Paul Dennington’s new personal best

 

Paul Dennington of Velo Club Baracchi rode a new personal best time in the Diss CC club time trial last week, knocking three seconds off the previous best he famously achieved on New Year’s Day.

His time on the A143 course from Billingford to the Needham roundabout and back was 23:34 for third place. Dennington enjoyed the course, which he had not ridden before, as well as the good conditions.

VCB’s John Swanbury also rode and his time was 24:52.  The fastest time was ridden by Sean Taylor of RAF CC with 22:40, with Simon Scott of Anglia Velo second in 23:14.  Twenty-two rode.

In the VTTA East 10-mile time trial on the A14, turning at the Woolpit junction, John Dupen of VCB was the quickest of the club’s three riders, with 23:36, with Chris Womack second in 24:34.

John Thompson achieved a riding time of 29:01 on the road but he was late arriving at the start, so the 2:08 time penalty for his lateness gave him a disappointing 31:09 official total.

Dupen’s veteran plus (i.e. the amount by which he beat his age standard time) was +3:56 and Womack’s was +3:58, so they were good performances.

Thompson described the conditions by saying, “Put simply it was tough out but fast coming back, with more uphill on the return.”  He could see some positives in his own result, as this was his first event after not being so well.

Jack Sears of Stowmarket & District CC was the fastest with 21:46.  The best on age standard was Martin Reynolds of Cambridge CC with +4:29 from Chris Roberts of Anglia Velo +4:29.

The grandfather and grandson team of Don Saunders and Declan Davis of CC Breckland powered their tandem round in 21:09.

The club run to Dunwich via Halesworth, Walpole, Peasenhall, Saxmundham and Leiston was quite popular, with two distinct groups at most of the time.  A little warm sunshine made for a much nicer morning than the previous week and riders enjoyed a warm drink and cakes on the patio of the Dunwich nursery café.

The oft-mentioned Beccles Cycle for Life charity ride is now cranking up a gear, with a closing date for advance entries of May 4, though entry on the day is possible, albeit at a higher fee.  See www.becclescycleforlife.org for all details.

The event, organised by the Rotary Club of Beccles, will raise money for the East Anglian Air Ambulance and the Rotary club’s charitable trust.

In addition to the usual bicycle prize draw there are two £40 Life Cycles vouchers drawn at random to celebrate prize sponsor Norfolk & Suffolk Financial Services’ 40^th anniversary; one for any 40-mile rider and the other for a child riding any of the distances.