Womack betters his last year’s cabbage patch ride

Chris Womack of Velo Club Baracchi rode the West Suffolk Wheelers and Tri Club open 21-mile time trial on two laps of a “cabbage patch” course on Saturday.

This course, known as the BS31R runs from Risby via Flempton and Lackford and returns to Risby by the old A45 route.

Womack described it as a “very sporting course with many undulating hills and ten turns altogether, two of them at T junctions.”

“It’s amazing how two races a year apart can be almost the exact weather conditions. Cold and windy, making part of the two circuits into a cold northerly head wind very tough.”

“My time of 56:28 was 4 seconds faster than last year so I was pleased not to go slower.”

Mark Arnold of CC Desiragear won in 46:21, from Daniel Bloy of Team VeloVelocity 47:53 and Mathew Eley of Team VeloVelocity 49:07.

The fastest lady was Anita Buxton of West Suffolk Wheelers and Tri Club in 1-00:40

Arnold also won in the veteran category (on veteran standard) with Jim Hardwicke of Plomesgate CC second with his 49:30 actual time and Chris Nudds of CC Breckland in third place with 53:50.

Team VeloVelocity won the team prize with the combined time (2-27:00) of Bloy, Andy Leggett 49:13 and Peter Balls 49:54.

On Sunday George Kerridge, Nicki Hawkes, Dave Loynes, Chris Wallis, Lucas He, Paul Read and Womack himself.

They rode from the Cotmer Road roundabout to Corton, Hopton, Yarmouth, Caister, Hemsby, Winterton, Horsey, Sea Palling, Stalham and Potter Heigham, returning through Clippesby/, Filby, Caister, Yarmouth, Hopton and Corton.

John Thompson rode the “The Cambridge Pork Pie” 215km audax on Saturday from Girton, going by Oundle at 52km, Melton Mowbray at 105km and Oundle again at 157km.

He said, “Both the first and last legs were relatively flat and included using the cycle path alongside the Cambridge – St Ives busway.  The outward route to Oundle went via Sawtry, which included a 10% hill but we descended it.  The return route went through Huntingdon.”

The middle sections from Oundle to Melton Mowbray and back went through Rutland and Leicestershire lanes and the hills made this part an absolute brute”

He finished in around 13 hours and said it was one of the toughest rides he had done for a long time and “with riding to and from my digs I did around 143 miles.”

This Friday’s Gt Yarmouth CC two open 10-mile time trials on the A143 based at Wortwell has attracted the usual large entry.  Holiday weather conditions permitting, most of the 128 riders who have entered will face the starter, many for their first competition of the year.

There are nine VCB riders, including Nicki Hawkes and Lucas He in the women’s and juniors event and seven riders in the men’s/veterans event; Liam Gentry, Kerridge, Loynes, Womack. Paul Dennington, John Swanbury and Paul Hayward.