Skipper sets course record in VC Baracchi open 50; Richards in top ten

Local rider Joe Skipper of Rock Estate won the Velo Club Baracchi open 50-mile time trial with a course record and VCB rider Mark Richards was in the top ten.

Skipper on a turbo

The course covers the ground between the Redenhall and Stockton roundabouts twice and is not a fast one. The day itself was not an ideal one.

Skipper’s time, 1-46:39, was therefore particularly impressive.

Skipper’s closest challengers were the Team VeloVelocity trio of Daniel Bloy 1-47:30, Paul Jay 1-55:11 and Andrew Leggett 1-55:14 and Iceni Velo rider John Swindells 1-55:45.

Richards achieved 2-00:33 for tenth place.

Team VeloVelocity won the team prize and Chris Nudds of CC Breckland was the top veteran with is time of 2-04:03, which earned +24:26 against his veteran age standard time. Anna Muir of Colchester Rovers CC won for the ladies with 2-11:15.

The event organiser, Richard Allen, summed up the conditions as, “Not a special day: light to moderate westerly, particularly marked on the final leg. A happy event.”

By way of thanks he also observed that staging the event would have been, “Not possible without John Thompson, Chris Durrant, Bruce Williams (North Norfolk Wheelers), Mark Womack, John Haigh, Keith Wink, club chairman Brian Boxall, and Pete and Pam Milner.”

Skipper came to this event less than a week after setting a new course record in the 25-mile event run by Godric CC in their Tuesday club event based on the usual open course along the Waveney Valley route near Earsham.

He led the field of 29 riders with 51:18 to break the 52:21 record set by the late Zak Carr (then of Leo Road Club) in 1996.

Gentry

Liam Gentry of VCB took 5^th place with 56:41, behind Skipper, Jim Burgess (Anglia Velo) 54:57, Tom Fitzpatrick (Diss CC) 55:21 and Simon Scott (Anglia Velo) 56:18.

Moore

Other VCB times were Richards, seventh with 57:43 and Paul Dennington, tenth in 59:16 and James Moore, 1-00:36.

Richards

John Swanbury and Ali Banks of VCB, riding the tandem, set a new personal best and club record of 58:23.

Swanbury and Banks (N.B. I would acknowledge the photographer of these, and if someone can identify him please advise)

Dennington went on to top the results in the Gt Yarmouth CC with a 19:36 win on their 8.25-mile club sporting course, starting near Lound, a speed of 25.255mph. Second and third were was Louis Julian and Nick Esser of Pedal Revolution with 19:55 and 20:29 respectively. Mark Womack of VCB came ninth in 22:35. Seventeen rode.

John Thompson, listed as a reserve, was pleased to get a ride in the VTTA East Anglian 10 on the E2 course from Six Mile Bottom on the A11 road. There was a side wind most of the time and he achieved 27:46.

Matthew Smith of Team VeloVelocity took the win on scratch in 19:20. Remarkably two people in the event both called Simon Warren, one of Anglia Velo and the other of Norwood Paragon CC, coincidentally achieved a dead heat of 21:40 for 22^nd place.