The first Championship medals of the 2025 were won in Round 5 of the Friction Hydraulics Series, The SB Sports Injuries Shropshire Championship 50 presented by Mid Shropshire Wheelers – as a wrong turn fortunately didn’t cost Simon Romei Championship Gold nor retaining the 50 mile Trophy. Romei won the event by a slim 10 seconds from Jonathan Mills-Keeling in 1 hour 55 minutes 15 seconds, tiring as he approached the final turn and having to retrace. This actually spurred the Paramount rider on, as he explained: “I was super happy to have secured the win in the Championship 50, there were near perfect weather conditions for this race which was a massive bonus. I went out pretty hard knowing it was a good field of competition. I held a good solid pace up to about 45 miles in when I did start to tire slightly, which in turn caused me to have a lapse in focus and miss the last turn at the island, so with this in mind I had to go super hard to the finish. A massive thanks to Simon Evans and him team of marshals and time keepers for doing a first class job of organising this race, I really enjoyed a good sunny morning of racing”.
Mills-Keeling took home a brace of Silver medals, agonisingly finishing 10 seconds behind Romei in 1:55:25, a tiny margin at a large distance; and added Veterans Silver with +23:44. The excellent conditions suited the Aerologic rider, who scored a course personal best for his efforts: “An early start, and fast conditions. I kept it controlled for the first lap and pushed on the second lap, which got a course personal best which I was pleased with. Thanks to all involved for a great race”.
Romei also led Paramount to Team Gold in a combined 5:57:28 with solid backup from Chris Riley and Jon Goh, winners of Overall and Veterans Bronze; and the Shropshire Road Bike 50 mile Championship Shield respectively. Riley’s strong dual third spots saw him record 1:58:26 and +23:07, with superb rides by Paramount throughout the field adding 270 points to their Top Club Award score. Riley suffered in the warmth like Romei, explaining: “I love the 50 – you gotta suffer! The engine began to fade at 30 miles, so I put two gels down the hole and hoped it would keep the fire burning. The last leg up to Espley was torture, but I was very pleased to go over the line with a personal best. A great race, and to pull out a few medals was the icing on the cake – thanks Mid Shropshire Wheelers and helpers”.
Goh led home Paramount in the Road Bike class as the club took all three medals in this category, a competition they appear to have taken to their hearts. His actual time of 2:03:47, good enough for an extremely strong fifth overall was converted to 2:01:46 after the age and gender-related handicaps were applied, giving Goh a comfortable win over Andrew Dawson, the silver medallist and Emma Brown who took Bronze. He was delighted to do so well at a long distance after limiting himself to shorter outings recently, but revealed an issue with his kit and his long racing socks doing a ‘Nora Batty’ impression: “What a lovely day it was to ride a bike! Having not done any rides of this distance for some time, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Coach Thacker was keen for me to get out and give this distance a good go and get a measure of my fatigue resistance. The first lap flew by, but then the cross headwind took me by surprise on the second lap. In addition, I had a bit of a wardrobe malfunction when my right sock fell down as the boob tape that I used gave up, so I had fun repeatedly pulling it up while I was in the saddle. I was pretty tired when I crossed the line, but it was nice to be part of the winning team. Thanks to Mid Shropshire Wheelers yet again for organising a great event”.
Dawson meanwhile was another rider revealing how the distance can be a difficult one to pace correctly, echoing the sentiments of Romei and Riley that things can get sticky towards the end: “Firstly thanks to Simon Evans and all the organisers and marshals who put on a great race, and the weather was perfect. It’s also great that we now have a road bike class to complete in. I was pleased and a little surprised with second over a distance I haven’t raced for a number of years. I find 50 miles is a difficult distance to pace myself”.
Brown was one of several riders taking home more than one medal as she added Female Silver to her Road Bike Bronze with an actual 2:29:25 converted to 2:15:22 on the Road Bike handicapping system. What was more incredible is that she raced the morning after completing a randonnée of over 100 miles the day before, showing terrific perseverance: “It was another great morning for cycling. I enjoyed the course apart from the uphill and into the headwind from Shawbury to High Ercall. I was just out to enjoy myself and not stress about times given my 105 mile hilly cycle which included the border randonnée in the middle the day before! Absolutely buzzing with my time overall – it means I have a hard time to beat for next time with supposedly fresher legs! I still can’t believe I kept just above 20mph average! As for the medals, I didn’t even know there were any competitions, so a lovely surprise to win a Bronze & Silver.
