CTT Tribes

CTT Tribes brings online team-based competition to UK time trials.

“Cycling Time Trials (CTT), the governing body for time trialling in the UK, is excited to announce the launch of ‘Tribes’; an innovative online, team-based competition. This initiative looks to encourage cyclists from all over the UK to participate in time-trial events, competing for national team podiums and fostering a sense of camaraderie and collective achievement.“

Time-trialling is a branch of the sport that was traditionally very strong in the UK. In a time-trial riders compete over a set distance against the clock, trying to record the fastest time. It’s often called the “race of truth” as riders compete as individuals, no drafting allowed. Riders have to learn how to pace themselves over set distances, usually 10, 25, 50 and 100 miles. There are also twelve and twenty-four hour events and the odd non-standard distance event.

As the sport developed riders began to realise that they could record faster times on certain courses. Over time these ‘fast’ courses became well known and riders would travel far and wide to improve their times. However not all riders have the time or money to compete on those courses. The CTT Tribes competition seeks to “make racing easier than ever“, by encouraging riders to “Race Locally to Compete Nationally“.

Spindata

To this end the CTT have joined with the Spindata system to operate the Tribes competition. Spindata is an innovative system that ranks time-trial results across the UK by using time and relative position to other riders. The scores are directly comparable between events, so there is no advantage to riding a ‘faster’ course or chasing ‘ideal’ conditions. You can compete wherever you are, on any bike, and all you need to do is your best.

Also, once you have started to record a few events, Spindata will be able to predict what your time would be. You now have an added incentive to beat not just yourself, but prove the algorithm wrong! An additional reason to ride faster is that your times will contribute to your Tribes’ score. Recording rides locally will help your Tribes’ nationally, as your team doesn’t need to be in the same area.

CTT Event Finder

Riding a time-trial has always required a bit of local knowledge. Due to the way the sport had grown in the UK, courses each have their own unique code. Trying to find out any details about where and when the events happened could prove difficult.

The CTT have sought to simply this by adding an Event Finder to their website. It’s now easy to find out where a course is and additionally you can check on the Spindata site to see what times other riders have recorded. The Event Finder uses Google cloud technology and includes features such as calendars, route planners, and social sharing options. So you can share an event’s details with your Tribe and get them competing.

Quotes from the CTT

According to their press-release the CTT “wants riders to enter and begin riding as teams or Tribes.” It goes on to talk about team competitions, which were a common and popular part of time-trialling in the 60s and 70s. The CTT are hoping that the Tribes concept will re-ignite those competitions, “encouraging team-spirit into a solitary sport.”

Andrea Parish, Chair of CTT, expressed her enthusiasm for these new developments: “We are incredibly excited about launching the new Tribes initiative, and I am certain the Event Finder tool is going to be a game changer for us. These innovations are set to pave the way for greater accessibility and involvement in the sport of time trialling. By bringing these features to our platform, we hope to make it easier than ever for cyclists to get involved and enjoy the sport, fostering both individual and team growth.”

Nick Wild, founder of Spindata, is also the man behind the Tribes concept and explained that he was driven by a desire to open up the sport: “The integration of Spindata and the introduction of a standalone category for road bikes in recent years have really opened the door for new participants in time trialling and paved the way for Tribes. Hopefully the new competition, along with CTT’s Event Finder, will inspire even more riders to start their racing journeys.”

For more information, visit the CTT website and everything you need to know about Tribes can be found via the CTT Tribes site.

The Cycling Time Trials team can also be found on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.