There was a surprise winner of the opening round of the opening round of the BBR Opticians Hill Climb Series as the traditional, vertical conclusion to the time trialling season kicked off with a bang as Edward Copeland took victory in Wrekinsport CC’s Willomoor Bank Hill Climb by two seconds. Starting outside the site of the former Forest Glen at the foot of The Wrekin, the ever-changing gradient of the mile climb towards Little Wenlock features a 15% sting in the tail that can catch out the unwary, but Copeland managed to dig deep to crest the finish line in 3 minutes 41 seconds. The Ludlow Brewery RT rider was encountering the climb for the first time, and nearly got his effort wrong, as he explained: “First time I have raced the Wrekin course; a climb with lots of steps and a brutal finish. I paced it wrong and went way too hard at the start and suffered at the end, but managed to squeeze a win which came as a surprise. A great course and, very well run by the Wrekinsport club”.
2025’s runner-up Tomos Hales occupied the same position in 2026 with a new set-up in a format that encourages riders to minimise the weight of their bikes for tactical advantage. Swapping out a pair of chain rings for a single front ring accompanied by a wider range cassette, Hales was foiled by the tougher conditions on the evening than in 2025, loosing three seconds off last year’s effort to finish in 3:43. He explained: “My local and favourite hill climb of the year is always a tough one. I’ve gone all out this year running a ‘1x’ system on the hill climb bike. I should have perhaps gone hard on the bottom section of the climb, and the cross wind didn’t help on the flat middle section. I had a great finish up the top section, but it wasn’t quite good enough for the win. Well done to Ed for the win; and thanks to Deb and Bernard Hutson-Lumb for timekeeping the finish. Wrekinsport always put on a good hill climb, and had a great turnout for the first one of the year”. Hales was correct on that last point, with a good field of 29 riders testing their climbing ability against gravity.
The quality of Copeland and Hales’ rides was clear from them being the only riders to break four minutes, with both close to 16.8mph. But it was a close battle for third as Wrekinsport’s Phil Roberts took the honours for the promoting club in 4:10, just two seconds ahead of Dave Scott Coaching’s Jack Young. Roberts was clearly looking forward to this event, beating his 2025 effort by five seconds despite the less favourable conditions. He commented: “My favourite Wrekinsport event of the year. I’ll always try to get race number 1 so I can get my effort done and then soak up the atmosphere on Willmoor Bank afterwards. I managed to equal my personal best up the climb despite the conditions feeling pretty tough on the exposed section. I had a really strict plan this year to ride to power, not go too hard on the first half, then attack the steepest section and build all the way to the line. I executed it pretty much perfectly. The top half was comfortably the quickest I’ve ever ridden it, and I was able to stay out of the saddle, keep building the power and empty the tank all the way to the finish. Huge respect to the top two for the leap in class this year; and to everyone else who turned themselves inside out getting up there – as always, a massive thanks to the organisers, volunteers and everyone making loads of noise on that final bend; a brilliant event”.
There was a dead heat for the Veterans honours, with Stuart Proctor and Paul Bailey tying on 4:32 for the joint win. The pair shared 8th spot overall in a format that tends to favour younger riders. Bailey last rode the climb in 2024 when he finished a strong 3rd overall – but 16 seconds faster. He was shocked when told that he had won after having limited time around the event to take in the result, as he explained rather tongue in cheek when told of the win: “That’s a complete surprise to me! I think I was the last to arrive and first to leave due to childcare! The hill felt harder than ever. I put everything into it, but was slower than last time I rode in 2024 It could not possibly be age catching up with me, so must have been a slight headwind. I was pleased to have got up without having a cardiac though and will do some more! Thanks to Wrekinsport for a great event; and it was brilliant to see so many people riding”.
Proctor only returned to hill climbing in the last two rounds of the 2025 BBR Series, but was keen to get off to a flying start for the 2026 competition, comparing the atmosphere rather humorously to that of ‘Dutch Corner’ on Alpe d’Huez in the Tour de France: “What a fantastic evening to kick off the 2026 BBR Hill Climb Series. A little bit of breeze, but that would soon pale into insignificance once we were gurning up the climb! I felt a little ‘soggy’ from the get-go, but felt like I hit my stride when it kicked up. Fantastic support on what surely should be called ‘Little Wenlock Corner’. I know it’s a stretch; although a lot less orange! It was superbly organised, thanks to all at Wrekinsport for hosting the event”.
Young riders tend to excel at this format, and with 12 the minimum age to race on public roads, debutants took wins in both the BBR Female Series and BBR Junior Series. Newport Shropshire CC 12 year old Isla Furniss stopped the watch on 6:12, 30 seconds ahead of reigning BBR Female Series champion Claire Blackwell-Smyth showing a huge amount of promise. Furniss put her off-road cyclo-cross and track racing experience to good use and enjoyed the huge level of encouragement received on the final lung-bursting section: “Taking part in the hill climb was an amazing experience. It was challenging, but I enjoyed it and the atmosphere was great”.