Brown however didn’t have an answer for Deb Hutson-Lumb, who won both the Female 50 mile Trophy and The Jim Heath Veterans Trophy with 2:07:19 actual and a tremendous Veterans Standard of +27:23. This was Hutson-Lumb’s first attempt at the distance for two years, in the same event and using the same course, and she was pleased to lower her time significantly: “The last time I completed a 50 was the Mid Shropshire Wheelers event in 2023 on the same course, so I was very pleased to knock over four minutes off my course personal best. Pre-race preparation and nutrition paid off, and I mostly stayed to race plan for a change. A loose saddle made for a lot of shifting around and loss of position, so I’ll be double checking bike set up before the next race. A great event, and my thanks to Simon Evans and everyone involved in making it happen”.
That left the final word to the Female Bronze medallist Helen Tudor, who ended her morning on 2:29:56 just 31 seconds behind Brown. She revealed however that the sunny conditions took its toll on her time: “I’ve been struggling with the high pollen levels, so not particularly happy with my ride. A great time from Deb, and Emma did well having done a long ride the day before. It’s great to see more females racing longer distances – very well marshalled, thanks to all the Mid Shropshire Wheelers”.
SCCA:
| Pos’n | Forename | Surname | Club | Cat | Machine | Time | Points |
| 1 | Simon | Romei | Paramount CRT | V | TT | 01:55:15 | 70 |
| 2 | Jonathan | Mills-Keeling | Aerologic RT | V | TT | 01:55:25 | 65 |
| 3 | Christopher | Riley | Paramount CRT | V | TT | 01:58:26 | 60 |
| 4 | Phil | Collins | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | 02:01:28 | 55 |
| 5 | Jonathan | Goh | Paramount CRT | V | RB | 02:03:47 | 50 |
| 6 | Robert | McGregor | Paramount CRT | S | TT | 02:04:51 | 45 |
| 7 | Ian | Laverie | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | 02:05:12 | 40 |
| 8 | Adam | Mumford | Wrekinsport CC | S | TT | 02:05:26 | 35 |
| 9 | Deb | Hutson-Lumb | SCCA Private Member | FV | TT | 02:07:19 | 30 |
| 10 | Clive | Middleton | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | 02:11:09 | 25 |
| 11 | Sam | Owen | North Shropshire Wheelers | S | TT | 02:12:44 | 20 |
| 12 | John | Westhead | Paramount CRT | V | TT | 02:14:59 | 15 |
| 13 | Andrew | Dawson | Paramount CRT | V | RB | 02:18:42 | 10 |
| 14 | Steve | Cornish | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | TT | 02:20:08 | 10 |
| 15 | Tim | Evans | Newport (Shropshire) CC | V | TT | 02:22:32 | 10 |
| 16 | Les | Boughey | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | TT | 02:25:33 | 10 |
| 17 | Emma | Brown | Paramount CRT | F | RB | 02:29:25 | 10 |
| 18 | Helen | Tudor | Oswestry Paragon CC | FV | TT | 02:29:56 | 10 |
| 19 | Ashley | Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | 02:30:04 | 10 |
| 20 | Claire | Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | RB | 02:32:15 | 10 |
| . | Robert | Garbett | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | DNF | . |
| . | Victor | Chetta | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | TT | DNS | . |
| . | Jonathan | Chuter | Paramount CRT | V | TT | DNS | . |
| . | Mark | Fenn | Shropshire CCA | V | RB | DNS | . |
Team Gold:
Paramount CRT (Simon Romei, Chris Riley, Jon Goh) 5:57:28
Vets:
| Vets Pos’n | Forename | Surname | Club | Cat | Machine | Vet +/- | Vets Points |
| 1 | Deb | Hutson-Lumb | SCCA Private Member | FV | TT | +27:23 | 70 |
| 2 | Jonathan | Mills-Keeling | Aerologic RT | V | TT | +23:44 | 65 |
| 3 | Christopher | Riley | Paramount CRT | V | TT | +23:07 | 60 |
| 4 | Simon | Romei | Paramount CRT | V | TT | +21:58 | 55 |
| 5 | John | Westhead | Paramount CRT | V | TT | +16:52 | 50 |
| 6 | Ian | Laverie | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | +16:21 | 45 |
| 7 | Phil | Collins | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | +16:12 | 40 |
| 8 | Clive | Middleton | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | +14:04 | 35 |
| 9 | Jonathan | Goh | Paramount CRT | V | RB | +13:02 | 30 |
| 10 | Steve | Cornish | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | TT | +12:50 | 25 |
