Day 2 of the Masters National Track Championships at Newport saw a smooth transition from the Sprinters to the Endurance riders with a morning of Time Trials, followed by an afternoon of Scratch races. And, to liven things up, a non-championship, two-part Open Derny Paced event.
Full Masters and CWAD Results. Day 1 and Day 3 reports.
Pictures from the event can be purchased from swarbrick.com
Pictures from the event can be purchased from swarbrick.com
Time Trials
In keeping with tradition, it was the Women who opened the meeting and a larger entry than for the Sprints yesterday meant that medals were awarded across a broader range of age categories – although in all cases the event was over 500m.
In the 50+ category, Anja Scarsbook (Team Echelon), who missed out on a Semi-Final place yesterday took the title with a time of 43.626 seconds. Christine Higgs (Macclesfield Wheelers) took Silver with a time of 44.085 and Susan Smith (Brereton Wheelers) posted 47.769 to take the Bronze.
The 45-49 category was one by Isobel Fletcher of Glasgow Wheelers in 45.665, with Brereton Wheelers’ Ann Robinson posting 47.415 to take Silver and Louise Schuller of Finsbury Park CC taking the Bronze with a time of 47.583.
Second fastest time of all in the Women’s events was set by Janet Birkmyre (XRT elemycycles.co.uk) to clinch the 40-44 Gold. Her 37.754 was a full three and a half seconds ahead of second placed Jeanette Baxter of Yasumitsu Schlapp (41.352). Cheryl Owens of GS Metro took Bronze with a 42.032.
Fastest of all the Women was Alison Chisholm (Edinburgh RC), who added to her 35+ Sprint title from yesterday by taking the 35-39 Time Trial title with a very impressive 37.537 – just a shade under 30mph. Siobham Mullan (AKO Ducati Corse WCT) was the only other win to come in under 40 seconds and took silver with a time of 39.810. Marianne Pughe took the Bronze for Activ-cycles Fentimans RT with a time of 47.294.
In the final age category – the 30-34s it was another win for the newly crowned Sprint champion, Sarah Storey. The VC St Raphael rider took the title with a time of 40.119. Julie Dominguez – West Lothian Clarion – took Silver with 41.759 and Caroline Gammell added another Bronze to her collection, stopping the watch at 42.361.
The podium for the Men’s 70+ category had a very familiar look to it. As he did yesterday, Roland Crayford (San Fairy Ann CC) took the Gold, covering the 500m in 40.138 seconds. Brian Dacey took his customary position to Crayford’s left on the podium, clocking 42.884 to take the Silver for De Laune CC. And Laurie Rissbrook (BC Private Member) took the third step, again, with a 44.130.
The same was true in the 65-69s, with Sherwood Pines Cycles’ Geoff Cooke netting yet another title in a 30mph+ time of 37.372 seconds. Peter Smith of Teeside Clarion added another Silver to his 2009 collection with a 39.862 and Lance Ravenhill of Kenilworth Wheelers took the Bronze with a 40.836.
To keep the run going, the podium for the 60-64s had the same three riders on it, too, but here there was, at least, some variety with 1st and 3rd reversed from yesterday’s result. Sandy Wallace took the title for Sandy Wallace Cycles with a time of 39.259. Geoff Brandt (Birkenhead NECC) was runner-up once more on 39.511 and Ed Demery had to settle for Bronze this time after clocking 49.076.
The 55-59 Sprint yesterday resulted in an incredibly close finish between Steve Davies (Ferryhill Wheelers) and Andy Laing (Musselburgh Roads CC) with the two riders separated by no more than a tyre width. Today was no different – 37.534 seconds for Laing and 37.590 for Davies, though, meant that the order was reversed, with Laing taking the title this time round. Third placed Ian Humphreys (Deeside Thistle CC) wasn’t far behind, either, with a time of 37.787 seconds.
The 50-54 category proved to be another close competition, with David Smith (Brereton Wheelers) taking Gold with a 37.032, Mark Zaschke (City Cycle Centre) Silver with 37.278 and Keith Williams (Port Talbot Wheelers) close behind at 37.787.
The 45-49 category competes over an extra lap and Ivor Reid (Clachnacuddin CC) took the title with the fastest 750m time of the day – 52.445. Peter Ettles (Forres CC) was almost a second down in the Silver medal position and yesterday’s Sprint champion Jim Varnish recovered from an aborted start to take Bronze with a 53.389.
