Reading Track League 23 May 2011

The Spring weather continues to frustrate Reading Track League – without quite interrupting it. The threat of gale force winds and rain – plus the after effects of a brutal Central Division Road Race Championship at the weekend – kept the numbers down and sapped the energy of those that braved the elements.

Full results and picture gallery

The evening opened with a 10 Lap Hare & Hounds and strong work from the AW Cycles team ate away at the B riders’ half lap advantage with the  A riders bridging the gap – and cruising through the pack – with just over 3 laps to go. It was AW Cycles duo Matt Gittings and Nick English who made the decisive move with two to go, but Newbury RC’s Ian Greenstreet went with them and overhauled English on the Bell lap to take 2^nd behind Gittings. English hung on for third.

The main part of the evening was the Bs and Ladies Derny paced races, though the reduced numbers on the evening meant that the Bs was down to two heats of three and four riders with two going through to the Final and the Ladies had a straight Final.

Steve Bale of Reading CC lead the first heat from the off, with Tristan Natolie of Charlotteville CC in second and Paul Stedman of Reading CC in third. Natolie was never far behind Bale, though, and he and pacer Chris Macleod moved through to take the heat in the closing stages. The second heat was slightly more eventful with Pip Taylor of VC Meudon  taking the early lead before Jason Pitt of Palmer Park Velo and pacer John Wann hit the front. They were challenged in the closing laps by Trevor Bradbury of AW Cycles – paced by that man Macleod, again – but held them off to take the win and the place in the Final.

In the Ladies race Jayne Paine of Willesden CC was in a class of her own. Paced by Gittings – who is more often to be found behind a Derny than on one – she dominated the race, which strung out behind her as she eased away. Rohan Battison of For Viored Brookvex took second – a fair distance behind but comfortably ahead of third placed youngster Ellie Gilham.

The B Final was the highlight of the evening with Pitt and Wann looking comfortable at the head of the field for most of the race but Natolie – paced by Gittings this time – again keeping a watching brief behind. Perhaps, when he finally made his move, he’d left it a little late, but they came off turn 4 with Natolie on Pitt’s shoulder and closing. He couldn’t quite make the pass, though, and Pitt hung on to win by a bike length with Bradbury taking third.

20k aside, the B Derny programme meant that the A riders only other race of the evening  was a 12 lap points race, which was dominated by Will Macke of AW Cyles who racked up 14 points to take a comfortable win. Macke’s team mate and Senior A series leader Cam Swarbrick clung on to his overall lead with a second place – just one point ahead of third placed Greenstreet.

In the AW Cycles 20k Endurance, the race was effectively settled within the first kilometre. Gittings and English went off the front from the gun and, in what was by then pleasant early summer sunshine, opened up a gap.  Not only were they never caught, they were never seriously challenged.

By the time they lapped the badly fragmented field just after half distance, Greenstreet and Millard were comfortably settled at half a lap back, but by the time the bell rang Greenstreet and Millard had lapped the field and Gittings and English had lapped the third-fourth placed pair.

With the 9 of the 10 riders that remained bunched together at the bell, it was Gittings who jumped first, on the exit of turn 2, and opened up a gap. English chased, but settled for second by the end of the back straight. Greenstreet won the race for third, with Pitt heading home Bradbury in the Bs, Paine taking the Ladies win from Battison and Max Stedman, impressively, still with the bunch to win the Somin Under 14-Under 16 category.

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Senior A

Hare & Hounds
1 Matt GITTINGS AW Cycles
2 Ian GREENSTREET Newbury RC
3 Nick ENGLISH AW Cycles

Points Race
1 Will MACKE AW Cycles 14 points
2 Cam SWARBRICK AW Cycles 8
3 Ian GREENSTREET Newbury RC 7