A tough evening saw the final medals decided in the Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport as the 14th round saw riders having to cope with a stiff westerly wind that made things difficult on the hardest part of the course – the climb of Cotwall Bank. Times were well down on usual, evidenced by the winning time of 23 minutes 1 second recorded by Oli Freeman, which saw him move into the overall Silver medal position at the last gap, overtaking Ben Wood. Freeman’s nearest competition came from a great effort by Ian Laverie, finishing in 23:30.
All interest was on the Road Bike competition, which has been keenly fought this season. Won overall by Wolverhampton Wheelers CC Junior Tom Oxley in 24:31, good enough for 3rd overall; It was a straight head-to-head between Peter Jukes and Allan Henderson, with Jukes edging out Henderson by 24 seconds in 26:04 to win Silver outright by just two points, whereas a reversal would have seen them share that medal. However that didn’t stop Matt Price taking the Road Bike honours among the Wrekinsport contingent on the night in 25:25, missing out on a medal by five points.
With no females in competition on an evening attracting a modest 11 riders the Silver medal went to Victoria Doran whilst Bronze was taken by Karen Sherriff. Meanwhile in the inaugural 2-Up competition Dave Moore made it a brace. After riding most of the season with Price he rode a final event with a different partner, Dave Seager to win both Silver and Bronze.
Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport No.14
Riders pointed their bikes skywards in the opening round of the BBR Hill Climb Series as Dave Scott took a narrow win in Round 1: Wrekinsport CC’s climb of Willomoor Bank – and female winner Hayley Wells lowered a club record that had stood for 12 years. Heading from the foot of The Wrekin towards Little Wenlock; the one mile course changes gradient frequently on the approach before ramping up to 15% after the final bend – not that that fazed Scott who stopped the watch on 3 minutes 38 seconds in a strong opening defence of a Championship he has made his own for the last two years, pushing out Tomos Hales by two seconds. Scott sounded an ominous warning to competitors with a course personal best, helped by a northerly tailwind. He commented: “It was nice to kick off the hill climb season with a personal best on the Wrekin. I paced it conservatively for the first half and finished strong up the steep ramp, which was the aim. I’m looking forward to another close battle with Tomos throughout the Series”!
Hales took runner-up spot and is looking for a strategy to overhaul Scott, who beat him by just two points in 2024 – the narrowest margin possible. Part of that strategy was giving a dedicated hill climb machine its first outing in anger; a type of steed with every weight-saving selection keenly researched and sought out to gain advantage given times are often split by fractions of a second. Hales was grateful for encouragement from club mates yelling encouragement and ringing cow bells, often associated with supporters on hill climbs. He stated: “My favourite hill climb of the year. My first attempt on it with the hill climb bike, and it felt good. I managed to save some for the steep finish, but definitely faded near the top. Well done to Dave with the win; and to the Wrekinsport guys that put on the show. It was nice to have a tail wind this year”.
Third place went to Junior winner Alex Hart of Mid Shropshire Wheelers in a discipline tailor-made for youngsters, who have the energy, weight advantage and often the audacity to take on climbs older riders struggle with as if they were nothing. Hart crossed the line in 3:44, the only other rider to beat four minutes; and is looking forward to later rounds after a short absence in this best 5 from 10 Series. He was generous in his comments about the quality of opposition stating: “I had a good ride against some tough opposition with great times by Dave Scott and Tomos Hales. I had forgotten how hard the hill climbs are! I’m going to miss the next couple as I’m in France riding downhill, but will be back to continue the battle; thanks to all the helpers who make these possible”.
Hart wasn’t the only rider who commented on the short-term pain for long-term gain prevalent in this format as Female winner Hayley Wells lowered Karen Summers’ 2013 Wrekinsport club record by 16 seconds to reset the benchmark to 4:28 in a superb opening defence of her BBR title, with closest challenge coming from Tammy Lewis-Jones of Clwb Beicio Egni Eryri in 4:55. Wells commented: ”The pain of hill climbs never get easier! Having ridden this climb a couple of times before I had a game plan; and with 90% tailwind it was going to be a quick night. Setting off strong and taking a small recovery in the middle allowed me to execute a solid ride which I’m proud of. An honour to not only take the win, but also hold a new club record; many thanks to Wrekinsport for a wonderful short, sweet evening of racing”.
