R2 Friction Hydraulics Series: Bridgnorth CC Hilly 18

Course shortened to 18 miles due to traffic lights

The first use since 2017 of one of the toughest courses in Shropshire saw an inaugural Bridgnorth CC Open saw Tomos Hales head to the top of the Friction Hydraulics Series standings following Round 2. The course, starting above Bridgnorth and heading to Much Wenlock and Shipton had to be cut from the planned 21 miles to 18 miles due to the curse of road works which seem to be everywhere in the County currently. However, that didn’t stop riders facing the most testing parts of this most technical circuit, with cold conditions adding that character building element as Hales stopped the watch on 44 minutes 10 seconds.

Hales has been is sparkling form during the early season and his comments graphically show the nature of the challenge on offer: “A fresh morning with a sporting course was a good challenge set by Bridgnorth CC. The hill out of Much Wenlock was tough. It was a course where you had to go deep in sections and recover in others. A top job by Tim Beardmore for organising the event and getting it back on the calendar, and thanks to all the marshals that helped out. I look forward to doing the full 21 Miles next year if the road works are finished”! Hales’ perhaps surprising choice of a single front chain ring on such a lumpy course whilst weight saving also limits the range of available gears, but seems to be a fashionable choice, with a number of riders having to ‘honk’ out of the saddle to get up the more challenging climbs.   

Taking the honours for the promoting club Jonathan Mills-Keeling would have good knowledge of the roads used for training, but the experience is so much different when ‘on the rivet’. His 44:56 pushed out race organiser Beardmore by eight seconds, but he agonisingly missed the Veteran’s win from the same rider when the age-related weightings were applied, registering +3:33 to Beardmore’s +3:34. Mills-Keeling stated: “My first time riding the Bridgnorth hilly, a challenging and fun course, thanks to all club mates for putting on”.

But Beardmore revealed that things could have been so much different without a mechanical mishap that cost him valuable time shortly after the start as well as the Series lead. Beardmore was also running a single chain ring setup, but called the longevity of the carbon fibre component into question as just two years use was enough to wear the teeth down enough to cause the incident. The quality of his ride to come back from losing nearly a minute off the bike to finish in 45:06 shows tenacity, though it evidently affected his concentration and trust in the ring not unshipping itself again under pressure on the climbs: “A lovely morning, but not my best race. A dropped chain a mile in cost me the best part of a minute. From then on I found it difficult to concentrate and was just happy to get round. I was very pleased to take the Veterans win. Thanks to everyone who took part and helped out, I’m off to buy a new chain ring”.

The Women’s race saw Bridgnorth CC’s Robin Jones take a maiden victory in her first time trial with a good effort of 1:01:28. More used to triathlon, Jones found benefits to her training regime from the test, commenting: “I really enjoyed the route. My first time trial of any sorts, but I gave it a shot on my road bike to complement my triathlon training currently. I’m hoping to enter a few more later on in the Series”.

Women’s Series leader Victoria Doran had a busy weekend, with another testing event the day before sapping her strength, as she explained: “I’d run a hilly off-road half marathon at Cannock Chase the day before and had only had about 5 hours sleep, so I felt done in before I started! My aim was to get round in one piece and bag some points for Wrekinsport, so I was pleased I was able to do that at least, even if it was probably a record slowest time! The course was quite technical for a rider of my limited bike handling skills and the hills kept on coming the whole way around. I would certainly like to try it with fresh legs and see what difference it makes”! Despite that typical modesty regarding her abilities she still registered 1:09:45 and showed great determination to extend her lead at the top of the Women’s standings.

Whilst only one Junior tried his luck North Shropshire Wheelers’ Chester Romei took a first ever win over father Simon by 1:08 thanks to his 49:38 effort – capturing 6^th place in the process and ensuring bragging rights on the way home. The 15 year-old is in his first full season and this was his first experience of a classic hilly time trial, a traditional feature of the early season. He stated: “A really good race, amazingly set out and the marshals were amazing. My first hilly time trial,; I didn’t expect anything from it but came out with an acceptable time – thanks to the marshals and Bridgnorth CC for holding the event”.

SCCA:

Veterans:

Women:

Junior:

Top Club Award:

Cumulative Standings after two rounds

Friction and Hydraulic Services Shropshire Championship Points Series

Friction and Hydraulic Services Veterans Championship

Friction and Hydraulic Services Women’s Championship

Friction and Hydraulic Services Junior Championship

Top Club Award