The 10th and penultimate round of the BBR Opticians Hill Climb Series resolved just one further medal leaving a tantalising seven in play for the final round as Newport Shropshire CC promoted their climb of Station Road, Ironbridge on a glorious Sunday morning. With a balmy temperature for early October riders faced the test of the 0.75 climb with the trickiest and steepest part the acute bend shortly after the start which scrubs off speed and requires quick gear changing abilities to sustain momentum. Won by Scott Palmer in 3 minutes 49 seconds, the Aerologic rider’s effort saw him push out visiting Wolverhampton Wheelers’ 17 year old Oliver Meentzen-Alldritt by eight seconds and take Veteran’s Silver thanks to this fine win.
Palmer was under no illusions about the challenge facing him, with what appears to be a fairly constant course actually making subtle gradient changes throughout which require knowing precisely when to change gear for maximum speed. He commented: “Having rode this climb last year I knew what I was coming into, the climb has varying degrees which is hard to pace. An awful start by me, one of my worst, failing to clip in, I held my nerve and kept calm and found out I took the overall win, claiming second Veteran overall. A welcoming and friendly event by Newport, and well done to all that competed and helped organise an excellent Series”.
Meentzen-Alldritt took the Overall Junior win in 3:57 to add to his runner-up spot overall and saw off a strong challenge from Mid Shropshire Wheelers’ John Woodward by four seconds in 4:01 in a good morning for Over-40’s riders as he took the final podium slot. Woodward narrowed the gap to Chris Riley by two points to keep in the hunt for Veteran’s Bronze after outpacing the Paramount rider by 20 seconds. Woodward stated: “It got better the further I went into the climb, but there was no catching Scott who flew up the first ramp. Great marshalling as always; many thanks to Newport for hosting – amazing weather”!
Meanwhile Newport’s Will Hyde took the honours for the County youth in 4:43 to draw level with Ludlow’s James Saunders at 58 points each in the Silver medal position. Like Palmer, the 15 year old had trouble immediately off the start line, which given the shortness of the format and margins often tight is made better with practice, but thankfully it made no difference to his position as he finished 10 seconds ahead of Mid Shropshire Wheelers’ Tom Oxley. Hyde explained: “I had an issue clipping in from the start, but sorted it by the turn luckily. There was lots of support on the climb and a great atmosphere as always; really happy with my effort”.
In the BBR Women’s contest there was a shock as Bronze medallist Clare Blackwell-Smyth was pushed out by a first ever attempt at the format by Newport 12 year old Faye Jackson. Hill climbs are eminently suited to youngsters due to a huge weight advantage; and Jackson flew up the climb in 6:07 to take the win by five seconds. She enjoyed her first experience of the format, commenting: “This was my first hill climb race and I had a great time. A bit tough at the start but I still enjoyed it”.