In the Veterans classification the overall win was taken by regular visitor to Wrekinsport events, Hamish Maclean of Musselburgh RCC; with the County win taken by Wrekinsport’s Chris Dunn in 5:16. Maclean was surprised at winning on his first attempt at the course: “I was really surprised to be first Veteran – hill climbing isn’t normally my thing. It was a great event on a nice course. I didn’t pace things very well and had far too much left at the end. Thanks go to all the officials, marshals and bell ringers, a great night, I really enjoyed it”; Dunn has plenty of experience of the course however as a regular training route, but here he excelled himself with a personal best: “I have been riding that climb for a number of years now and according to my Strava times this was my best time up that hill; although on the day it felt like I had gone off to hard at the start, I managed to hold on to get a good time for me. All in all it was a great ride if a little tough, but I enjoyed it”.
The first medal of the 2025 SB Sports Injuries Series was sealed in Round 12, the Wrekinsport CC Gordon Davies 19 held over two laps of the Shawbirch – Cotwall Bank circuit as Hayley Wells took Female Gold with four rounds still remaining. Wells has been a dominant presence throughout the season and also tightened her grip on the Overall Bronze medal position with an excellent effort of 44 minutes 11 seconds, helping herself to fourth spot on the evening and taking her ninth win from her ninth event in the SB Sports Injuries Series, retaining her title. Wells’ total of 186 points gives her an unbeatable lead of 116 points with a maximum 80 remaining.
Wells opened with comments on how her race went before moving on to that impressive medal win: “I was conscious not to overcook it on the first lap. I set out at a sensible pace with the intention to ramp it up. Sadly not enough gas for a negative split, but control was maintained! It was a lovely evening of racing with a good turnout of riders; many thanks to Wrekinsport. I do love the variety of courses the SB Series offers across the season. Being able to race on some roads across the county we only use once or twice a season keeps things interesting and a great test! I was chuffed to have taken the overall Female Gold for this Series; special thanks to all the promoting clubs throughout the year who continue to allow each race to go ahead”.
Dean Callister took an impressive overall win in 39:58, coping best with changeable conditions that saw the wind turn mid-event on a warm evening even though his time was down 33 seconds from Round 4 held on the same circuit. This pushed SB Series leader Tomos Hales into the runner-up spot despite bettering his Round 4 effort by 40 seconds to narrow the gap. Callister was pleased with his efforts, stating: “Good conditions again this year for this course, but slightly more wind than last time which definitely picked up on the second lap. My legs felt good, so I was happy with my effort and pleased to win; thanks to Wrekinsport for putting the event on”. Callister however had not had the best preparation, mistakenly thinking the race started at 7pm rather than it being advanced to 6:30pm due to available light, and missed his planned start time as a result, having to go off at the back of the field, whilst fortunate to avoid a late start penalty due to the more relaxed format here, but which is standard in Open events.
Hales stretched his lead slightly in defence of the SB title against the same rider who pushed him hard in 2024, Jonathan Mills-Keeling with his 41:07 ride and now holds a 50 point lead. He definitely noticed the strengthening wind and the change of direction to the north along the A442 mile straight towards the finish at Long Lane, a stretch that has to be navigated three times on this version of the circuit. He commented: “I do like the challenge of the Wrekinsport 2-lap 19 mile time trial The first lap seemed rather quick; however the wind direction changed for the second and was really in my face up Cotwall Bank. It also felt like a long slog up the finishing straight of the A442. Well done to Dean for a cracking time, even though he thought it was a 7pm start! Also thanks to Wrekinsport and all the marshals”.
