Following on from a solid start to the season by the Geared Bikes Team we travelled to Crowthorne in the Army stomping grounds to the second round race!

A slightly faster pace course awaited all who made the journey up to Crowthorne, more pace seemed to be the order of the day with the elites moving into the expert category following the removal of the elite category and some experts dropping down into the sport made for some incredibly fast times and a split in a couple of the race packs!

Yet again Tim and James were off first and had the early race. With a mistake of direction taken by the lead pack time cost valuable time in the first lap for Tim but he pulled it back putting in consecutively faster laps to come in 15^th which considering a cost of 2 minutes on the first lap was a little disappointing but overall a higher position than he has achieved yet! James appears to have found his pace nipping at Tim’s heals coming in at 16^th a mere 6 minutes and 24 seconds behind the winner, and an average lap time of 22:38! Watch out Tim you’ve got some competition!

With Faye off next it was a good turnout for the women’s races. Yet again leading from the start Faye put some good pace into the master women, but after an unfortunate “off” in the notorious corkscrew she lost some time and a place, but despite this Faye came home second in the Master Women’s and securing her in the race for the series title on 54 points, only 6 behind the leader and 9 points clear of the third place.

Chris again started off the afternoon races with the expert male, this time he was up against some of the elite guys using the top race in the Gorrick setup as pre-race training for the 1^st round of the national points series at the end of the month. After a lightening first lap in 19:23 he settled into the 20 minutes laps for the next three laps only just nipping into the 21 minute laps for the final lap after a silly error (his words not mine) and putting in a blistering 20:16 average lap over the 5 laps, finally coming in 14^th very impressive and improving again for nationals at the end of the month!

Final race of the day was the Sport category with Pete and Andy, with so many elites in the expert field some of the experts had dropped down into the sport category making for some fast laps and upping the overall pace. Having put in a good start getting up to about 10^th for the first section of singletrack, Andy, hindered by a repeating mechanical pulled, dropped to the back of the pack and pulled from the race after the first lap. Pete however pushed on lapping in an average of 24 minutes following a fast 22 minute first lap. Pushing hard in a fast field Pete came in a good 1:36:07 for the four laps!

Well done everyone who put in some improving final places and some very good times, long may the success and progression continue!

Next Race - 28^th March 2010 - Porridgepot Hill - Spring Series Round 3

Posted in: Racing