Cycle Club Bexley was formed in January 1966 with the merger of three clubs, the Long Valley Cycling Club, the Ruxley Wheelers and the Thames Road Club. The Thames Road Club and the Ruxley Wheelers were both based in South East London with the Long Valley Cycling Club based in the Dartford area.
With decline in interest in cycling experienced in these times, due mainly to the growing affluence of young people and the loss of older members from the boom years of the fifties as they all married off, the committees of these three clubs felt that a merger was a better proposition than the possibility of seeing our clubs fade away.
The Club started life meeting at The Seven Stars in Footscray, which was the last clubroom used by the Ruxley Wheelers. Since then we have moved from venue to venue, all the time moving towards North East Kent.
We have more recently seen a renaissance in cycling with many of our past and now older members returning as their families have grown up and “flown the nest”. The club has long been associated with our distinctive blue and yellow kit. Although the team strip was revamped five years ago, it retains the bold blue and yellow combination; the addition of white further increases the visibility of the CC Bexley. You’ll find us riding around some of the best country lanes Kent has to offer.
The club has been very active in the cycle racing community, be it producing racers or hosting events. A healthy contingent of members raced competitively in the Seventies and Eighties and continue to provide raucous support during the summer evening 10s, before toasting the riders at the Horton Kirby Cricket Club.
The club actively encourages all sorts of racing, from road racing to time trialling and even tricycle racing. In fact, between 1956 and 1959, Clarice Masterson set multiple national time trial records on a tricycle. Masterson isn’t the only successful tricycle rider; Ian Finch, who holds the club 10-mile time trial record on two wheels, has set national trike records too.
The club’s most notable rider is Kathryn Kitt (named Miles at the time). Kitt raced in the 1986 Tour Féminin, the female equivalent of the Tour de France. She went on to compete in the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games as a tandem pilot for blind para-athlete Robert Allen in the road race, track sprint and pursuit. Unfortunately, the reigning European champions were unable to add the Paralympic title, as Kitt’s build-up was was hindered by a leg break.
Impressively, we still have a monthly club magazine delivered to each member’s door, keeping everyone up to date with the club’s activities.
Historical pictures
see if you know these people from the DeLaune CC’s 10 mile TT on the Isle of Grain on 10th September 1983
Ian Finch (18 in this photo) is sporting the lycra balaclava which was considered to be an aero advantage at the time.
Ray Appleby was 48 at the time – teeth are more aero than lips 😉
Gawain Dickinson-Standing is, apparently, still the CC Bexley Junior 10 Mile Record Holder.