Mills-Keeling took third spot overall in 43:23 and extended his lead at the head of the SB Veterans Series by six points with +8:03, but ended his race frustratingly stuck behind a slow moving artic, which thankfully didn’t affect his position on the night. The Aerologic rider is the third defending a title successfully, albeit with a slimmer eight point advantage over John Westhead who took fourth Veteran on the night with +3:53, behind the Wrekinsport pair of Clive Middleton and Ian Laverie in +7:46 and +6:58 respectively. Mills-Keeling stated: “Nice to see some friendly faces at the Wrekinsport 19. A decent first lap but got held up on the second lap bit which was disappointing, but it’s just the way it is in open roads. I was pleased with third overall and first Veteran”.
In the SB Road Bike Series Dan Watts made an impression in his second appearance of the season to take his second win. Watts stopped the watch on 46:08 to beat Matt Price who registered an adjusted 47:17 in this handicapped competition, but suffered as the temperature sizzled and the wind rose: “With the heat and the wind on Cotwall Bank it made it feel like riding into a hairdryer. The first lap was tough, but the second lap really pushed me to my limit, so I was happy to bring home the Road Bike win. Great rides again by Dean and Tomos; it’s been a great season-long battle to watch from afar; and kudos Hayley for a short 44 on that course”.
In the SB Junior Series Newport’s Ben Bramford-Hale crossed the line in exactly 46 minutes to knock 52 seconds off his Round 4 effort and chalk up a 40 point lead in this Series. The 15 year-old has got better and better as the season has gone on, often riding the one lap version of this course, and had words of thanks to the organisers of the regular club series: “Happy with the time overall, and it’s good to have that improved since the last 19 mile time trial I raced on this course earlier in the season. I’ve really enjoyed racing the time trials this year, and it is great to be leading the SB Junior Series. Massive thanks to the Wrekinsport organisers and volunteers to putting on the weekly events through the season”.
It was a close call at the top of the standings in Round 13 of The Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport as Oli Freeman was left cursing his luck after a dead stop at Shawbirch island due to passing traffic cost him the win – as Tomos Hales sealed the Evening 10 Series despite taking the opportunity to ride 2-Up. Taking the honours on the night was Chris Halford, making this his third win of the Series, this time in 22 minutes 26 seconds, pushing Freeman out by two seconds. Freeman got the better of his regular 2-Up partner Phil Roberts however, who had to settle for third spot in 22:44.
Conditions were not overly favourable, with a northerly breeze hampering riders down the A442 around the 9.1 mile circuit, and with 0.9 miles having to be repeated to make the distance into the wind, that made all the difference to an attempt to beat 20 minutes on this testing circuit by Dean Callister and Tomos Hales, something that has never been done before. They came close at 20:18, but were left rueing the tough conditions which hampered their attempt. Hales at least went home with the consolation of now being in an unassailable position with a 10 point lead with just six points available from the final round after the rider lying in second place, Ben Wood gained just two points for a fifth-placed finish in 24:05, behind Female winner Hayley Wells in 23:29.
In the Road Bike Series overall plaudits went to Sitwell CC’s Tim Burn, tying with Wood for fifth in 24:05, with maximum points going to Road Bike Series winner Rich Smith. No further medals were sealed on the night, leaving all the solo Silver and Bronze awards going down to the wire in the final round. However with club Chairman Dave Moore already assured of 2-Up Silver he also made a cheeky play for 2-Up Bronze as well with a different partner, Dave Seager, finishing in 25:45.
Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport No.13
Pos’n
Name
Club
Cat
Bike
Time
No.
1
Chris Halford
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
22:26
6
2
Oli Freeman
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
22:28
12
3
Phil Roberts
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
22:44
11
4
Hayley Wells
Wrekinsport CC
F
TT
23:29
4
5
Ben Wood
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
24:05
19
5
Tim Burn
Sitwell CC
S
RB
24:05
21
7
Alex Hall
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
24:43
10
8
Rich Smith
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
25:27
9
9
Darren Craig
Unattached
S
RB
25:47
8
10
Chris Dunn
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:25
16
11
Allan Henderson
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:26
1
12
Peter Jukes
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:27
13
13
Paul Coupe
Unattached
V
RB
26:37
14
14
Paul O’Brien
Unattached
V
RB
26:46
20
15
Ashley Kirkham
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
26:54
7
16
Warren Nuttall
Unattached
V
RB
27:15
5
.
