Gentry smashes the 100-mile VCB club record

Liam Gentry’s current hot time trial form was confirmed with a hugely-improved club record in the East District Cycling Association 100-mile event on Sunday.

With VC Baracchi club-mate Nick Esser as his helper and bottle-passer, Gentry recorded a time of 3-51:46.  This smashed the club’s long-standing 100-mile record of 4-12:01 set by John Wych in 1999.

Gentry would perhaps have been quicker if he had not found his aero position a little uncomfortable towards the end of his ride.

Esser said, “The morning was “float” – no wind, so conditions were perfect.  Gentry set off and kept a steady pace.  His minute-man caught him after 8 miles and at that point Gentry decided to hold his own race and let him go.  Throughout the ride Gentry caught riders who had started over an hour before him, making him one of the fastest on the road.”

The rider who started a minute behind Gentry was the rated fast man Julian Jenkinson of UTAG-Yamaha.com, who won the event with 3-31:12.  Three riders from Team Pedal Revolution and Dave Green of RAF CC slotted in between Jenkinson and Gentry.

Mike Rainton just missed out on a veteran record on standard times.  His actual time of 4-52:21 was a “plus” of 61:49 (i.e. better than the standard time for his age by that amount).  It was less than two minutes outside John Dupen’s record of +63:58, set when he was a member in 2009.

In the middle order of the Godric CC club 10 results, Mark Newnham was the top VCB rider with 23:26 for fourth place.  Chris Womack re-asserted his dominance in the middle order of VCB veterans with a 25:23 ride.  This beat Roger Farrow of Gt Yarmouth CC by four seconds and John Swanbury (25:34) by eleven.

The event was won by Will Bamber of Cult Racing with 21:44, a quick time on a cross-wind evening.  Neil Turner of Gt Yarmouth CC was second in 22:32.

The Gt Yarmouth CC club event was cancelled because of loose chippings on the course.

On Saturday Esser raced in the Hillingdon Circuit Races in Uxbridge promoted by Inverse Racing, in which he showed well in a break.

The 40-mile event based on the 0.9mile circuit proved to be a difficult affair for Esser as the pace was constantly above 27mph, making it difficult for any breakaway to materialise.

He said, “Just before Lap 3 I attacked and took three riders with me.  We worked together but it was clear that two riders weren’t pushing hard.”  The bunch was soon to catch them, but not before the intermediate sprints were contested.

He added, “In the final throes of the race, we were caught and I managed to stay on a good wheel until the final corners (sounds familiar!) and I was pushed out into the rough and only managed somewhere in the teens.”