How does your club name itself ?

[Blue Hills]

not as an offensive weapon I hope.

A pic would be nice - or possibly worrying.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

not as an offensive weapon I hope.

A pic would be nice - or possibly worrying.

Got a really lovely picture of one of the girls knitting on a field during a ride break.
Cannot put it up as she is not a CChatter, don't have permission, sorry.

 

[Ian H]

Velo Club Venta. The Venta comes from Winchester's roman name 'Venta Belgarum', with Venta translated variously as meeting place, town or market. My guess is that it was picked for the symmetry of VCV.

Malden & District CC is MADCC. Then there's CCCC (Cheltenham & County). Cardiff Ajax spawned a rival named Cardiff Just-in-Front (JIF).

I'm certain there are others.

 

[Tommy2]

Don't forget Tri Clubs

 

[Blue Hills]

Cardiff Ajax spawned a rival named Cardiff Just-in-Front (JIF).

Was going to ask if there were any particularly funny/witty ones but that maybe takes the prize.

Kinda reminds me of the possibly apocryphal tale of a shop with the tagline "second to none" which awoke one morning to find a shop next door had called itself "none".

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

Does the San Fairy Ann club still exist ? (ca ne fait rien)

 

[Dogtrousers]

Does the San Fairy Ann club still exist ? (ca ne fait rien)

Yup
http://sanfairyanncc.co.uk/

 

[oldroadman]

I think that the origin of "Road Club" stems from clubs that rode/raced on the roads, rather than on the track. Might have originated in the days pre cars.

Some are, true enough. Then there was a wonderfully named club (if it still exists) Redditch Road and Path CC. The "path" in this sense is track racing.
Other "road clubs" are simply named after a road they frequented or where they were founded/first met. Archer Road Club is one of these - doing a bit of digging there used to be (about 90 years ago) a Bayswater Wheelers, and it looks like Archer RC was a separated group from them. What's great is the variety of names associated with history, much more interesting than all these "teams", cycling needs identity and what better than a town/city name. Nice modern one - London Dynamo (aka Richmond Park Racers...).

 

[oldroadman]

There used to be a great Roman based name. Velo Club Noviomagus. Roman name for Chichester, club based on the Sussex/Hampshire border. Long gone, sadly (I think). And there's always VC St Raphael, based in south of England and named for a town in south of France, stretching the link a bit there!

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

Hebridean Cycle Club

Over the years I've been a member of:
Stafford Road Club
Velo Club Europa
Halesowen Cycling and Athletic Club
Walsall Roads Cycling Club

Your mention of Walsall Roads reminds me of Beacon Roads too. So that's Shirley, Walsall and Beacon all using 'Roads' rather than 'Road'. Was this just a Birmingham thing I wonder ?

 

[Bollo]

There used to be a great Roman based name. Velo Club Noviomagus. Roman name for Chichester, club based on the Sussex/Hampshire border. Long gone, sadly (I think). And there's always VC St Raphael, based in south of England and named for a town in south of France, stretching the link a bit there!

Shifting OT slightly, the 'big' club in these part is Sotonia, based in Southampton. I'd always assumed that 'Soton' was some ancient roman name for Southampton, but it turns out to have been a relatively recent invention claimed by the local rag. Sotonia is just a made-up extension of a made up word. 'Soton' is also unusual is that I've never heard anyone speak it but it's common on signs and not unusual in print.

 

[Ian H]

Your mention of Walsall Roads reminds me of Beacon Roads too. So that's Shirley, Walsall and Beacon all using 'Roads' rather than 'Road'. Was this just a Birmingham thing I wonder ?

VC167 are named after a road: the A167.

 

[mjr]

I'd always assumed that 'Soton' was some ancient roman name for Southampton, but it turns out to have been a relatively recent invention claimed by the local rag.

They've rather an overinflated opinion of themselves: I'm sure I've seen it written as So'ton as often and I'm sure that newspaper didn't invent the concept of apostrophes. They may have been among the first to forget the apostrophe in that case, but it's not that unusual for a newspaper to be confused about punctuation, or to omit it from headlines as a style point.

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

^ That reminds me of the local rugby club where I grew up, formed for the old pupils of Solihull School they called themselves the Old Silhillians.

 

[Dec66]

My nearest club is The Old Portlians. I thought it was an in-joke about the age and physiques of the members.

I jest, of course, they have lots of excellent, well honed riders.

The actual origin is better than the lame pun, they were an athletic club for the old boys of Portland Road School in South Norwood. Founded in 1921 and became a dedicated CC in 1940. They'd be one of the two clubs I'd like to join, if I ever had weekends to myself.