Clive Middleton
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
DNS-P
15
Denso and Tern Cycles 2-Up Series by Wrekinsport No.13
Both the course record and the female course record were lowered in a memorable and competitive Round 13 of the Friction Hydraulics Series, the Shropshire Championship 10 presented by Wrekinsport CC as Dean Callister shaved 10 seconds off Thomas Brazier’s record; and Hayley Wells sliced 17 seconds off her own record; both set in 2024. Callister took 10 Championship Gold and The Gordon Davies Trophy in a blistering 20 minutes 13 seconds on the Shawbury – Hodnet course in a hastily reassigned Championship originally planned for Round 12 but instead promoted by Wrekinsport CC. Conditions were warm and near still, with just the lightest of a rare easterly wind, making things near perfect for record breaking.
In only his third appearance of the 2025 Friction Hydraulics Series, Callister scored maximum points again; re-took The Gordon Davies Trophy from event organiser Tomos Hales, the 2024 winner; and led Aerologic to Team Gold in a combined 1:02:59 with solid backup from Scott Palmer and Jonathan Mills-Keeling. Callister was delighted by his efforts, stating: “A nice warm evening for racing and fast conditions. I paced it well and my legs felt good. Really pleased to take the Championship title, course record and also a team win – thanks to Wrekinsport for putting on a great evening”.
Callister beat Hales by 21 seconds as the Wrekinsport rider took overall Silver in his first promotion, with the unexpected and belated assignation as the Shropshire Championship 10 attracting additional entries. Hales beat Dan Watts in his first appearance of the 2025 season into the Bronze position after the SCCA Private Member finished in 21 minutes exactly – just a solitary second ahead of another SCCA Private Member Jonathan Whittaker. Hales commented: “I was pleased with my time in the Shropshire Championship. It was added pressure of organise the event, so I was pleased that went smoothly. It felt a quick night and never felt like you went into the wind. Well done to Dean for the win; and thanks to all the people that helped me out to get the event on”.
Mills-Keeling and Palmer took home a brace of medals after adding Veterans Silver and Bronze to their Team Gold with +5:16 and +5:07 respectively in a closely fought battle for the medals won by Simon Romei. Mills-Keeling stated: “I didn’t ride last year so was motivated to do a good ride. I went out a little too hard and struggled back. I was very happy with Veterans Silver, well done to Simon. I was also very happy with the Team Gold, with Dean taking course record, and with a strong ride from Scott”. Palmer added: “I was really looking forward to the Shropshire 10 Championship on yet another course I’d never ridden. On a warm night I got to the HQ in plenty of time, had a chat and got a decent warm up on the rollers. I got to the line a little nervous, which added to my downfall. With no holder I struggled to clip in, and it cost me a lot of time. Eventually I clipped in with a sprint effort to get up to speed. I paced it well with a strong effort out, then I maintained a good speed on the return. I’m sure next time I ride the course I’ll be able to gauge where to put the power down in key places. Simon Romei had a solid ride and got me by two seconds on actual time, congratulations to him after his recent ‘off’. Well done to Dean for the overall, and Jonathan for second standard Veteran – also nice to take the Team Gold; a great job by Tomos Hales and the rest of the volunteers”.
Romei had indeed recovered from his fall in Round 11 and took Veterans Gold and The Veterans 10 Mile Trophy by six seconds from Mills-Keeling with +5:22, moving up to third in the Friction Veterans standings. He was very pleased with his effort, stating: “Super happy to have won Veterans Gold at the Championship 10. It was a good evening for the race, not too much wind around. On the outward leg I pushed hard on the rolling course, hoping that the slight tail wind back would secure me a top position and personal best, of which I achieved both. Big thanks to the marshals and timekeepers that did a fantastic job on the evening, without these great people these races just wouldn’t happened so thanks again”.