Full:
| Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Points |
| 1 | Scott Palmer | Aerologic RT | V | 3:49 | 20 |
| 2 | Oliver Meentzen-Allaritt | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | J | 3:57 | . |
| 3 | John Woodward | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 4:01 | 18 |
| 4 | Paul Horton | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | S | 4:20 | . |
| 5 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 4:21 | 16 |
| 6 | Mark Spruce | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:25 | . |
| 7 | Matt Morris | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:26 | . |
| 8 | Jack Young | Oswestry Paragon CC | S | 4:32 | 14 |
| 9 | Steve White | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:35 | . |
| 10 | Rob McGregor | Paramount CRT | S | 4:38 | 12 |
| 11 | Will Hyde | Newport Shropshire CC | J | 4:43 | 10 |
| 12 | Tom Oxley | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 4:53 | 8 |
| 13 | Neil Coles | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 4:54 | 6 |
| 14 | Olsin Hiwing | Newport Shropshire CC | S | 5:39 | 4 |
| 15 | Faye Jackson | Newport Shropshire CC | WJ | 6:07 | 2 |
| 16 | Clare Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | WV | 6:12 | 2 |
| 17 | Tim Evans | Newport Shropshire CC | V | 6:34 | 2 |
| 18 | Eesa Rafiq | Newport Shropshire CC | S | 6:37 | 2 |
Veterans:
| Vets Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Vets Points |
| 1 | Scott Palmer | Aerologic RT | V | 3:49 | 20 |
| 2 | John Woodward | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 4:01 | 18 |
| 3 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 4:21 | 16 |
| 4 | Mark Spruce | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:25 | . |
| 5 | Matt Morris | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:26 | . |
| 6 | Steve White | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | V | 4:35 | . |
| 7 | Neil Coles | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 4:54 | 14 |
| 8 | Clare Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | WV | 6:12 | 12 |
| 9 | Tim Evans | Newport Shropshire CC | V | 6:34 | 10 |
Women:
| Women’s Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Women’s Points |
| 1 | Faye Jackson | Newport Shropshire CC | WJ | 6:07 | 20 |
| 2 | Clare Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | WV | 6:12 | 18 |
Juniors:
| Junior Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Time | Junior Points |
| 1 | Oliver Meentzen-Allaritt | Wolverhampton Wheelers CC | J | 3:57 | . |
| 2 | Will Hyde | Newport Shropshire CC | J | 4:43 | 20 |
| 3 | Tom Oxley | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 4:53 | 18 |
| 4 | Faye Jackson | Newport Shropshire CC | WJ | 6:07 | 16 |
Cumulative standings after ten rounds
Overall Top 10:
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 6 |
| 1 | Dave Scott | Mule CC | S | 118 |
| 2 | Steven Prince | Ludlow Brewery RT | V | 108 |
| 3 | Tomos Hales | Wrekinsport CC | S | 104 |
| 4 | Scott Palmer | Aerologic RT | V | 92 |
| 5 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 62 |
| 6 | John Woodward | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 56 |
| 7 | Ben Southgate | Wrekinsport CC | J | 54 |
| 8 | Jack Young | Oswestry Paragon CC | S | 42 |
| =9 | Kirk Vickers | Holohan Coaching RT | S | 38 |
| =9 | Robbie Disney | Aerologic RT | S | 38 |
Veterans Top 10:
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 6 |
| 1 | Steven Prince | Ludlow Brewery RT | V | 120 |
| 2 | Scott Palmer | Aerologic RT | V | 110 |
| 3 | Chris Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 100 |
| 4 | John Woodward | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 88 |
| 5 | Neil Coles | Oswestry Paragon CC | V | 68 |
| 6 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | WV | 48 |
| 7 | Andy Collins | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 42 |
| 8 | Neil Wilson | Paramount CRT | V | 22 |
| 9 | Ian Townsend | Paramount CRT | V | 20 |
| =10 | Daniel Lipson | Mule CC | V | 18 |
| =10 | Simon Romei | Paramount CRT | V | 18 |
Women’s standings:
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 6 |
| 1 | Becky Griffiths | Paramount CRT | W | 114 |
| 2 | Hayley Wells | Paramount CRT | W | 112 |
| 3 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | WV | 100 |
| 4 | Sara Willhoit | Paramount CRT | W | 40 |
| 5 | Faye Jackson | Newport Shropshire CC | WJ | 20 |
| 6 | Vikki Jones | Oswestry Paragon CC | WV | 18 |
| 7 | Victoria Doran | Wrekinsport CC | WV | 14 |
Junior standings:
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 6 |
| 1 | Ben Southgate | Wrekinsport CC | J | 100 |
| =2 | James Saunders | Ludlow CC | J | 58 |
| =2 | Will Hyde | Newport Shropshire CC | J | 58 |
| 4 | Chester Romei | Paramount CRT | J | 18 |
| 4 | Noah White | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 18 |
| 4 | Tom Oxley | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 18 |
| 7 | Faye Jackson | Newport Shropshire CC | WJ | 16 |
| 7 | Jude White | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | J | 16 |