Also racing over 750m were the 40-44 category and it was John Saysell (PCA Ciclos Uno) who set the fastest time – 52.565 seconds – ahead of Andrew Tranter (Halesowen A&CC) who clocked 52.598. Tim Lawson (scienceinsport.com) took the Bronze with a time of 53.599.
The youngest men get another lap added – riding the full kilometre. In the 35-39 category sprinter Lee Povey (Team Terminator) lost out to Endurance rider Adam Roberts (Planet X). Povey’s time of 1.09.893 over a second off Roberts’ mark of 1.08.743. Steve Roe of Team Swift was a further second back in the Bronze medal position with 1.10.922.
In the last of the time trials, the 30-34 category set a blistering pace with Bruce Croall (City of Edinburgh RC) taking his second title of the competition with a superb 1.04.674. Ben Elliot of VC St Raphael was runner-up again, a second and a half back at 1.06.260. Elliot’s team mate Jamie Streather took Bronze with 1.10.402. It was already looking like a good day for VC St Raphael – with some good medal opportunities still to come.
The time trial session was concluded with the Cyclists With a Disability (CWAD) Kilo. Like yesterday’s 200m time trial, the raw times would be converted in to points using an equivalence factor and, with just two tandem pairings to follow him, Jody Cundy (Tredz CC) set a benchmark with 96.050 point, 1.08.158 time over the four laps.
The first tandem pairing of Neil Fachie (BC Private Member) and Barney Storey (VC St Raphael) set a time of 1.04.371 to clock up 97.659 points to take the lead and guarantee at least a Silver.
The final tandem duo of Simon Jackson (BC Private Member) and David Readle went off quickly, but couldn’t match Fachie and Storey’s pace. They did manage to secure third place with 94.102 points (1.06.804 seconds), but the title belonged to Fachie and Storey.
Scratch Races
With small fields in some of the age categories – and a limit to the amount of track time available – some of the age categories were combined – including all of the Women’s categories. While this made for decent sized fields, it did make for slightly strange, slightly incoherent racing at times as riders calculated what they actually needed to do – and who to. It also made it a mammoth task for the judges to unpick the results.
The Womens event was relatively straightforward. After a couple of probing attacks from a number of riders, the race settled down and looked to be heading for a bunch finish until Sarah Storey (VC St Raphael) attacked in the final quarter of the race. With only two other riders in her category back in the bunch, it was difficult to organise a response and Storey maintained here rhythm at the front all the way to line to take the 30-34 title. The pack fragmented behind her and the group containing early attacker Melanie Sneddon (Penzance Wheelers) was next across the line, giving her the Silver. Caroline Gammell (XRT elmycycles.co.uk) took the Bronze.
The Sneddon group also contained the battle for the 40-44 honours and it was Gammell’s team mate Janet Birkmyre who sprinted away from the rest to take her second title of the day. Jayne Paine (Willesden CC) took Silver and Claire Newland (Welwyn Wheelers) Bronze. Christine Higgs (Macclesfield Wheelers) also finished in the same group to clinch the 45+ title.
The final title to be decided was the 35-39, which went to Siobhan Mullan (AKO Ducati Corse WCT).
The Men’s categories were split into 5 separate races – the first, over 10km, for the three over 60 categories. It was a lively affair, with a number of attempts to shake up the order – most notably from Max Pendleton (Mildenhall CC) who gained half a lap on the portion of the field he was interested in – the 60-64 category. He was eventually reeled back in, though, and it was Dick Cubison (Sheffield Phoenix) who attacked. He didn’t get as big a gap and he didn’t hold it for as long before being joined by Pendleton, Ed Demery (Bush Healthcare CRT) and Michael Allen of Belper BC – who’d also chanced his arm earlier in the race. A group of four (five, with Lance Ravenhill (Kenilworth Wheelers), who joined a couple of laps out but who was racing for the 65-69 title) with only three medals up for grabs, it was Pendelton who lost out with Demery breaking clear to take the title and Cubison pipping Allen to the Silver on the line.
Ravenhill held on to take the 65-69s, ahead of Dave Gretton (VC Nottingham) and Peter Smith (Teeside Clarion). Brian Lacey (De Laune CC) finished just behind Gretton to take the 70+ title, ahead of Victor Possee – another podium bound VC St Raphael rider – and Laurie Rissbrook, who took his third Bronze medal, despite being 4 laps down at the finish.
The 50-54 and 55-59 riders were up next, again over 10km. Some smart tactical riding meant that the race was uneventful for the most part, with Steve Davies (Ferryhill Wheelers) shadowing Musellburgh Roads CC’s Andy Laing’s every move in the 55-59s and Mark Zaschke (City Cycle Centre) and Keith Williams (Port Talbot Wheelers) playing a waiting game in the 50-54s. Christopher Davis of Halesowen A&CC tried a couple of times to liven things up, but this was always going to come down to the wire.
