Sunday saw the fourth staging of the Dave Creasy Six meeting down at Herne Hill Velodrome. This is a day long celebration of track cycling in memory of Dave Creasy, the Keeper of the Keys at the Velo until he sadly passed away in 2010.
The name of the now annual meet refers to the Six Days of Ghent, one of Dave’s favourite cycling events in the track racing calendar.
The Herne Hill event has grown over the past four years. It is now a celebration of the young racing talent coming through at Herne Hill. Sunday saw a number of highly competative Herne Hill youth racing around the track.
Races took place all day, from 11am through to 5pm.
It was perfect track racing weather. The surface at the outdoor Herne Hill track has been relaid so that it can just about withstand very light rain. Thankfully there was no sign of this in South London on Sunday.
Most of the cycling fans took up their place in the Main Stand. There was plenty of space around the track for other cycling fans to watch the racing.
The view looking down to the old club house early on in the morning. This is currently structurally unsafe and remains closed. There are plans though to continue with the refurbishment that the track has benefitted from over recent years and to complete the Herne Hill makeover with a new club house.
Some of the big boys take on the Herne Hill banking.
Just one of the stalls in the brilliant (and utterly BONKERS) bicycling jumble sale. Fans of rare to find crank shafts weren’t disappointed. Lycra lovers were also well catered for. Why fork out £80+ in Evans for a generic cycling top when you can pick one up for a fiver at Herne Hill?
Looking down the Velo site.
The racing was competitive, tight and safe. We didn’t see any crashes during our morning and early afternoon at Herne Hill.
Tactical riding to see who will take their turn on the front of the peloton.
The inner well track warm up area. We are always in awe of the riders that make the roller riding look so effortlessly cool.
Time for a quick chat mid-race.
The inner well 5-a-side pitch is another recently new feature at Herne Hill. With the floodlights also added to the perimeter of the track, this allows for all year round use (and income) for the Velodrome.
The iconic Herne Hill sign on the banking of the nearby cycle X circuit.
Preparing for the main races on the inner warm up track.
More roller action.
Velo Club Londres are the true heroes of Herne Hill. The South London cycling club have helped to save the Velo on many occasions when it has faced an uncertain future. It now manages the track on behalf of British Cycling, running many training sessions and summer racing leagues. Dave Creasy was a key member of Velo Club Londres.
The little derby bikes. This must mean that keirin racing is on the race card…
Keeping track of the laps.
It was great to see local South London clubs competing. As well as VCL, Brixton Cycles and Dulwich Paragon also had considerable representation.
The Man on a Mic was a STAR all day. Forever talking, forever informative. Well called, Sir!
Trackside spectators.
The final sprint for the line.
Chapeau!