Furniss also took the runner-up spot in the Juniors behind another 12 year old as Mid Shropshire Wheelers’ Bryn Nelson posted an impressive 4:59. He stated: “It was my first hill climb, but not a target event as I hope to complete most of them. I was very nervous before, especially being held at the start, but once I got going I felt good, started fast, but then found it difficult to hold my pace on the steepest part. I was very surprised and felt great when I found out I was first Junior”.
Full:
| Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Points |
| 1 | Edward Copeland | Ludlow Brewery RT | S | 3:41 | 20 |
| 2 | Tomos Hales | Aerologic RT | S | 3:43 | 18 |
| 3 | Phil Roberts | Wrekinsport CC | S | 4:10 | 16 |
| 4 | Jack Young | Dave Scott Coaching | S | 4:12 | 14 |
| 5 | Jack Ward | Sharrow CC | S | 4:15 | . |
| 6 | Oli Freeman | Wrekinsport CC | S | 4:17 | 12 |
| 7 | Raitis Rorbahs | Market Drayton CC | S | 4:23 | 10 |
| =8 | Stuart Proctor | Dave Scott Coaching | V | 4:32 | 8 |
| =8 | Paul Bailey | Bridgnorth Cycling Club | V | 4:32 | 8 |
| 10 | Charlie Huntley | Southampton University RCC | S | 4:33 | . |
| 11 | Matthew Barrett | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | S | 4:34 | 4 |
| 12 | Andrew Wakefield | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | S | 4:39 | 2 |
| 13 | Rob Kerr | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 4:46 | 2 |
| 14 | Bryn Nelson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 4:59 | 2 |
| 15 | Mitchell Fletcher | Paramount CRT | S | 5:00 | 2 |
| 16 | Richard Nelson | Ludlow CC | V | 5:03 | 2 |
| 17 | Adam Mumford | Wrekinsport CC | S | 5:08 | 2 |
| 18 | Tim Mayo | Propel CC | V | 5:13 | 2 |
| 19 | Neil Coles | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 5:18 | 2 |
| 20 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 5:19 | 2 |
| 21 | Paul Coupe | Wrekinsport CC | V | 5:25 | 2 |
| 22 | Chris Dunn | Wrekinsport CC | V | 5:27 | 2 |
| 23 | Peter Fletcher | Dave Scott Coaching | V | 5:30 | 2 |
| 24 | Carl Huntley | Unattached | V | 5:38 | . |
| 25 | Isla Furniss | Newport Shropshire CC | FJ | 6:12 | 2 |
| 26 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | 6:42 | 2 |
| 27 | Florence Parkinson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FJ | 6:57 | 2 |
| 28 | Ashley Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | 7:12 | 2 |
| 29 | Evie Fletcher | Paramount CRT | F | 7:59 | 2 |
Veterans on Actual:
| Vets Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Vets Points |
| =1 | Stuart Proctor | Dave Scott Coaching | V | 4:32 | 20 |
| =1 | Paul Bailey | Bridgnorth Cycling Club | V | 4:32 | 20 |
| 3 | Rob Kerr | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 4:46 | 16 |
| 4 | Richard Nelson | Ludlow CC | V | 5:03 | 14 |
| 5 | Tim Mayo | Propel CC | V | 5:13 | 12 |
| 6 | Neil Coles | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 5:18 | 10 |
| 7 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 5:19 | 8 |
| 8 | Paul Coupe | Wrekinsport CC | V | 5:25 | 6 |
| 9 | Chris Dunn | Wrekinsport CC | V | 5:27 | 4 |
| 10 | Peter Fletcher | Dave Scott Coaching | V | 5:30 | 2 |
| 11 | Carl Huntley | Unattached | V | 5:38 | . |
| 12 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | 6:42 | 2 |
| 13 | Ashley Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | 7:12 | 2 |
Females:
| Female Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Female Points |
| 1 | Isla Furniss | Newport Shropshire CC | FJ | 6:12 | 20 |
| 2 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | 6:42 | 18 |
| 3 | Florence Parkinson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FJ | 6:57 | 16 |
| 4 | Evie Fletcher | Paramount CRT | F | 7:59 | 14 |
Juniors:
| Junior Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Junior Points |
| 1 | Bryn Nelson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 4:59 | 20 |
| 2 | Isla Furniss | Newport Shropshire CC | FJ | 6:12 | 18 |
| 3 | Florence Parkinson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FJ | 6:57 | 16 |