R7 Friction Hydraulics Series: North Shropshire Wheelers Andy Durber Memorial 9.7

Road Bikes are the ‘in’ thing in time trialling, so a new initiative of a Road Bike only event was added to the Friction Hydraulics Series as Round 7: The North Shropshire Wheelers Andy Durber Memorial 9.7, to mix things up a bit. A brand new course created especially to celebrate the club’s 100^th anniversary and named after the club’s former President; this really was a lumpy test. Starting at Hodnet and climbing past Marchamley before some respite through Prees Lower Heath; riders had to steel themselves for the climb past Hawkstone Follies and the killer 19% finish of Marchamley cutting, unused in a time trial since the early 1990’s.

Inaugural course records were set by a flying Kirk Vickers of Holohan Coaching, hurling himself up the final hurdle in best hill climb form to stop the watch on 23 minutes 33 seconds; and a Dave Scott Coaching rider making her first Series appearance, Sophie Edge, who registered a fine 29:25.  

The forecast was not great for this morning race, which has seen standing water cancel the Hawkstone Hilly 19 which use the same, potentially problematical stretch past the Follies cause cancellations more than once, but thankfully there was just drizzle and a distinct chill in the air to add a couple of extra dimensions. The course was tailor-made for Vickers, the 2021 BBR Hill Climb Champion, who took the final lung-bursting effort in his stride: “The new course was great, a good turn out of riders in drizzly conditions. I was pleased with my performance on this shorter time trial, well done to all riders and marshals on a chilly wet morning”. Even with the Road Bike handicaps applied Vickers performance was so dominant he won this competition too by 1:59 from Stuart Proctor.

A first-time entrant made an immediate impression as Dave Scott Coaching rider Sophie Edge set the inaugural Female record in an event attracting a good quota of females taking on the tough challenge. Edge pushed out Paramount’s Thea Osmund-Smith, her soon-to-be 2-Up partner, by 1:12 and clearly enjoyed the experience: “Despite the challenging weather conditions I really enjoyed the event. It’s a fun course, and all of the friendly faces made my first time trial a very welcoming one! It was great to see so many women on the start list; and to raise money for two fantastic causes”. All surpluses were divided equally among West Midlands Air Ambulance and Hope House Children’s Hospice.

Edge’s team Principal Dave Scott has won the BBR Hill Climb Series for the last three years, but didn’t have an answer for a flying Vickers on the day, finishing exactly two minutes back in 25:33, ahead of Paramount’s Will Preston. The fact this wasn’t a pure vertical challenge was cited as the difference by Scott, who was generous in his post-race comments: “I loved the course but was firmly put in my pace by an on form Kirk. I paced it well, but didn’t have the speed overall to match Kirk on the flatter sections. It was great to see so many competitors, especially ladies in a local event”.

Third-placed Preston had a completely unexpected reason to ride the event as he stopped the watch on 25:51, 16 seconds ahead of team mate Paul Duncan in another major step forward for Paramount in the Top Club Award standings, now holding a huge 1400 point lead. He explained: “It was a great course, I really liked it. Especially as it went past the church and wedding venue that I’m getting married in soon! It was my first time trial for the year, so a good start. I hope that it is run again next year – thanks North Shropshire Wheelers for putting it on”.

Proctor extended his Friction Road Bike Series lead thanks to his adjusted 25:32 – just one second ahead of Scott on handicap in what has so far been a major source of interest between the team mates. Proctor also took the win in the Friction Veterans competition too with -0:15 ahead of Duncan in -0:24: all riders need to know about what a tough challenge this course is when every Veteran records a negative score. He stated: “Definitely an event to keep an eye on the forecast for this technical course, especially that potentially greasy hilly finish under the trees! Sadly damper than hoped for, but still, it was great to get back to Wollerton Hall as HQ. I knew some of the course from previous outings, although on a reconnoitre the previous day I was shocked at how bad the surface from the start to Lower Heath had got. All okay though, room enough for a bike to manoeuvre around, and still a really lovely route. I felt great on the day, had a great start and felt in control all the way around. It was another game of ‘cat and mouse’ though with Dave Scott, my minute man, and unsurprisingly he caught me just coming into Weston. Overall a great morning, I was really happy with my time, and as expected superb organising, thanks loads to all involved”!

It was great to see the first Junior entrant of the season take on the challenge in his longest time trial so far, as 14 year old Mid Shropshire Wheeler Taliesin Goh finished in a very respectable 32:02 for 17^th place overall. Light weight is definitely an advantage on these hills, especially the finish, and Goh was very complementary about the organisation, commenting: “It was a tough race, quite hilly. I was happy with my ride. This was the first 10 mile time trial I’ve ever done. Thanks to all the marshals – without them this event wouldn’t be possible”.

