Location: Garelochhead, Scotland
Event: 24 June 2012
Report: Snowdon Sports

Aberdeen Wheelers rider Simon Van Bellen won the Hugh Dornan Memorial Road Race, which many riders described as the toughest race they had competed in all year.

The 30-year-old Dutchman managed to complete the course in 3:06:07, 23 seconds in front of Jason Roberts (Glasgow Wheelers).

But the course never allowed for anyone to pull away for long and the many breaks and attacks that occurred during the race made for a thrilling spectacle.

A starting field of 45 was whittled down to 26 as the tough course and ultra-competitive nature of the race took its toll.

Despite heavy rain in the night, the sun shone throughout the race, warming the riders as they raced round the track which offered little respite at any stage.

The circuit took in rolling hills, a big climb, narrow country lanes with broken surfaces and a devilishly fast descent which saw riders reach speeds of up to 35 miles per hour.

Simon Van Bellen told British Cycling: “It was very tough, lots of action at the front. I was quite nervous because it was my first race at this level and there were lots of breakaways and then they got caught back up. The weather was really good though.

“I was surprised at how well it went, I moved here three months ago after living in Canada and I only took part in some sportives and a lower level event. I’m really pleased. I have a race on Thursday now and then another on the Sunday. I’m really looking forward to them.”

Results:

E/1/2/3:
1 Simon Van Bellen (Aberdeen Wheelers) 3:06:07
2 Jason Roberts (Glasgow Wheelers) @ 23sec
3 Andrew Cox (Bicycleworks.com) @ 27sec
4 Gary Hand (Pedal Power Endura Forme Racing)
5 Scott McCrossan (Rock to Roll Cycles Ltd) all @ 29sec
6 Veli-Matti Raikkonen (Granite City RT)
7 Craig Wallace (Granite City RT)
8 Ian Taylor (Adept Precision RT)
9 Dale McCallum (Bicycleworks.com)
10 Jamie Kennedy (Glasgow Couriers) all @ 32sec

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.