LVRC or the League of Veteran Racing Cyclists to give it it’s full name (http://lvrc.org/ ). If you happen to be lucky enough to be over 40 years old (and you don’t get to say that often!!!) then you are eligible to ride LVRC events. Before you ride you will need to join the LVRC and they will send you a racing license which you will need to present at signing on for any events. Membership is a snip at £20 a year and there are events put on all over the country from March to the beginning of October.
Races are organised into age categories, each category denoted by a letter for each 5 year age range. So aged 40 – 44 are A category; 45 – 49 = B category; 50 – 54 =C category; 55 – 59 = D category etc. At national championship events there will be separate races for each individual age category. For all other events age categories are combined and prizes award for overall finish positions and category positions. Typically if there are 3 races held then they will A+B; C+D, EFGH. For a 2 race split you might have ABC and then DEFGH or sometimes ABCD and EFGH. All depends on the organisers.
The LVRC is run entirely on a voluntary basis. This keeps the costs low and the friendly and approachable element very high. If you are just starting out then you are encouraged to “race up” a few age categories until you find your feet. So for example if you are a B category, then you could ride in a DEFGH race (which should be slower than the “youngsters” event) – you won’t be eligible for any prizes, but you will get to find you feet in the bunch more easily.
The full LVRC events calendar is online at http://lvrc.org/race-calendar/ . Race entries for some events are managed online via the RiderHQ web site, the rest are entry by post using the form available on the web site. The standard race entry fee is £10 a time.