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Location: Thornbridge Outdoor Centre, Derbyshire
Event: 24 September 2011
Report: Snowdon Sports
Zepnat Racing Team's Jim Bryan secured his first win of the cyclo-cross season in round three of the Notts and Derby League, staged at Thornbridge Outdoor Activities Centre near Bakewell in Derbyshire on Saturday.
Bryan, 40 and from nearby Alfreton, was just ten seconds ahead of his nearest rival after a steady and controlled race from all the front runners, who covered seven laps of a testing course.
The Thornbridge venue has been used many times over the last six years, and each time the course is slightly different as organisers put their own stamp on the possibilities.
Saturday's event used a slightly longer seven-minute lap, and included a mixture of grassland and woodland over fairly hilly terrain which proved popular once again with all the riders.
A massive entry of 170 for the seniors race put the judging team to the test, while more than 100 youth riders also attended which meant the venue was full to capacity.
Bryan was at the front virtually from the gun in the senior race, while Cycleshack rival Matt Barrett was never far behind and took second spot, ten seconds off the pace.
And Empella Cyclo-Cross.com rider Ben Eedy, who was third the previous week, had to settle for that position once again, 29 seconds behind Bryan.
Bruce Dalton was best under-23 rider in eighth spot, while best of the juniors was Joe Kirkham (Hargroves Cycles) in 13th. MI Racing rider Martine Verweig was fastest women.
There were several Yorkshire-based riders taking part in the Notts and Derby League event at Thornbridge, which is readily accessible from large parts of Yorkshire. And with only the Three Peaks taking place on Sunday, many riders preferred to ride a conventional ‘cross race rather than the annual classic at Helwith Bridge.
One of these Yorkshire visitors, Bradford Olympic's Billy Harding, put on a great show in the youth race to win by 22 seconds from Derby Mercury's Tom Weds, while Welsh visitor Dylan Kerfoot-Robson (Rhos on Sea CC) was third, about a minute off the pace.
Results:
Seniors:
1 Jim Bryan (Zepnat RT) 49:35
2 Matt Barrett (Cycleshack) @ 10sec
3 Ben Eedy (Empella Cyclo-Cross.com) @ 29sec
4 Lee Shunburne (Matlock CC) @ 43sec
5 Rob Parkin (Buzz Cycles) @ same time
6 Andrew Naylor (Ashfield RC) @ 1:00
7 Andrew Stuart (TFN) @ 1:03
8 Bruce Dalton (unattached) @ 1:20
9 Jonathan Watson (Charge Bikes) @ 1:51
10 Gareth Hewitt (Team RST) @ 1:54
Veterans: Jim Bryan. Under-23s: Bruce Dalton. Juniors: Joe Kirkham (Hargroves Cycles). Women: Martine Verweig (MI Racing).
Youth:
1 Billy Harding (Bradford Olympic) 26:20
2 Tom Weeds (Derby Mercury RC) @ 22sec
3 Dylan Kerfoot-Robson (Rhos on Sea CC) @ 1:00
4 Jack King (Langdale Lightweights) @ 2:20
5 Tom Craig (Scott) @ 2:47
6 William Gascoyne (Heanor Clarion) @ 3:09
Under-14s: William Gascoyne. Girls: Grace Garner (Leicester RC). Under-14 girls: Osabelle Boon (Belper BC).
Under-12s:
1 Jenson Young (Pedalsport) 14:08
2 James Swadling (Nottingham Clarion) @ 8sec
3 John Webster (Matlock CC) @ 11sec
Girls: Ava Oxley (Wakefield Tri Club).
British Cycling would like to thank the organising team, officials and everyone else who helped promote this event. Our sport could not exist without the hundreds of people, many of them unpaid volunteers, who put in many hours of hard work running events, activities and clubs.