SCCA

Pos’n	Forename	Surname	Club	Cat	Machine	Time	Points
1	Kirk	Vickers	Holohan Coaching Race Team	S	RB	23:33	60
2	David	Scott	Dave Scott Coaching	S	RB	25:33	55
3	William	Preston	Paramount CRT	S	RB	25:51	50
4	Paul	Duncan	Paramount CRT	V	RB	26:06	45
5	Luke	Taylor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	27:00	40
6	Stuart	Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	27:04	35
7	Jonathan	Goh	Paramount CRT	V	RB	27:23	30
8	Jonathan	Whittaker	SCCA Private Member	S	RB	27:41	25
9	Christopher	Riley	Paramount CRT	V	RB	27:47	20
10	Richard	Simpson	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	28:15	15
11	Robert	McGregor	Paramount CRT	S	RB	28:44	10
12	Sophie	Edge	Dave Scott Coaching	F	RB	29:25	5
13	Andrew	Dawson	Paramount CRT	V	RB	29:29	5
14	John	Westhead	Paramount CRT	V	RB	30:35	5
15	Thea	Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	30:37	5
16	Alex	Paulukiewicz	North Shropshire Wheelers	S	RB	31:11	5
17	Taliesin	Goh	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	J	RB	32:02	5
18	Hugh	Ashworth	Paramount CRT	V	RB	32:23	5
19	Les	Boughey	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	32:57	5
20	Claire	Blackwell-Smyth	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	33:04	5
21	Simon	Shorrock	Paramount CRT	V	RB	33:05	5
22	Jane	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	FV	RB	33:19	5
23	Rebecca	Pugh	Paramount CRT	F	RB	33:53	5
=24	Jamie	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	34:06	5
=24	Nathaniel	Brown	North Shropshire Wheelers	S	RB	34:06	5
26	Wyn	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	35:02	5
27	Ashley	Kirkham	Wrekinsport CC	V	RB	35:19	5
28	Kathryn	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	36:04	5
29	John	Etherington	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	36:36	5
30	Ellie	Langley	North Shropshire Wheelers	F	RB	37:53	5
31	Paul	Roberts	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	38:10	5
32	Caius	Durling	Market Drayton Cycling Club	S	RB	38:13	5
33	Geoff	Edgerton	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	38:25	5
34	Elaine	Beckett	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	38:57	5
35	Terry	Price	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	42:31	5
.	Raitis	Rorbahs	Market Drayton Cycling Club	S	RB	DNS	.
.	Steve	Cornish	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	DNS	.
.	James	Neale	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	DNS	.
.	Laura	Sheppard	SCCA Private Member	F	RB	DNS	.
.	Daniel	Watts	SCCA Private Member	S	RB	DNS	.

Veterans

Vets Pos’n	Forename	Surname	Club	Cat	Machine	Vet +/-	Vets Points
1	Stuart	Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	-0:15	60
2	Paul	Duncan	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-0:24	55
3	Christopher	Riley	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-1:13	50
4	Richard	Simpson	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-1:26	45
5	Luke	Taylor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	-1:41	40
6	Jonathan	Goh	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-1:45	35
7	John	Westhead	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-2:10	30
8	Andrew	Dawson	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-2:32	25
9	Thea	Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	-2:48	20
10	Hugh	Ashworth	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-4:41	15
11	Claire	Blackwell-Smyth	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	-4:42	10
12	Jane	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	FV	RB	-4:51	5
13	Les	Boughey	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-5:34	5
14	Simon	Shorrock	Paramount CRT	V	RB	-6:08	5
15	Jamie	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-7:01	5
16	Kathryn	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	-7:21	5
17	Geoff	Edgerton	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-7:57	5
18	Wyn	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	-8:20	5
19	John	Etherington	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-9:31	5
20	Ashley	Kirkham	Wrekinsport CC	V	RB	-9:32	5
21	Elaine	Beckett	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	-10:41	5
22	Paul	Roberts	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	-12:13	5
23	Terry	Price	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	-16:28	5

Females

Female Pos’n	Forename	Surname	Club	Cat	Machine	Time	Female Points
1	Sophie	Edge	Dave Scott Coaching	F	RB	29:25	60
2	Thea	Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	30:37	55
3	Claire	Blackwell-Smyth	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	33:04	50
4	Jane	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	FV	RB	33:19	45
5	Rebecca	Pugh	Paramount CRT	F	RB	33:53	40
6	Kathryn	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	36:04	35
7	Ellie	Langley	North Shropshire Wheelers	F	RB	37:53	30
8	Elaine	Beckett	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	38:57	25
.	Laura	Sheppard	SCCA Private Member	F	RB	DNS	.

