Event promotion, great rides and major spills

An extremely busy period of cycling competition for VC Baracchi riders has included event promotion, great rides and major spills.

Lucas He, VCB’s on-fire junior, had an exceptionally strong ride in Sunday’s Iceni road race that featured Skeets Hill on every lap.  Lucas was well up with the action throughout the race, but burnt just off the back of the bunch sprint on the last climb to the line, placed 26th. Charles Jones did not finish.

The spills came in Round 1 of the new Eagles Race Series at RAF Woodbridge, in which VCB members Liam Gentry, Nick Esser and Mark Richards took part.

After the first lap the pace car left the riders to their own devices and as Esser said, “Several touches of wheels saw Liam down on the left with Mark falling on him and in the middle Nick stacking it with nowhere to go.”

After the race was red-flagged and two other riders taken to hospital the race re-started with all three VCB riders able to continue with varied injuries. They did not give up but the crash affected their ability to contest the race fully.

The club’s major promotion was the May Day open 10-mile time trial based at Wortwell, ably organised by Richards, who also took second place with 21:54 behind Matthew Senter of Team VeloVelocity’s 20:41, with Sean Taylor of RAF CC third in 22:01.

Richards in the VCB open 10

Gentry did not finish, as his previous injuries prevented him from riding in the time trial position, but other VCB riders did well.

Their results were Mark Saunders 22:36, Paul Hayward 22:41, Lucas He 23:25, Nick Esser 23:30, Jones 23:33, Paul Dennington 24:21, Chris Womack 25:28, John Swanbury 25:44, Alex He 27:16 and Chris Wallis 28:04 on his debut.

The Jane Travers Memorial Trophy was won by Verity Smith of Stowmarket & District CC in 24:14 and last year’s winner Denise Hurren of Sole Bay Cycle Sport was second lady with 24:53.

Titch, Verity and the Jane Travers Memorial Trophy

Chris Nudds of CC Breckland was the veteran winner, beating his age-related standard time by 5:10.  Adding to Senter’s time those of Stuart Fairweather (22:05) and Paul Jay (22:08), Team VeloVelocity won the team prize.  Nearly 100 rode.

On Saturday in the King’s Lynn CC open 10 on the on the A10, A1122 and A134 roads Chris Womack won the 70+ age group prize with 24:22. Senter won this event as well with 20:46, with team-mate Daniel Bloy second in 20:46 and with David Procter they won the team prize.  Verity Smith won the ladies first prize with 23:28.

On Tuesday of last week in the first Godric CC evening time trial it was cold, windy and occasionally wet.  The VCB times were Richards 21:29 for the win, Gentry 22:16 for third, Lucas He 22:46, John Swanbury 26:25 and Alex He 28:00. Second place went to Simon Scott of Anglia Velo.  Seventeen rode.

This was the third time that Lucas has set a new club junior record, having already beaten Adam Bedford’s 2005 record of 23:16 twice before in April.