Dacey roles back years (From News Shopper)

Dacey roles back years

10:43am Wednesday 15th September 2004 in

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VETERAN CYCLE STAR GOES IN SEARCH OF EVEN MORE GLORY


AT a time of year when most over-65s would be relaxing in the garden or perhaps enjoying a round of golf or a game of bowls, Brian Dacey has been on a racing cycle putting in the miles in races and time-trials on the roads of southern England or lapping the track at the Herne Hill Velodrome.

Dacey is a multiple cycling track-racing world champion and will be defending his world age-group titles this week in the World Masters over-30s Championships at the Manchester Velodrome, where Britain's successful Olympic team trained.

He was a successful racer back in the Sixties, winning road-races and road time-trials, as well as track races before retiring from the sport.

Dacey did most of his track racing at Crystal Palace and it was there that he won many big events, including the King of the Palace title in 1967.

However, Dacey was inspired to make a comeback in 2001 after helping at the World Masters Championships.

Dacey said: "Cycling is very tough and it took time before my body readjusted properly to the demands of the sport and he really started to get results."

In October 2002, he competed in the World Masters Games in Melbourne, Australia an event held four yearly representing more than 20 sports with in excess of 25,000 competitors and unofficially known as the "Masters Olympics".

He rode in all the cycling events four on the velodrome, plus the road-race, criterium and time-trial in the 60-64 age group with a best placing of fourth, being beaten in the bronze medal ride-off in the pursuit by the reigning world champion.

Dacey, who has spent much of is life living in south-east London, also made it to the sprint final with four other riders two Australians, an American and a German all of whom were either current or past World Masters Champions.

He finished fifth, but was still pleased with this result in his second year of competition.

Dacey added: "My enduring memory of the World Masters Games is of three Australian riders tearing round the velodrome in fierce competition, who were born within three months of each other in 1920!"

Wins on the purpose-built Eastway Road racing circuit in east London for Dacey, were followed in May 2003 by an outstanding performance in the British Masters National Track Championships.

Here he won the gold medals in the 65-69 year old age group of all five events 2,000 metres pursuit, 750-metre sprint, 500-metre time-trial, 10km points race and 10km scratch race.

In July of last year, he showed his all-round ability by winning the National Masters Road Race Championship for the 65-69 age group over a 100km course.

Then, last September, Dacey went a stage further, winning gold medals in the pursuit and the points race, as well as bronze in the sprint, at the World Masters Track Champ-ionships, also held at Manchester Velodrome.

His campaign to defend his titles in this year's World Masters Track Championships has gone well.

He added: "I had a number of victories in road races at Eastway and elsewhere and a good performance in June at this year's British Masters National Track Championships, where I retained my sprint, points race and scratch-race titles."

Dacey also took silver in the pursuit covering the 2,000 metres in 2 minutes 47.399 seconds, just 2.210secs slower than the winner, and another silver in the 500-metre time-trial where his time of 41.031 was only 0.118 seconds behind the gold medal winner.

The icing on the cake was his Streatham-based club-mate Peter Jenn taking the pursuit gold medal in the 60-64 year-old category. Jenn will also be riding at the World Championships so Dacey will have a De Laune club-mate for company in Manchester.

De Laune CC is a cycling club originally founded in 1889, with its headquarters now at Herne Hill Velodrome in south-east London. It has members active in road and track racing, time-trials, mountain bike racing, cyclo-cross, and triathlon.

Although south-east London is its home, members are spread across the capital and the south-eastern boroughs. More details can be found on the website at: www.delaunecc.org