In the Female Championship Hayley Wells took a solid win in 22:46, lowering her own course record by 17 seconds and successfully retaining The Gordon Davies Female Trophy despite a seeming disconnect between head and legs due to her competitive nature, as she explained: “A course I quite enjoy as we don’t get to ride it often. Pre-race I felt good and raring to go, but a busy few weeks of time trials had caught up with me! The ‘out’ leg to the roundabout felt tough into a headwind and my power was down on where I’d like to be, but the return leg was a lot more enjoyable. A wonderful evening of racing with plenty of high spirits, something I love about this sport. I was chuffed to have taken the win; many thanks to Wrekinsport for another great event”.
A strong ride by Paramount’s Thea Osmund-Smith saw her take Silver and record a fine personal best of 24:42 ahead of team mate Emma Brown who gained Bronze. Osmund-Smith was delighted with her result and doing so on a course rapidly gaining popularity with riders. She commented: “I was really pleased to get a 10 mile personal best on a course I enjoyed riding for the first time last year. I’m not often able to make midweek races, but I was happy to make this one along with a load of my Paramount CRT team mates, who put on a strong show. Thanks to Wrekinsport for organising and as always, the brilliant marshals who make the whole thing safe and enjoyable”!
With the added carrot of father Doug to chase down starting two minutes ahead; Brown was also on the hunt for a personal best, aiming to beat her 26:20 benchmark, but instead ended her evening on 27:06 after getting stuck behind traffic, as she explained: “I was looking forward to racing the 10 and was hoping for a personal best. However I was unfortunately held up in a long queue of traffic from mile 3-4, so the personal best was off the cards, However, I am still very pleased with my time as it’s my second fastest 10 mile time trial and my best result on that course, so overall another great evening of racing. Plus when chasing Dad it’s even more fun and competitive, only just passing him in the last ½ mile – he was very strong and a hard chase that night”!
In the Road Bike Championship Paramount rider Andrew Dawson took the win and The Shropshire Road Bike 10 Mile Championship Trophy by just three seconds on handicap from team mate Will Preston in an adjusted 22:56. Home advantage seems to have played a part in Dawson’s victory, as he explained: “Firstly thanks to all the organisers, marshals and time keepers for putting on a great event. It’s a course I know well as I only live a short distance away. The weather was perfect and I was fortunate with the traffic. It was however a real surprise, and a privilege, to take the Road Bike Gold in what’s turning out to be a great season of racing for the Shropshire clubs”.
Unfamiliarity made the difference to Silver medallist Preston on a course that gives all the appearance of being pretty flat when viewed from a car but actually undulates and drags in places when experiencing on a bike under your own power. Nevertheless Preston was happy with his ride, stating: “I am pleased to take the Silver medal. It is the first time I’ve actually done that course and it was a little bit lumpier than I thought, but still a great race – thanks to Wrekinsport for organising a great event”!
The age and gender-related handicapping system surprised Smith in his first appearance of the 2025 Friction Series as he took Road bike Bronze in an adjusted 23:31, 27 seconds ahead of Wrekinsport team mate Peter Jukes. Smith has stuck doggedly to a Road Bike for the 2025 season which paid dividends here, commenting: “The first time I’ve ridden that course where the wind direction helped on the return leg. It was lovely to top off a season time trialling on the road bike with this result – big thanks to the long suffering organisers, time keepers and marshals; a great event”.
In preparation for the most highly anticipated event of the Shropshire calendar Wrekinsport run a practice club 4-Up over part of the Championship course to give competitors a chance to practice smooth changes and to get used to riding together; and to give riders new to this unusual and rarely seen format the opportunity to see what all the fuss is about. Held on the Waters Upton – Hodnet 10 mile course, three of the Championship teams took the major spoils from amongst the five trying their luck, as Paramount CRT’s Chris Riley, Simon Romei, Rob McGregor and Mason Durant took a fine win in 20 minutes 25 seconds.
