Southern Veterans Cycling Club (Melbourne, Australia) 5795627 170821572 2007-11-11T21:13:46Z Black Falcon 348521 various gen. fixes per [[WP:GTL]] and [[WP:MOS]]; + cat The '''Southern Veterans Cycling Club''' in [[Melbourne]], [[Australia]] is a [[Road bicycle racing|bicycle road racing]] club for veteran riders. Cyclists become eligible for membership at the age of 35 for males, and 30 years for females. The club is the largest Veterans cycling club in Australia. In 2006, there are over 350 members. ==History== The club's first official meeting was held on [[March 23]] [[1975]]. In the late seventies the Southern Veterans club formed the Veteran Cycling Association of Victoria, which later became the [[Victorian Veterans Cycling Council]] (VVCC).<ref>[http://www.veterancycling.com.au/About.htm Victorian Veterans Cycling Council]</ref> ==Racing locations and details== The types of races the club provides are: *[[Bicycling terminology#open road race|Open road race]], also referred to as a '''graded scratch race''' *[[Bicycling terminology#criterium|Criterium]], often abbreviated to '''crit''' *[[Bicycling terminology#handicap|Handicap]], where riders are given time handicaps in groups *'''Club Championships''', were riders are grouped according to their age (35-39, 40-44, 45-49 etc) Racing is conducted all year round. In winter, racing is based around the [[Mornington Peninsula]] and [[West Gippsland]] from April to September. These races are held on public roads for which all necessary permits are obtained. Distances vary depending on the course but are generally in the range 50-80km. The summer season, from October to March, is [[criterium]] races, which usually last from 1 to 2 hours. The club caters for a wide range in age and ability of competing riders with grades A to G. Riders are only grouped according to their age championship races which are held twice a year (for both the criterium and road seasons) at club, state and national level. ==References== <references/> ==External links== *[http://www.southernvets.com.au/ Southern Veterans Cycling Club] *[http://www.cycling.org.au/ Cycling Australia] *[http://www.veterancycling.com.au/ Victorian Veterans Cycling Council] [[Category:Cycle racing in Australia]] [[Category:Cycling in Melbourne]] {{cycling-stub}}