Mike Rainton riding End to End this week

Mike Rainton of Velo Club Baracchi has this week been riding the Race for Life in aid of the Bishop Simeon Trust charity from Lands End to John O’Groats and his club-mates look forward to hearing how he got on.

He is one of six cyclists who are undertaking this year’s challenge to cycle 876 miles over six days.  The other five riders are younger, so Rainton was more than usually concerned as to how he would fare in comparison with them, but his endurance is good and a lunchtime cat-nap is guaranteed to put the 66-year-old right for the second half of each day’s ride.

After five previous annual rides and in view of the success of his previous fundraising efforts the pressure on Rainton to raise money for the charity has eased a little, but Rainton is still anxious to do his very best and his page on Virgin Money Giving under the name Mike Rainton is still open.

All the funds go directly to fund HIV–AIDS work carried out by the Bishop Simeon Trust’s partners in South Africa, particularly helping affected children in poor communities by funding education and care projects.

Godric CC’s Tuesday evening 25-mile club time trial last week attracted three VC Baracchi veteran riders, the fastest of whom was John Swanbury.

They were well beaten by the younger riders, but that is often how it goes.  The weather was kind and the wind was light.

Jenny Anderson showed signs of picking up speed again this season and Mike Wood made a sound start, beating “evens” or 20mph.

The full result was Stuart Pryce (Strada Sport) 57:05, Peter Hargreaves (Strada Sport) 1-00:21, Simon Garrrard (Team Velo Velocity) 1-03:28, James Trenchard (Godric CC) 1-03:39, Paul Lewis (Team Velo Velocity) 1-04:47, John Swanbury (VCB) 1-05:39, Jenny Anderson 1-08:07, Mike Wood 1-14:20, Jim Caplin (Godric CC) 1-15:21, Robert Debbage (private) 1-15:33.

The Gt Yarmouth CC event at Somerleyton on Thursday evening attracted just three riders and Paul Bedford of VCB topped the list with 28:19, beating the home club’s Harley Matthews by ten seconds, with Lee Hurren of GYCC third in 31:11.

The big event of the weekend was supposed to be VC Baracchi’s 50-mile time trial on the A143 organised by John Thompson, but the event had to be cancelled because of the heavy rain overnight and on Sunday morning.