A brand new course, two course records – and a frankly bizarre ending to the Wrekinsport CC 25 saw the first mid-race event abandonment in Shropshire in living memory in Round 6 of the SB Sports Injuries Series. With a good entry of 21 riders, eight had finished before news arrived via social media of a car on fire blocking the A442 at the 22 mile point, leaving riders north of the incident to turn around and pick their way back through the lanes.
Those early finishers included the fastest riders on paper, who had fortunately signed on early and beat the issues emerging out on course well after the event was in full swing, with the truncated result seeing Tomos Hales and Hayley Wells set fabulous initial benchmarks and score large in this bonus point round. Under the guidance of Cycling Time Trials, the sports’ governing body, times recorded before event abandonment count; although prizes should less that 50% of the field finish should not be awarded. Given this event was Wrekinsport’s Club Championship and only three club members had finished, a re-run has being scheduled for 20th July.
On a glorious sunny evening the vast majority of those who finished beat the hour, showing the potential of the new and well received ‘Duck’ 25; which starts at Long Lane before heading north to Hodnet, then covers a lap of the ‘Tiddly’ circuit, with a return south to finish at Crudgington. Every straight head-to-head battle between Hales and team mate Dean Callister this season has seen Callister just edge things each time until this event; but this time Hales took the win in 52 minutes 20 seconds at nearly 28.7mph average, pushing Callister, making his first appearance in the 2026 SB Series, out by 29 seconds. Hales was delighted to set yet another course record in a season full of them, and having fallen foul of abandonment before even starting on a long trip to South Wales to the fastest 25 in the Country was pleased not to miss out again, stating: “I enjoyed the new course for the Wrekinsport 25. The wind wasn’t ideal however, and gave me a good opportunity to push into the head wind along the top section. I was happy with my time, and lucky to miss the car fire, which made up for me not being able to ride earlier in the year at the Welsh Championship. Thanks for Wrekinsport for hosting, a nice change of scenery with the new course”. Hales is the current SB Series Champion, and added 26 points to his tally, taking over second spot in the overall standings to lay jus four points off top.
Wells set yet another record, and was the only female to beat the unexpected road block. She looked extremely smooth on the fast, final, downhill push to the finish line, with her upper body totally locked and all energy concentrated in her legs, as the best time trial riders practice. She crossed the line in 58:01 to take fourth spot, and take over the SB Female Series lead as a consequence. She commented: “I always look forward to trying out a new course, and this one didn’t disappoint! The aim of the night was to keep consistency across the distance, and I was happy with the execution, ending with a strong finish. Such a shame not all riders were able to finish due to unforeseen circumstances, but hopefully a course we can use again in the future; thanks to all at Wrekinsport”.
Callister is unaccustomed to finishing as runner-up, but explained that he is battling a current health issue. Even so, his 52:49 is still an extremely creditable effort, more so given the circumstances: “I liked the new course, a great new addition. Not the best ride for me as I’m currently experiencing issues with my left leg. I did what I could, but felt very uncomfortable in places. Thanks to Wrekinsport for the event; and well done to Tomos for the win and course record”.
The best of the three Wrekinsport riders to finish was Oli Freeman, making his debut in the 2026 SB Series with a strong effort of 55:59. Freeman has put in some fine performances as the season has progressed and had to tweak domestic arrangements a little due to wanting to experience the new course, which didn’t disappoint: “I really enjoyed the new ‘Duck’ 25 course, and was pleased with my time, especially after a few longer races in recent weeks. Thanks for creating the course, and to Wrekinsport for putting on a great event, it was definitely one to remember”!
Paramount’s Chris Riley took over the sole lead of the SB Series as a result of his 59:38 sixth place overall, albeit with Hales breathing down his neck, and also opened up a commanding 58 point lead of the SB Veterans Series after taking the Veterans win on the night with +10:10, ahead of new Veteran Ben Wood with +6:29. Riley’s comments reflected on the incident which marred the race: “I’ve ridden through fire on many occasions in the quest for more speed but never so literally as some riders experienced during the Wrekinsport 25! It was a visually dramatic incident, and so very fortunate that nobody was hurt. Joking aside, a huge shame for what was a great turnout, and a refreshing Tiddly/Waters Upton combination course profile. It was a top effort from Wrekinsport race officials; and a great atmosphere as usual despite the inferno”.
With just one Road Bike managing to finish, Rich Smith took the win and the 26 points on offer to move up to third place overall, with Road Bike Series leader Richard Simpson frustrated at being caught behind the incident and unable to finish. Smith’s time when the handicap adjustment was added was 1:03:49 barely mattered; and as expected his post-race comments contained a number of tongue-in-cheek remarks: “My first time racing a 25 on the road bike and on a new course, so I rode to power numbers and was happy enough with how I paced it. More importantly, I was delighted to win the inaugural (and hopefully last) ‘Ring of Fire’ event as the only road bike survivor. The accusation by my fellow road bike competitors that I set fire to a car on the A442 to ensure victory is frankly outrageous although, fair enough, it is the kind of thing I might do! I prefer the explanation of one of my coaching clients that the speed of my riding had simply caused the car to spontaneously combust. I fear neither is close to the truth. Joking aside, a great new course inventively organised to avoid road works without sacrificing the quality of a good racing circuit. More importantly, I’m pleased everybody, marshals, riders and the unfortunate car owner all made it home safely after an unusually eventful evening”.