This format sees riders go faster than even in the popular 2-Up format which has led up to 4-Up week, but it certainly fun despite the hard work, with club chairman Dave Moore describing the event as having a great vibe, with competitors buzzing afterwards. Runners-up were the Wrekinsport squad of Oli Freeman, Paul Edwards, Phil Roberts and Ben Wood, delighted with their 21:01 time.
Popular with both time trial bike and road bike entrants, the first of the road bike contingent saw another Paramount squad take third overall, with Ian Townsend, James Elgar, Neil Wilson and Dave Woodvine ending their evening on 24:08.
The finale of the 2025 Mower Mec 2-Up Series saw a narrow win for the Silver medallists and the destination of the remaining Series medals resolved as Wrekinsport CC hosted their 2-Up on a glorious sunny evening tempered by a tough northerly wind. Held on the club’s usual Shawbirch – Crudgington – Cotwall Bank circuit, Oswestry Paragon’s Peter Fletcher and Jack Young took their second win of the Series by just two seconds from the promoting club’s Chris Halford and Clive Middleton in 23 minutes 32 seconds. Fletcher enjoyed the sweeping new turn of Crudgington roundabout which allows more speed to be carried; however, things could have been very different for the pair due to a mix up over the start location, as he explained: “On exploration of the course we felt it was a much improved layout and so it proved, although we went to the incorrect start line within minutes of the kick off! Jack and I stuck to the plan and left it until the final round to finally nail it, and to find we triumphed by the slightest of margins made it feel all the more pleasing. Once again the platitudes are the same in thanking our fellow competitors, organisers, marshals and of course the time keepers who all played an important part in the usual smooth running of an excellent evening”.
Whilst Fletcher and Young have honed their abilities over all seven rounds of this Series at all corners of the County, the runners-up and third-placed pairings were not familiar at all with each other’s styles – and in the case of Wrekinsport’s Chris Halford and Clive Middleton, on different bike types. It’s usually best for both to either ride time trial or road bikes but not to mix them, and the issues caused were graphically stated by Halford: “It was a challenge keeping on a road bike, but we managed the situation as best we could having not ridden together before”. Meanwhile Middleton had an expensive evening and was lucky not to end up on the floor after hitting a missing drain cover hard. Thankfully he recovered enough to stay upright, but not without issues: “The race went great, but I lost my car key when I hit a hole and cracked both wheels. I didn’t find the keys and it cost £180 to get the car back home, £130 for someone to pick the lock, and £960 for two keys – and I can’t get them for two weeks”!
The welcome sight of two 15 year-old Junior riders saw Newport Shropshire CC’s Ben Bramford-Hale team up with Wolverhampton Wheelers’ Tom Oxley in their first ever experience of the 2-Up format – and they took to it well enough to get the better of Hafren CC’s Neil Vose and Mark Hill by a single second, finishing in 24:03. Bramford-Hale commented: “I really enjoyed my first 2-Up time trial with Tom. We quickly got into a good rhythm, and I’m really pleased we secured third overall – thanks to Wrekinsport for putting on a great and welcoming event”.
Vose and Hill had good consolation for being nudged down to fourth on the night as they sealed the Bronze medals in the overall Mower Mec Series on the strength of their 24:04 effort, with Vose commenting: “The Wrekinsport 10 mile course is excellent. It was a tough headwind out on the day; but a great tailwind back to Shawbirch. Mark was on fire and did most of the hard work down to Shawbirch; and we managed to get near our best time for this course. The 2-Up Series is a great way to improve your times on courses around Shropshire & Powys. We missed the first two, and this meant we were trying to catch Pete and Jack for the last five rides. We are already planning how we can improve for 2026 – thanks to all the clubs for putting on the events for 2025”.
That left the final medals to be settled from riders not competing on the night, with two Mid Shropshire Wheelers father and daughter pairs taking Mixed Team Silver and Bronze behind the already settled Gold medallists Sorrell Williams and Karl Lombardi. Silver went to 13 year-old Georgia and father Simeon Lloyd, with Simeon commenting: “It was good to be able to compete alongside Georgia. We have never raced together, so it was a great opportunity to test ourselves. We started strong, finished strong and both really enjoyed the event”.
