Location: Redbridge Circuit, Essex
Event: 16 February 2013
Report: Snowdon Sports
Photos: Steve Mahon
East London Velo’s own rider Wayne Crombie secured victory in the final round of the club’s Six Days of Winter Series staged at the Redbridge Circuit in Essex on Saturday.
The 40-year-old from Waltham Forest in London took a solo victory after breaking away in the closing stages of the race with another rider, who he dropped on the final lap.
The final race of the series was greeted by calm and sunny conditions, but nevertheless there were few attacks for the first 20 minutes as the riders ate up the miles.
But after about 40 minutes the attacks started coming, and Crombie and his team-mates from East London Velo started to probe the bunch for weak spots in search of a break.
When the bell sounded to indicate five laps to go Crombie attacked, and the only rider strong enough to follow his wheel was 18-year-old Felix Barker (St Ives CC) from near Cambridge, and the pair worked well together to stay clear.
Three other riders detached themselves from the front of the bunch in search of the escapees, but they had left it too late to track down the strong-riding duo.
With three quarters of a lap to go Crombie attacked Barker as he came out of a corner, and got a two-metre gap which grew steadily from there until the line, but Barker clung on grimly to take a well-deserved second spot.
“This is my first National B win so I’m really happy,” said Crombie afterwards. “I’ve won quite a few Regional A and B races over the last couple of seasons, but this is a good one for me.
“My early season aim is the Crest Spring Road Race in a few weeks, so I hope I can carry this form on to that.”
Behind Crombie and Barker, Spalding CC’s 19-year-old Tom Neale took third spot.
In the race for third and fourth category riders, Theo Doncaster (CC Ashwell) took the win by a few bike lengths in a sprint finish with Gunther Zechmann (Team Zappi’s) taking second.
Results:
E/1/2s:
1 Wayne Crombie East London Velo
2 Felix Barker St Ives CC
3 Tom Neale Spalding CC
4 Adam Brittan High Wycombe CC
5 Iain Palmer Twickenham CC
6 Richard Da Silva Pro Cycle Hire
7 Louis Modell East london Velo
8 Rhys Keepenle Dulwich Paragon
9 Paul McGrath North Rd CC
10 James Local London Dynamo
11 Nick White East London Velo
12 Joel Lewis Arbis Colbert RT
13 Colin Bailey North Road CC
14 Gavin Moore Pro Cycle Hire
15 Jack Stevens East London Velo
16 Mark Westrud Strada Sport
17 George Wood Maldon & Dist
3/4 Cat:
1 Theo Doncaster CC Ashwell
2 Gunther Zechmann Team Zappi
3 Simon Bromley London Dynamo
4 Matthew Menlove Maldon & Dist
5 Josh Gneet The 5th Floor
6 Miles Butler London Phoenix
7 George Jary VC Londres
8 Stuart Clapp Vicious Velo
9 Edmund Fokles
10 Antonius Wubben Victoria CC
11 James Batten Duwlich Paragon
12 Joshua Voulters Rapha Condor
13 Alan Bird London Phoenix
14 Diaz Huberney Pretorious CC
15 Ross Hallard Pretorious CC
16 Mark Yale Stowmarket & Dist
17 Lewis Hutton Team Zappi
18 Hugh Vivien Finsbury Pk CC
19 Dan Lucken East London Velo
20 Tom Yiango Prestige CC
21 Charlie Scott CC14
22 Charlie Bratt St Ives CC
23 Greg Conti Mosquito Bikes
24 Tommy Poner Strada Sport
25 Ben Vrely London Phoenix
26 Chris Bulley LV Velo
27 Rick Gredidge JW Rouleurs
28 Will Hedden Glade CC
29 Charles Batho Dulwich Paragon
30 Alex Donaldson London Dynamo
31 Sam Morgan London Phoenix
Results courtesy of UKCyclesport.com
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.
