ROLLAPALUZA ROLLS AT REVOLUTION
20 November 2008
For the first time in history, Revolution had a race open to spectators as well as the champions. On 15th November, 170 fans took part in Roller Racing organised by Rollapuluza in the Track Centre.
Paul Churchill from Rollapuluza explained: "Having Rollapaluza at an event such as Revolution means that the public can be part of the event and competition as well as just watching it and they genuinely can claim to be taking part in the same competition as some of the sports stars such as Chris Hoy, Craig Maclean and many other athletes who have all competed on the exact same bikes and rigs."
Far from being a side show for many, roller racing was the highlight of the evening. Paul continued: "We're glad we brought two rigs! We're used to being busy, but this is exceptional".
Matt (13) won the men’s race against competitors several times his age and reached speeds of nearly 90 kph! His lead of nearly half a second put him well ahead of the field however the next 9 riders all finished with less than a second between them and the contest was hard fought. "I really enjoyed the atmosphere at the revolution and the rollapaluza was great. It was good to get back on the rollapaluza bikes and get a PB."
 The roller racing was seriously popular with the younger visitors too, 63 boys and 27 girls took part over the evening, with many of these U13’s having two or more rides. Nine year olds Hanna and Lucy put the older girls to shame coming first and second in a class with riders up to three years older than them.
Competition in the ladies was equally fierce with Suzanne Jolly beating Emma Trott of Team Halfords Bikehut. Emma was on hand throughout the evening to help riders, do demo runs and set the times to beat.
As our expert on the evening, Emma’s keen to spread the word and get more cyclists up on the Rollers. She said: “Fun, exciting, painful?? Roller racing is all of these things and more. Strapping yourself into the fixed wheel bike, nervous, apprehensive. Setting your pedals at three o’clock for that all important countdown. 3,2,1... Thinking that 20 seconds of effort is going to be easy is quickly forgotten about after 10 seconds and the legs are already burning. The cadence slowly starts to decrease as the legs fill with lactic and the lungs start to burn. 20 seconds seems like a lifetime but the buzz it gives you makes you feel great. 500 metres completed and your legs just stop. Getting off the bike and your legs are wobbly, but ultimately it was fun! If you’re sane you will only complete this once, if you’re insane you will come back and complete it again. Personally I’m happy with only doing it once!
“Roller racing is great fun and anyone of any age can participate” she continued. “For 20 seconds of effort it can make you appreciate what those who ride the track can feel like after a race. Although taking seriously by many it is fun and a laugh. I personally love roller racing and will definitely be doing more of it in the future.”
Paul and the Rollapaluza team will be back at the next Revolution in December so do come down to Track Centre and see if you can beat the current Revolution Champions!
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