| 11 | Andrew | Dawson | Paramount CRT | V | RB | +5:43 | 20 |
| 12 | Helen | Tudor | Oswestry Paragon CC | FV | TT | +1:50 | 15 |
| 13 | Les | Boughey | North Shropshire Wheelers | V | TT | +0:31 | 10 |
| 14 | Claire | Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | RB | -1:01 | 10 |
| 15 | Tim | Evans | Newport (Shropshire) CC | V | TT | -2:50 | 10 |
| 16 | Ashley | Kirkham | Wrekinsport CC | V | TT | -12:51 | 10 |
Females:
| Female Pos’n | Forename | Surname | Club | Cat | Machine | Time | Female Points |
| 1 | Deb | Hutson-Lumb | SCCA Private Member | FV | TT | 02:07:19 | 70 |
| 2 | Emma | Brown | Paramount CRT | F | RB | 02:29:25 | 65 |
| 3 | Helen | Tudor | Oswestry Paragon CC | FV | TT | 02:29:56 | 60 |
| 4 | Claire | Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | RB | 02:32:15 | 55 |
Road Bikes:
| RB Pos’n | Forename | Surname | Club | Cat | Machine | RB Adj Time | RB Points |
| 1 | Jonathan | Goh | Paramount CRT | V | RB | 02:01:46 | 70 |
| 2 | Andrew | Dawson | Paramount CRT | V | RB | 02:09:05 | 65 |
| 3 | Emma | Brown | Paramount CRT | F | RB | 02:15:22 | 60 |
| 4 | Claire | Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | RB | 02:15:49 | 55 |
Top Club Award:
| Pos’n | Club | Points |
| 1 | Paramount CRT | 270 |
| 2 | Wrekinsport CC | 165 |
| 3 | Aerologic RT | 65 |
| 4 | North Shropshire Wheelers | 30 |
| =5 | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | 10 |
| =5 | Newport (Shropshire) CC | 10 |
| =5 | Oswestry Paragon CC | 10 |
Cumulative Standings after five rounds
Friction and Hydraulic Services Shropshire Championship Points Series
| Position | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Simon Romei | Paramount CRT | V | 290 |
| 2 | Jonathan Mills-Keeling | Aerologic RT | V | 200 |
| 3 | Tomos Hales | Wrekinsport CC | S | 175 |
| 4 | Jonathan Goh | Paramount CRT | V | 170 |
| =5 | Christopher Riley | Paramount CRT | V | 140 |
| =5 | Robert McGregor | Paramount CRT | S | 140 |
| 7 | Victor Chetta | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | V | 115 |
| 8 | William Preston | Paramount CRT | S | 90 |
| 9 | Oli Freeman | Wrekinsport CC | S | 85 |
| 10 | Ian Laverie | Wrekinsport CC | V | 75 |
Friction and Hydraulic Services Veterans Championship
| Vets Position | Name | Club | Best 12 |
| 1 | Simon Romei | Paramount CRT | 285 |
| 2 | Jonathan Mills-Keeling | Aerologic RT | 210 |
| 3 | Jonathan Goh | Paramount CRT | 180 |
| 4 | Christopher Riley | Paramount CRT | 165 |
| 5 | Ian Laverie | Wrekinsport CC | 140 |
| 6 | Deb Hutson-Lumb | SCCA Private Member | 130 |
| 7 | John Westhead | Paramount CRT | 115 |
| 8 | Victor Chetta | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | 110 |
| 9 | Mark Fenn | Shropshire CCA | 100 |
| 10 | Andrew Dawson | Paramount CRT | 90 |
Friction and Hydraulic Services Road Bike Championship
| Road Bike Pos’n | Name | Club | Cat | Best 12 |
| 1 | Jonathan Goh | Paramount CRT | V | 300 |
| 2 | Andrew Dawson | Paramount CRT | V | 210 |
| 3 | Mark Fenn | Shropshire CCA | V | 180 |
| 4 | William Preston | Paramount CRT | S | 165 |
| 5 | Emma Brown | Paramount CRT | F | 160 |
| 6 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | FV | 110 |
| 7 | Billy Panter | Paramount CRT | S | 85 |
| 8 | Alvydas Janusauskas | Paramount CRT | V | 75 |
| 9 | David Scott | Paramount CRT | S | 60 |
| 10 | Benjamin Nickolls | Paramount CRT | V | 45 |
Friction and Hydraulic Services Female Championship
| Female Pos’n | Name | Club | Best 12 |
| 1 | Emma Brown | Paramount CRT | 220 |
| 2 | Hayley Wells | Wrekinsport CC | 180 |
| 3 | Helen Tudor | Oswestry Paragon CC | 160 |
| 4 | Claire Blackwell-Smyth | Paramount CRT | 145 |
| 5 | Deb Hutson-Lumb | SCCA Private Member | 130 |
| 6 | Gill Snelson | Paramount CRT | 95 |
| 7 | Jan Davies | Hafren CC | 55 |
| 7 | Thea Osmund-Smith | Paramount CRT | 55 |
Top Club Award
| Position | Club | Total Points |
| 1 | Paramount CRT | 1155 |
| 2 | Wrekinsport CC | 585 |
| 3 | Aerologic RT | 245 |
| 4 | Mid Shropshire Wheelers | 145 |
| 5 | North Shropshire Wheelers | 75 |
| 6 | Newport (Shropshire) CC | 50 |
| 7 | Hafren CC | 45 |
| 8 | Oswestry Paragon CC | 20 |