Meanwhile Florence Parkinson just turned the minimum allowed age to compete of 12, and won a medal in her first ever time trial. Naturally she was delighted, and seems to have the bit between her teeth to go on to greater things, stating: “I am thrilled to win the Bronze, and with a bit more training for my Dad over the winter I think we can come back stronger next year to see if the Silver is in reach”! Dad Mark added: “Florence just turned 12 years old in May, so this was a perfect race to introduce her to time trialling, with a 2-Up together as a father-daughter team”.
In the Female teams competition Paramount’s Emma Brown and Liz Hagen had sealed Gold as early as Round 4, but the finale saw Silver settled by another first-time pairing, Jane Morris and Jenny Cooper of Market Drayton CC. Both decided the 2-Up format was the perfect introduction to time trialling, similar to the Parkinson’s decision; and Cooper’s comments show just how easy having a go is for the inexperienced and those without full aero equipment, which is not a barrier to competition: “It was the first time either of us had competed in a time trial – it felt a bit less daunting doing 2-Up to start with. Everyone was very welcoming, and it was a very relaxed environment to have a go. I haven’t got any specific aero kit and was just on a normal endurance road bike”.
An old hand surprised team mates in Round 12 of The Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport as Chris Halford took a win on a warm evening an by a good margin. Coming back to time trialling after some time away, Halford has made marginal gains as the season has progressed and registered an impressive 22 minutes 33 seconds to see off Round 11 winner Oli Freeman by 34 seconds. Taking third spot was Freeman’s 2-Up partner Phil Roberts on 23:43.
The Road Bike category continues to be keenly contested with 50% of the field eschewing time trail steeds, Won overall by regular visitor Hamish MacLean of Musselburgh RCC in 25:25, interest was on the battle for club points and medals. Rich Smith took his fourth maximum six points in a row in 26 minutes exactly ahead of Peter Jukes 51 seconds back which sealed Series Gold in a season Smith has dedicated to this format.
In the Denso and Tern Cycles 2-Up Series Dave Moore and Matt Price rode unopposed to a 26:02 time and can in theory draw level with Freeman and Roberts on 30 points – if they take six points from each of the two remaining events in this best of 5 Series.
Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport No.12
Pos’n
Name
Club
Cat
Bike
Time
No.
1
Chris Halford
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
22:33
6
2
Oli Freeman
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
23:07
5
3
Phil Roberts
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
23:43
4
4
Ian laverie
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
24:15
17
5
Ben Bramford-Hale
Newport Shropshire CC
J
TT
24:52
15
6
Andy Fletcher
Royal Navy & Royal Marines CC
V
TT
25:12
14
7
Hamish MacLean
Musselburgh RCC
V
RB
25:25
13
8
Hayden Beebee
Total Tri Training
S
TT
25:55
18
9
Rich Smith
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:00
3
10
Peter Jukes
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:51
7
=11
Dean Gapper
Unattached
V
RB
27:02
11
=11
Cameron Coley-Smith
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
27:02
16
=13
David Seager
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
27:28
9
=13
Chris Dunn
Unattached
V
RB
27:28
12
15
Paul O’Brien
Unattached
V
RB
27:32
10
16
Paul Coupe
Unattached
V
RB
28:41
8
Denso and Tern Cycles 2-Up Series by Wrekinsport No.12
Traffic lights at Longdon on Tern saw a course change to the tight and technical Long Lane circuits for Round 11 of The Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport and which saw an impressive 69% of the field use road bikes, the growing area of time trialling –with the first Series medals taken without turning a pedal in the respective competitions. Oli Freeman and Phil Roberts can no longer be caught in the Denso and Tern Cycles 2-Up Series, with the best five scores counting their maximum 30 points acquired by Round 10 can no longer be overhauled. This saw Freeman instead ride to victory in the solo competition in 23:23, exactly 30 seconds ahead of team mate Paul Edwards. Freeman commented how tough the race was, with riders facing a brisk northerly wind three times down the mile straight between Shawbirch and Long Lane.
