The sun was out for the start of the 6th Bordeaux-Paris meeting at Reading’s Palmer Park and a strong field lined up for this unique event in the National Hard Track Endurance Series which features a 20k Scratch Race as a qualifier for a 30k Derny paced event – the top 9 riders from the Scratch moving through to the Derny Final.
The field warmed up with a 10 Lap Scratch which saw Cameron Fraser of Nuun YB London RT make an early break before being joined by Iain Cook of VC Londres and then Elliot Davis of Team Tor 2000. The trio had a sizeable gap but started to lose ground to the charging pack in the closing laps. Philip Trodden of City of Edinburgh RC passed Fraser through Turn Four but it was Cook that took the first win of the day from Davis and Trodden with Fraser holding on for fourth. Symon Lewis of Nuun YB London RT won the bunch sprint for 5th from Donal Linehan. Abbie Dentus of Team De Ver was first of the Ladies ahead of Katie Archibald of City of Edinburgh RC and Sarah Brook of Mulebar Girl Sigma Sport.
A Keirin competition offered a change of pace and it was George Farrell of Welwyn Wheelers who took the Men’s Final from Trodden after the Scot was relegated. John Scripps of VC Londres took third ahead of Farrell’s teammate Mark Smith. Dentus followed up her Scratch Race win with another in the Ladies Keirin, edging out Kim English of Contessa Scott Epic RT with Laura Cheesman of Prestige VC taking third.
The Ladies and Under 16 Bordeaux-Paris Scratch Race over 10k Archibald, was dominated by Archibald, Tom Sefton of Palmer Park Velo and Brendan Drewett of Fareham Wheelers who lapped the field with 3k to go, leaving Janet Birkmyre of Maxgear to lead the rest of the qualifiers home with 4 laps remaining. With the qualifiers extracted from the field it was Palmer Park Velo’s Joseph Linehan that led home Ellie Gilham of VC St Raphael and Linehan’s team mate Dylan Thomas to take the runners-up race.
In the Final, the early stages saw Archibald, Sefton and Drewett trading places at the front but Janet Birkmyre and ace pacer George Gilbert were hovering at the back of the string, poised to make a move. And make it they did with 6 laps to go, sweeping past the rest of the leading group to close in on Sefton and his pacer Chris Macleod.
Aware of where their rivals were, Sefton and Macleod piled on the pace and surged away from the rest of the field leaving Gilbert and Birkmyre with too much to do. Archibald and pacer Tony Hibbert took third ahead of Drewett and Tim Read.
The Senior event saw a characteristic early break by David Jack and another by Alex Wise of VC St Raphael who then covered every move, leading the chase to pull back break after break but his hard work came to nothing – losing out in the final sprint and having to settle for the runners-up race. It was Lewis who led the qualifiers home, ahead of John McClelland of Prestige VC and Trodden.
It was Track League regular Josh Mitchell of Bicester Millennium who led the runners-up home over the last four laps ahead of Scripps and George Gori of Nuun YB London RT and Jason Streather of VC St Raphael.
The Final saw the field stay together for most of the 30 kilometres with McClelland and Read and Lewis and pacer Derek Marloe on the front for much of it. Davis was in contention until a puncture forced a wheel change, but he rejoined the lead group in time to continue.
Once again, George Gilbert hung back, shielding James Holland-Leader of Prestige VC and keeping an eye on the race ahead. And this time, when the time came, they moved through the field to take station behind Lewis and McClelland before sweeping past and pulling away to take the win. McClelland made it a 1-2 for Prestige VC with Lewis in third. David recovered from his mechanical drama to take fourth with Trodden fifth and Smith sixth.
A 20 Lap Scratch race ended the days racing and it was a breakaway group of three riders – Max Brown, Greg Brown and Murty – who took control and were left to fight among themselves for the win. It was the Edinburgh Brown that took it from his namesake with Murty hanging on for third.
Senior Men
10 Lap Scratch
1 Iain COOK VC Londres
2 Elliot DAVIS Team Tor 2000
3 Philip TRODDEN City of Edinburgh RC
4 Cameron FRASER Nuun YB London RT
5 Symon LEWIS Nuun YB London RT
6 Donal LINEHAN Newbury RC
Keirin
1 George FARRELL Welwyn Wheelers
2 Phillip TRODDEN City of Edinburgh RC
3 John SCRIPPS VC Londres
4 Mark SMITH Welwyn Wheelers
Bordeaux-Paris Stage 1
1 Josh MITCHELL Bicester Millennium
2 John SCRIPPS VC Londres
3 George GORI Nuun YB London RT
4 Jason STREATHER VC St Raphael
5 Gavin MITCHELL Twickenham CC
6 Jame STREATHER VC St Raphael
Bordeaux-Paris Stage 2 – Derny Paced
1 James HOLLAND-LEADER Prestige VC
2 John McCLELLAND Prestige VC
3 Symon LEWIS Nuun YB London RT
4 Elliot DAVIS Team Tor 2000
5 Phillip TRODDEN City of Edinburgh RC
6 Mark SMITH Welwyn Wheelers
7 George FARRELL Welwyn Wheelers
8 Iain COOK VC Londres
9 Callum WATSON City of Edinburgh RC
20 Lap Scratch
1 Greg BROWN City of Edinburgh RC
2 Max BROWN Zappi CC
3 Gavin MURTY Edinburgh Racers
4 Jamie STREATHER VC St Raphael
5 George GORI Nuun YB London RT
6 John SCRIPPS VC Londres
Under 16 & Ladies
Bordeaux-Paris Stage 1
1 Joseph LINEHAN Palmer Park Velo
2 Ellie GILHAM VC St Raphael
3 Dylan THOMAS Palmer Park Velo
4 Sarah CONNELL Brixton Cycles
5 Laura CHEESMAN Prestige VC
6 Sarah BROOK Mulebar Girl Sigma Sport
Bordeaux-Paris Stage 2 – Derny Paced
1 Tom SEFTON Palmer Park Velo
2 Janet BIRKMYRE Champion Systems/Maxgear/Base
3 Katie ARCHIBALD City of Edinburgh RC
4 Brendan DREWETT Fareham Wheelers CC
5 Abbie DENTUS Team De Ver
6 Anthony ANDERSON Kingston Wheelers CC
7 Marrianne BRITTEN VC St Raphael
8 Kimberley ENGLISH Scott Contessa Epic RT
9 Sara GENT VO2 Development Team
Ladies
10 Lap Scratch
1 Abbie DENTUS Team De Ver
2 Katie ARCHIBALD City of Edinburgh RC
3 Sarah BROOK Mulebar Girl Sigma Sport
4 Ellie GILHAM VC St Raphael
5 Emily MELLOR VO2 Development Team
Keirin
1 Abbie DENTUS Team De Ver
2 Kimberley ENGLISH Scott Contessa Epic RT
3 Laura CHEESMAN Prestige VC
4 Sarah CONNELL Brixton Cycles
20 Lap Scratch
1 Katie ARCHIBALD City of Edinburgh RC
2 Marrianne BRITTEN VC St Raphael
3 Ellie GILHAM VC St Raphael
4 Sarah CONNELL Brixton Cycles
