Youngsters make their debut at Broome Heath Scramble

Their first race

Velo Club Baracchi gained three of its youngest competitors ever when the three Harbord boys completed their race in the Broome Heath Scramble cyclo-cross last Sunday.

Ewan and his younger twin brothers Sam and Noah all took part in the under-10s event which lasted for ten minutes on a short but tough course, which included two climbs and a bumpy descent.

It was the first competitive event for all the brothers. Sam and Noah needed a bit of help from Dad getting up the climbs but both enjoyed whizzing down the other side and racing each other.

Ewan managed three laps of the course and admitted to having wobbly legs and being exhausted at the finish line but all three thoroughly enjoyed the event.

The fastest U8 in the event was placed sixth, one lap and fifty-seven seconds down on the winner, Mark Rethman of Colchester Rovers CC.

Ewan Harbord was placed a creditable 15^th, with Noah 17^th and Sam 18^th. Three other riders failed to finish.

Mark “Titch” Richards of VC Baracchi took an excellent 12^th place in the Fritton Lake cross country duathlon race on Saturday.

John O’Neil won this event with a time of 52:56 and Richards was not so far outside this with 58:40.

Richards’ bike leg was timed at 37:40 and the winner took 34:01. There were 77 competitors, with finish times ranging to 1-42:45.

Following hard on last week’s news of John Dupen’s VTTA medal comes the news that Chris Womack of VCB has received his plaque for three VTTA medals in the year’s time trials.

Veteran medals are won if the rider beats his age standard by a greater margin than he did the year before. Each year a rider has a slightly longer time for his age standard.

Womack not only did this but actually went faster this year than ever before at some distances. His standards were earned at 10, 25 and 30 miles and his actual times for these were 22:13, 58:01 and 1-15:15 at these distances.

Womack has just had his 68^th birthday and his club-mates look forward to seeing what he can do next season at that age, with everyone confident he will continue to improve like good red wine.

The first indications may come in the CC Breckland 10-mile time trial on New Year’s Day, which a number of VCB riders have entered, though this is a pre-season event.

John Thompson had a 60-mile Wednesday ride, doing further planning on his scheduled audax event. He rode out to Wymondham and back via Woodton, measuring distances. His Sunday ride took place after the frost had lifted and it included St Cross, Mendham and Withersdale Street.