With Series leader Tomos Hales absent Ben Wood made up some ground by finishing third in 24:15, seven seconds ahead of an impressive performance by overall Road Bike winner George Coombes of Newport Shropshire CC stopping the watch on 24:22. Best placed of Wrekinsport’s riders in this contest was Rich Smith, whose 26:05 meant he extended his Series lead to 10 points with a maximum 18 remaining after pushing Matt Price out by 10 seconds.
Despite Hayley Wells being absent, she can no longer be caught in the Women’s standings and takes a well deserved Gold medal. The only female in competition on a tough evening was unattached Megan du Toit in 28:24.
After a shortage of under-18 riders in competition three showed up at once – and all were closely matched, spread by just seven seconds. Best placed was Ben Bramford-Hale of Newport Shropshire CC registering 24:53 for 6th place overall, and who pushed out Jude White of Mid Shropshire Wheelers by two seconds despite a superb third lap evidenced by split times; and Tom Oxley of Wolverhampton Wheelers CC by seven in a tight competition.
One of those all too rare red hot ‘float’ evenings, with the lightest of southerly winds saw fast times throughout the field in Round 10 of the Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport with a large turnout of 20 riders in part due to conditions, but also the late cancellation of a County level event due to road works as riders hurried to make the most of conditions. Two of those riders took the top two spaces with Aerologic’s Dean Callister taking a fine win in 20 minutes 21 seconds, ahead of Tomos Hales by 28 seconds – despite Hales recording a course personal best of 20:49, his first time ever under 21 minutes.
Hales’ closest challenger overall was unattached rider Mike Senior in 21:34, and among Wrekinsport riders looking to compete for club Evening 10 medals Hayley Wells, registering a fine 22:37. Hales now holds 48 points in a comfortable lead over Ben Wood on 32, but Wells narrowed the gap after Wood finished in 23:02 – as well as adding six points to an almost unassailable lead in the Women’s Series.
Rich Smith is easing away in the Road Bike Series, taking the six points on offer with his 25:12 effort to move to 43 points, with Allan Henderson now on 35 points after finishing in 25:29, 17 seconds back. But it was visiting riders who took the overall spoils with another unattached rider Sam Messingham stopping the watch on a great time of 23:01 ahead of Newport Shropshire CC’s George Coombes on 23:14.
Denso and Tern Cycles Evening 10 Series by Wrekinsport No.10
Pos’n
Name
Club
Cat
Bike
Time
No.
1
Dean Callister
Aerologic RT
S
TT
20:21
2
2
Tomos Hales
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
20:49
5
3
Mike Senior
Unattached
V
TT
21:34
12
4
Jon Mills-Keeling
Aerologic RT
V
TT
21:59
3
5
Hayley Wells
Wrekinsport CC
F
TT
22:37
4
6
Sam Messingham
Unattached
S
RB
23:01
22
7
Ben Wood
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
23:02
16
8
George Coombes
Newport Shropshire CC
S
RB
23:14
19
9
Ian Laverie
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
23:21
20
10
Michell Fletcher
Paramount CRT
S
TT
24:08
14
11
Cameron Coley-Smith
Wrekinsport CC
S
TT
24:10
21
12
Rich Smith
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
25:12
10
13
Allan Henderson
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
25:29
1
14
Peter Jukes
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:34
11
15
Ashley Kirkham
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
26:55
17
16
David Seager
Wrekinsport CC
V
RB
26:59
13
17
Chris Dunn
Unattached
V
RB
27:02
18
18
Paul O’Brien
Unattached
V
RB
27:40
15
19
Colin Wells
Paramount CRT
V
RB
27:59
6
20
Vince Evans
Wrekinsport CC
V
TT
28:15
7
Denso and Tern Cycles 2-Up Series by Wrekinsport No.10