EDDIE STAGG
13 June 1932 – 6 May 2015
Being of the same era as Eddie, and like him coming to this area from London as a mature cyclist, I knew of him long before ever meeting him because as a leading time-triallist through the 1960s and 70s his name was consistently published in the TT results in Cycling, riding for the Old Portlians CC. What I did not know then was that Eddie was truly a gentleman always willing to help and who just loved riding his bike – so much so that he continued to ride solo from his Wareham home into the Purbecks until serious heart trouble followed by cancer forced him to stop.
Eddie was a very modest man who was always reluctant to mention his racing prowess, so it is clear that the then editor did well to persuade him to contribute this profile of himself to a Jubilee newsletter in 1991:-
I started cycling in 1949. At first with the Clarencourt CC on their clubruns. Later in the year I switched to the Old Portlians CC and started racing, not very successfully at first. However as time passed I improved. My preference was for long distance riding, so I was happier riding 12 hour races. As a club we would meet at Croydon come rain or shine for club runs early on Sunday mornings, or in the summer to ride to local time trials or road races. When riding further afield we would assemble on Saturday afternoon and ride together to the Bath Road or Essex or Kent courses. We would stay overnight in bed and breakfast accommodation (no cars in those days) and then ride early on the Sunday morning.What a wonderful time in the late 50s to mid 1970s. Most of our rides were done on fixed whee, 82” or 84”. I did achieve some reasonable times through my racing career. 1:00:44 at 25 in 1960,2:03:15 at 50, 4:14:41 at 100in 1961, 262.25 miles at 12hrs in 1961 and 461.75 miles at 24hrs in 1960. My SRRA 12 hour record of 257:75 miles still stands. I managed to gain 3rd place in the Surrey Road Race Championship.
My cycling still gives me great pleasure, although each year it becomes harder, especially on the hills which I used to enjoy (but not any more).
When I moved to Dorset in 1965 I remained with the Old Portlians. Then I joined the BJW as a second claim member in1972, switching to full membership in 1986.
Cycling has given me some wonderful memories of racing, club runs and friendly club members. I look forward to many more years of cycling with the BJW. The early morning rides through the Dorset lanes “Far from the Madding Crowd” continue to give me pleasure.
The Jubilee will not be the same without Eddie in the background.
Our deepest sympathy goes out to his wife Maggie and children Louise and Richard.
Peter Warhurst