge is a timed mountain bike ride starting and finishing at our Wheelbase Lake District store in Staveley. The ride takes in the Longsleddale, Kentmere & Troutbeck Valleys as well as taking in the famous Garburn Pass.  It is organised in memory of Sam Houghton, a keen mountain biker who sadly lost his battle against cancer and died aged only 22 in May 2006. All proceeds from this event will be donated to Cancer Research UK.

There will be no on-the-day entries and there are a maximum of 500 places so get your place secured now to avoid disappointment! Book your place online now.

 

 

Our men’s elite road race team left storms Dennis and Jorge behind and headed for the sunnier climes of Calpe in Southern Spain for a pre-season training camp.

Blue skies and long, tough days in the saddle were the order of business for the duration of the trip as the lads looked to boost fitness and team morale ahead of the 2020 season.

Calpe is a mecca for road cyclists and a host of World Tour teams spend much of the winter period training on the quiet, smooth mountain roads around the Costa Blanca town. Many of the climbs in the area are regularly visited by the Vuelta a Espana during late August including the Coll de Rates and Val de Ebo, both excellent for testing form ahead of the upcoming races.

The road racing season starts in earnest in March before the British Cycling Elite series kicks off in April. We’re heading into our twelfth season on the road as one of the top domestic elite British teams. Watch this space as the season progresses and the racing gets going.

The team would like to express a huge thank you to each of our sponsors as we gear up to do battle on the road once again this season.

Wheelbase | Cabtech | Castelli | Cannondale | 11 Degrees | PV Dobson Volvo

Photos from Ben Barlow

A great way to blow away the winter cobwebs!

Two great routes to choose from which take you thought scenic roads with beautiful views of Howgills, Dent and Barbon. Both routes head generally south eastwards through Cumbria taking some very quiet valleys that you may be unaware of (unless you’ve done this sportive before of course!) as well as a few tasty climbs and some seriously quick descents.

The timed hill climb of the day takes you up Shacklabank. A tricky little climb which will see the fastest male / female crowned King / Queen of the mountain with a jersey from Wheelbase too.

Choose the long route, head further afield but get a bonus refreshments stop at Sedbergh Peoples Hall before heading back to Staveley for tea, cake and time to drool over the latest carbon fibre beauties in the shop!

Date – Sunday 29th March 2020

Location – Wheelbase Bike Store, Staveley, Kendal, Cumbria, LA8 9LR (Google Map Directions)

Distance – Short 34 miles or Long 55 miles

Price – £20-short, £25-long in advance. £25/35 on the day.

• Registration: From 08:30
• Event Start: From 09:30
• Minimum Age to enter: 16
• Places available: 250

Short Route

Long Route

Northwave – Winter Shoe Specialist

If there’s any brand in cycling that would be considered a ‘winter specialist’ it’d have to be Northwave. The Italian brand was the first to use GoreTex® in its shoes and has since developed an extensive range of winter-specific shoes for a variety of conditions and disciplines.

Raptor Arctic GTX

With the Raptor GTX, Northwave developed a windproof and waterproof winter shoe to compliment the increased comfort and freedom of movement created by Northwave’s exclusive Climaflex collar.

The Arctic GTX footbed with a four-layer aluminium and fleece construction works with the membrane to deliver outstanding warmth and insulation.

Raptor TH Winter Shoe

At first glance, Northwave’s  Raptor TH seem as though they wouldn’t belong in the winter shoes collection – the low-cut profile may suggest otherwise. However, by using Thinsulate, the famous synthetic microfiber with outstanding thermal isolation and breathability features, has added warmth to Northwave’s exclusive mid-season shoes: low-cut, summer-like light shoes with unique thermal capacity.

The Arctic GTX footbed with a four-layer aluminium and fleece construction works with the membrane to deliver outstanding warmth and insulation.

 

Flash Thinsulate Winter Shoe

A versatile road shoe designed to deliver comfort, warmth and performance from freezing temperatures to milder settings. Constructed from an insulating Thinsulate membrane, a winter specific material suitable for temperatures from 0 to +15°C, these shoes supply all the warmth and comfort you would expect in these winter conditions.

The shoes provide great thermal insulation, breathability and a snug fit with Northwave’s Biomap Aero overlap. These performance orientated winter shoes produce the same excellent power transfer that Northwave owners have come to expect from their shoes – with a sole stiffness rating of 8 from Northwave.

Shop our full range of Northwave shoes with reductions up to 32% online.