Preview: North Cheshire Clarion cross, Betley Court Farm – Sunday 13th November
We return to Betley Court Farm, hopefully in slightly better weather conditions than in 2021. If you look at the photo above, the tape had to be at ground level due to the 40 mph winds that we enjoyed.
It just meets the league requirements of a race venue in the Northwest given its Crewe postcode – CW3 9BH, but some of their fields are in Staffordshire!
The venue is all on private farmland with lovely views in all directions, bordering a Mere (and a wastewater treatment works but we won’t mention that again). The farm has an onsite tearoom who have been primed to expect a high demand for cake and strong coffee.
There will a cake sale by ‘Lottie aiming High’ (Facebook @LottieAimingHigh). She is riding the height of Mount Kilimanjaro and selling baked goods to raise money to support her trip to Camp Tanzania where she will be supporting the indigenous peoples there improve their living standards.
The NCC look forward to welcoming you all. Please ensure you enter online here NWCCA League Round 6 – North Cheshire Clarion CX Events – British Cycling before midnight on Wednesday 10th November as there is no on the day entry. Please note that late entries after this date cannot be processed so the cut off is a hard deadline.
The course will be different to Stadt Moors, being an open grassland route, centred on a central raise with views of much of the action from the finish line. The overall venue layout is shown below, with the courses shown.
If it is dry, almost all of the course will be rideable. If it is wet, we will see! We have added an extra loop to the north as it was thought you would all welcome another draggy climb.
Directions
From Junction 16 of the M6, take the A500 west towards Nantwich. At the second roundabout turn left, sign-posted ‘Balterley & Betley’. After about 2 miles, entering the village of Betley, continue on this road and Betley Court Farm is on the right. There will be a yellow sign indicating your turn so look out!
Parking
There is ample parking for everyone and the ground is well drained so hopefully there will not be a problem getting away. Please follow the parking marshal’s instructions.
As the venue charges us for the use of the land, we are asking for a £2 parking fee per car. Please try and have the correct change to ensure the flow of traffic is smooth.
Pits
There will be double pits as shown on the main plan above. You can wash bikes in this area or closer to the farm on the hardstanding area. Water should be available but best bring your own if you can.
Start Area
The start will loop around the top end of the main field before joining the main course. It should be a good fast start with enough distance to thin the field down before entering the technical section.
First Aid
First aid provision will be provided. This has been paid for by RPS Group (RPS Group), one of the UKs foremost Technical Engineering Consultancies, specialising in manging risk in the high hazard industry sectors. Guess who I work for!!
Prizes
All prize money will be paid by PayPal as soon as is possible after the event.
Children’s prizes will be presented on the day so if you do well, don’t rush off!
Sponsors
Thanks to Hope Technology for the generous supply of tape to mark out the course. You won’t believe how expensive marker tape can be until you have to buy a few miles worth!
Big thanks too to Ron SpenCer Cycles, Warrington for their contribution to the children’s prizes.