With everyone together at the bell, Zaschke lead out the sprint finished clear of the pack to take the 50-54 title. Williams and Graham Barclay of Team Leslie Bike Shop finished shoulder to shoulder with Williams – just – taking second place and the Silver medal. Davies finished on their wheel to clinch the 55-59 title from Laing and Martin Bush of Bush Healthcare CRT.
A large 45-49 field allowed a dedicated 15km race to be run for the category. Colin Parkinson (South Western RC), Ian Greenstreet (Newbury RC) and Stephen Clayton (Lichfield City CC) dominated the race – breaking away and staying away from the chasing pack. In the final sprint it was Parkinson and Clayton who battled it out to the line with Clayton taking the decision – and the title – 10 metres ahead of Greenstreet.
The 40-44 field was also big enough to justify a race of its own – and what a race it was. With 20 laps gone Will Fotheringham (Halesowen A&CC), Roger Harris (Gloucester City CC) & Peter Georgi (Epic Viner RT) were away and closing in on the back of the main bunch. Georgi managed to get away from his fellow escapees and take the lap, slotting in comfortably in the middle of the group but Harris and Fotheringham couldn’t quite get on. Harris blew first and started to slip back into the clutches of the race – F
otheringham gave up the chase 3 laps later and was also absorbed.
Not to be outdone, Andrew James (Port Talbot Wheelers) and Ian Cooper (Planet X) also gained a lap and amazingly, with less than 10 laps to go, Georgi went again – this time with Johannes Roux (Climb on Bikes) and was almost two laps up at the finish. James and Cooper finished in the bunch, in that order, to take Silver and Bronze.
The final Scratch race was another multi-category field – 30-34 and 35-39 – and would prove the hardest of all for the judges to unravel. First and second overall was pretty straightforward. Bryan Taylor (VC Londres) and John McClelland (Agiskoviner.com) had been part of a six man group which dominated the later stages of the race and when McClelland attacked, Taylor followed and overhauled him on the backstraight. 35-39 Gold to Taylor; Silver to McClelland. With the two race winners passing the main field on the line and the race strung out round the track, sorting out the other placings was more complicated.
The next four over the line were the remains of the six man breakaway group. The first of them, Chris Bush (VC St Raphael), took the Bronze in the 35-39s and the penultimate member of the sextet, Boyd Roberts (Planet X) took Gold in the 30-34s. Between the remnants of the breakaway and what was left of the main group, VC St Raphael team mates Barney Storey and Jamie Streather came home to take the Silver and Bronze behind Roberts.
Open Derny Paced Races
As well as the Masters and CWAD racing, there was also a non-championship, two part Derny paced competition. A 60-lap race, followed by an 80-lapper with omnium style points (1 for a win, 2 for second…) to determine the overall winner.
With 8 riders starting, the first race soon settled down into a three horse race between Team Terminator’s Sam Sturgeon (paced by his father, Clive), Simon Lewis of VC Londres and Matt Gittings of AW Cycles. In the last third of the race, Lewis and Gittings pulled away from Sturgeon – opening out the best part of a lap on the third placed pairing. With 8 laps to go, Gittings and his pacer Davie Urquhart came alongside Lewis and into the lead. As they started to weave their way through back markers, though, Gittings lost the wheel of the motor and dropped away rapidly. Concentrating on picking his way through the traffic, it would be a couple of laps before Urquhart was able to pick up Gittings again, but by this time he had been caught and passed by Sturgeon. Lewis’ healthy lead was never threatened and he took the win comfortably, while Gittings was unable to get back on terms with Sturgeon.
The pattern in the longer second race was similar, with the same three riders settling down in to a comfortable lead. Gittings on this occasion was paced by his regular Reading Track League partner George Gilbert – now free of his duties as a race official – and he settled in to the lead, with Lewis tucked in behind and Sturgeon a couple of lengths back. That was how it stayed for the first half of the race until Sturgeon began to drop away, leaving Gittings and Lewis out front alone.
The pace continued to pick up and several times Lewis looked like he would lose contact with the leader, but fought his way back to his wheel. In the end though, the result of the first race meant that 2nd would be enough for Lewis to take the competition overall – and with Sturgeon a distant 3rd the result was never in danger. Gittings – still a Junior – took an impressive win, but Lewis took the honours overall.