Full:
| Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Machine | Time | Points | No. |
| 1 | Tomos Hales | Aerologic RT | S | TT | 52:20 | 26 | 1 |
| 2 | Dean Callister | Aerologic RT | S | TT | 52:49 | 24 | 9 |
| 3 | Oli Freeman | Wrekinsport CC | S | TT | 55:59 | 22 | 3 |
| 4 | Hayley Wells | Aerologic RT | F | TT | 58:01 | 20 | 2 |
| 5 | Ben Wood | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | 59:31 | 18 | 8 |
| 6 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | TT | 59:38 | 16 | 11 |
| 7 | Rich Smith | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | 1:07:17 | 14 | 4 |
| . | Mark Pritchard | Aerologic RT | S | TT | DQ | . | 18 |
| . | Chris Dunn | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | Stopped | . | 5 |
| . | Allan Henderson | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | Stopped | . | 6 |
| . | Peter Jukes | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | Stopped | . | 7 |
| . | John Westhead | Paramount CRT | V | TT | Stopped | . | 10 |
| . | Franco Della Mura | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | Stopped | . | 12 |
| . | Bethan Tomlinson | Wrekinsport CC | F | RB | Stopped | . | 13 |
| . | Chris Staples | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | Stopped | . | 14 |
| . | Jonathan Whittaker | SCCA Private Member | S | TT | Stopped | . | 15 |
| . | Ian Laverie | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | Stopped | . | 16 |
| . | Richard Simpson | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | RB | Stopped | . | 17 |
| . | Ashley Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | Stopped | . | 19 |
| . | Adam Mumford | Wrekinsport CC | S | TT | Stopped | . | 20 |
| . | Phil Roberts | Wrekinsport CC | S | TT | Stopped | . | 21 |
Veterans:
| Vets Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Machine | Vet +/- | Vets Points |
| 1 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | TT | +10:10 | 26 |
| 2 | Ben Wood | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | +6:29 | 24 |
| 3 | Rich Smith | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | +2:11 | 22 |
Females:
| Female Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Machine | Time | Female Points |
| 1 | Hayley Wells | Aerologic RT | F | TT | 58:01 | 26 |
Road Bikes:
| RB Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Machine | RB Adj Time | RB Points |
| 1 | Rich Smith | Wrekinsport CC | V | RB | 1:03:49 | 26 |
Cumulative Standings after six rounds
Overall
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 90 |
| 2 | Tomos Hales | Aerologic RT | S | 86 |
| 3 | Mitchell Fletcher | Paramount CRT | S | 74 |
| 4 | Richard Simpson | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | 46 |
| 5 | Hayley Wells | Aerologic RT | F | 40 |
| 6 | George Coombes | Aerologic RT | S | 34 |
| 7 | Ben Wood | Wrekinsport CC | V | 32 |
| 8 | Dean Callister | Aerologic RT | S | 24 |
| =9 | Mark Hill | Hafren CC | V | 22 |
| =9 | Oli Freeman | Wrekinsport CC | S | 22 |
Veterans
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 124 |
| 2 | Richard Simpson | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | 66 |
| 3 | John Westhead | Paramount CRT | V | 46 |
| 4 | Ben Wood | Wrekinsport CC | V | 38 |
| 5 | Mark Hill | Hafren CC | V | 34 |
| =6 | Ashley Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | 24 |
| =6 | Rich Smith | Wrekinsport CC | V | 24 |
| 8 | Bryn Davies | Hafren CC | V | 20 |
| =9 | Chris Halford | Wrekinsport CC | V | 18 |
| =9 | Colin Wells | Paramount CRT | V | 18 |
| =9 | Jan Davies | Hafren CC | FV | 18 |
| =9 | Matt Muir | Propel CC | V | 18 |
Road Bike
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Richard Simpson | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | 94 |
| 2 | George Coombes | Aerologic RT | S | 56 |
| 3 | Rich Smith | Wrekinsport CC | V | 42 |
| 4 | Matt Muir | Propel CC | V | 36 |
| 5 | Colin Wells | Paramount CRT | V | 30 |
| 6 | Tim Mayo | Propel CC | V | 24 |
| 7 | Rebecca Woodvine | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | F | 20 |
| 8 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 18 |
| =9 | Allan Henderson | Wrekinsport CC | V | 16 |
| =9 | Andrew Dawson | Paramount CRT | V | 16 |
| =9 | Jonatan Morszner | Aerologic RT | S | 16 |
Females
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Hayley Wells | Aerologic RT | F | 66 |
| 2 | Evie Fletcher | Paramount CRT | F | 54 |
| 3 | Jan Davies | Hafren CC | FV | 36 |
| 4 | Helen Tudor | Oswestry Paragon CC | FV | 30 |
| 5 | Rebecca Woodvine | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | F | 20 |
| 6 | Emma Horne | Wrekinsport CC | FV | 18 |
| 7 | Helen Pritchard | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FV | 16 |
| 8 | Georgia Lloyd | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FJ | 14 |
Juniors
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Jude White | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 20 |
| 2 | Tom Lloyd | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 18 |
| 3 | Georgia Lloyd | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | FJ | 16 |
| 4 | Iwan Bennett-Wilson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 14 |
| 5 | Alexander Richardson | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 12 |