Gentry goes solo for Lotus circuit victory
The Lotus Cycle Racing League got off to a fine start with a stylish lone win by Liam Gentry of the VC Baracchi.
Strong riders got the bit between their teeth on the newly-resurfaced circuit at Hethel and a lead group of 11 soon emerged.
With one-and-a-half laps to go Gentry, pictured, attacked alone and his erstwhile breakaway companions 'marked each other out of the race' as one of them ruefully put it.
Tom Fitzpatrick (Windymiller) was second and Richard Dunnett (Diss CC) third.
The Go Race for novices was won by young riders Alan Trolove (WSW) from Imogen Buick (Iceni), with Matt Hicks (North Norfolk Wheelers) third and Owen Marsden (VC Norwich) fourth, the leading seniors. For details of how to take part at Lotus see: http://eatsleeptrain.co.uk.
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At the finish of the Regional Championship Road Race, competitors looked like Tour de France riders of 100 years ago, with faces caked with dust – in this case blown across the circuit near Bury St Edmunds by strong winds. A mid-race regrouping saw three riders from the Twenty3C/Orbea – Rafa Rodriguez Segarra, Andrew Griffiths and Marcel Six, and David Mclean (Pasta Montegrappa) form the break.
On the last lap, Mclean's team mate Wojciech Szlachta joined, making it a more equal battle. At the finish it was Spaniard Segarra, a full-time cyclist based in St Albans, from Six, then Mclean, Griffiths and Cambridge student Szlachta. Mike Auger (VC Norwich) was the first Norfolk finisher
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The road to emulating these men might start with the Gas Hill Gasp-attack, Norwich's steepest hill, on the eve of the Lord Mayor's Parade. Advance entries are required for the event on Friday, July 8. See www.norfolkcycling.co.uk/ and use the BC 'General' entry form.
In the national championship 10, the strong and gusty wind was the dominating factor. Josh Hannan (23:19) from Norwich took 14th spot in the junior event, 1:46 behind winner Ryan Mullen.
Team Pedal Revolution were led by 78-tooth chainring man Nik Bowdler (21:33) for 18th place among the men. East Anglian's Nino Piccoli recorded 22:02 for 41st and Mark Arnold 22:14 for 49th place.
Next day Piccoli won the Stowmarket and District 10 at Wickham Market in 20:58, ahead of Jim Burgess (Anglia Velo, 22:12).
In the King's Lynn 10 at Tottenhill, Richard O'Rourke (E17) won in 21:14 from Gary Rushmore (KLCC, 21:36) and Daniel Bloy, also of the King's Lynn club was the revelation of the day, taking fourth in 22:16.
Team CCN mountain bikers travelled to Llandovery for the second round of the Chain Reaction Cycles MTB Marathon series.
Shaun Aldous, Andrew Manning and Glen Stanford completed the 85km course, finishing all together in four hours 19 minutes less than 15 minutes down on the day's fastest rider. James Browne of VC Norwich scored his first Eastern Road Race League points with sixth place in the CC Hackney event at Bulmer in Essex.
