R2 SB Sports Injuries Series: Ludlow CC Scenic 10

Ludlow CC Scenic 10

After a muted start right on the cusp of the Covid crisis The SB Sports Injuries Series finally got underway in anger at Broome on the toughest yet most fun 10 mile course in Shropshire as Ludlow CC promoted Round 2, their Scenic 10. Taking place on roads that are usually as quiet as those seen under lock down, this sinuous, most rural of courses swoops, dips, climbs and turns in ways that time triallists usually don’t appreciate – exactly why it’s enjoyable as a change from the norm.

SCCA Private Member Dan Watts took a fine win in 22 minutes 31 seconds, beating his own course record set in 2019 by a huge margin of 20 seconds on what had been his first experience of the course on a hot and humid evening – along with post thunderstorm the two almost guaranteed set of conditions for personal bests to be recorded as they offer relatively easy passage through the air. The reigning SB Series Champion was in a determined mood to make up for lost time having missed Round 1 back in March and showed the clear benefits of training hard during lock down, stating: “I was really pleased to take the win and lower my course record on probably one of my favourite time trial courses. The mix of fast down hills, the never ending drags and the general twisty nature of the circuit makes it an interesting and honest course”.

Watts was going head-to-head with Junior rider Henri Bedford, who was one of just six riders to race Round 1 as the country hunkered down. As a result of two runner-up spots in a row the 16 year-old moved into the Series lead thanks to his 23:09 effort, pushing out former Wrekinsport rider Sam Morris by 50 seconds. Bedford showed his developing fitness by slicing a huge 1:22 off his 2019 attempt at this course, with his light weight a positive bonus to get around the terrain. He commented: “It was a lovely challenging course, despite battling the hot and humid weather conditions. I was happy to shed 1 minute 22 off of my time last year. Well done to Dan for winning and to Ludlow CC for putting on such a great race”. Bedford also has maximum points at the head of the Junior SB Series as he sets out a strong defence of the title he won in 2019.

In the Veteran’s standing Hafren CC’s Mark Hill was almost caught out by the challenging, technical course which can catch out the unwary, with prior experience a positive boon to knowing what is coming next. Hill recorded a fine +0:47, one of only three riders to beat their Veteran’s Standard showing the toughness of a course where times are routinely two minutes down on normal. This placed him in joint top of the Veteran’s Series with an absent Tim Beardmore. Hill’s comments show just how this course can throw riders a curveball: “It was a hot 31º on the start. I had no idea of the route, and seeing everyone else on road bikes made me nervous. The start was uphill and twisty out to the main road. Speed building up to the Hundred House turn. Downhill on coarse chippings into hard bends had me hanging on, and a few tight corners nearly got me. It was a great night’s sport followed by heavy thunderstorms and rain – thanks Ludlow CC”.

Hill beat Ian Connolly into the runner-up spot in the Veteran’s Championship with the Ludlow CC rider putting local knowledge to good use with his fastest ride on the course ever of 26:11 which converted to a Veteran’s Standard of +0:38, eight seconds ahead of Ludlow Brewery RT rider Simon Brown. Connolly stated: “I’m starting to enjoy this course. I normally do 27 or 28’s on it, so I have no idea where a short 26 came from! A course PB by 1 second, so thanks to timekeepers Sue and Fi for that! It’s great to be racing again as in May I thought the year would be a write off”.

Meanwhile there were two women in competition amongst the 17-strong field, with Market Drayton CC ride Alison Dockney taking the win to beat her 2019 effort by 1:12 which had been her first sight of the course. This time she was more prepared and stopped the watch on 27:32, showing both pre-knowledge and a red hot evening both bring benefits. But like Hill the other Hafren CC rider racing Emma Serjeant was getting her first taste of the circuit, and showed that a dedicated time trial bike is not necessarily the right choice for a course that does everything it can to break up a rider’s rhythm. Serjeant took the maximum 20 points on offer to move into the joint SB Women’s Series lead with Oswestry Paragon’s Leonie Keeling, stating: “It was super hot! My first time on the course and I’m not sure my time trial bike was the best choice, I struggled to settle into it. It’s great to be back racing again though – a big thank you to the guys at Ludlow CC”.

Full result:

Veterans Result:

Women’s result:

Junior result:

Cumulative Standings after two rounds

Overall

Veterans

Women’s

Juniors