Road Bikes (on handicap)

RB Pos’n	Forename	Surname	Club	Cat	Machine	RB Adj Time	RB Points
1	Kirk	Vickers	Holohan Coaching Race Team	S	RB	23:33	60
2	Stuart	Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	25:32	55
3	David	Scott	Dave Scott Coaching	S	RB	25:33	50
4	Paul	Duncan	Paramount CRT	V	RB	25:41	45
5	William	Preston	Paramount CRT	S	RB	25:51	40
6	Christopher	Riley	Paramount CRT	V	RB	26:30	35
7	Sophie	Edge	Dave Scott Coaching	F	RB	26:39	30
8	Richard	Simpson	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	26:43	25
9	Luke	Taylor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	RB	26:58	20
10	Jonathan	Goh	Paramount CRT	V	RB	27:02	15
11	John	Westhead	Paramount CRT	V	RB	27:27	10
12	Jonathan	Whittaker	SCCA Private Member	S	RB	27:41	5
13	Andrew	Dawson	Paramount CRT	V	RB	27:49	5
14	Thea	Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	28:05	5
15	Robert	McGregor	Paramount CRT	S	RB	28:44	5
16	Hugh	Ashworth	Paramount CRT	V	RB	29:58	5
17	Claire	Blackwell-Smyth	Paramount CRT	FV	RB	29:59	5
18	Jane	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	FV	RB	30:08	5
19	Rebecca	Pugh	Paramount CRT	F	RB	30:42	5
20	Les	Boughey	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	30:51	5
21	Alex	Paulukiewicz	North Shropshire Wheelers	S	RB	31:11	5
22	Simon	Shorrock	Paramount CRT	V	RB	31:25	5
23	Taliesin	Goh	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	J	RB	32:02	5
24	Jamie	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	32:18	5
25	Kathryn	Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	32:38	5
26	Geoff	Edgerton	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	33:14	5
27	Wyn	Morris	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	33:37	5
28	Nathaniel	Brown	North Shropshire Wheelers	S	RB	34:06	5
29	Ellie	Langley	North Shropshire Wheelers	F	RB	34:19	5
30	John	Etherington	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	34:48	5
31	Ashley	Kirkham	Wrekinsport CC	V	RB	34:49	5
32	Elaine	Beckett	North Shropshire Wheelers	FV	RB	35:58	5
33	Paul	Roberts	Market Drayton Cycling Club	V	RB	37:30	5
34	Caius	Durling	Market Drayton Cycling Club	S	RB	38:13	5
35	Terry	Price	North Shropshire Wheelers	V	RB	41:45	5

Juniors

Junior Pos’n	Forename	Surname	Club	Cat	Machine	Time	Junior Points
1	Taliesin	Goh	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	J	RB	00:32:02	60

Top Club Award

Pos’n	Club	Points
1	Paramount CRT	420
2	Dave Scott Coaching	215
3	North Shropshire Wheelers	170
=4	Holohan Coaching Race Team	60
=4	Market Drayton Cycling Club	60
=4	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	60
7	Wrekinsport CC	5

Cumulative Standing after seven rounds

Overall

Position	Name	Club	Cat	Best 12
1	Christopher Riley	Paramount CRT	V	255
2	Tomos Hales	Aerologic RT	S	230
3	Hayley Wells	Aerologic RT	F	210
4	Kirk Vickers	Holohan Coaching Race Team	S	180
5	Robert McGregor	Paramount CRT	S	145
6	Stuart Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	140
7	Bryn Davies	Hafren CC	V	130
8	Jonathan Goh	Paramount CRT	V	125
9	Mark Pritchard	Aerologic RT	S	115
10	David Scott	Dave Scott Coaching	S	110

Veterans

Vets Position	Name	Club	Best 12
1	Christopher Riley	Paramount CRT	390
2	Stuart Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	280
3	Jonathan Goh	Paramount CRT	170
=4	Bryn Davies	Hafren CC	155
=4	John Westhead	Paramount CRT	155
=6	Andrew Dawson	Paramount CRT	135
=6	Thea Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	135
8	Paul Edwards	Wrekinsport CC	130
9	Philip Gardner	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	110
10	Chris Pook	Holohan Coaching Race Team	95

Females

Female Pos’n	Name	Club	Best 12
1	Hayley Wells	Aerologic RT	300
2	Thea Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	270
=3	Claire Blackwell-Smyth	Paramount CRT	100
=3	Helen Tudor	Oswestry Paragon CC	100
5	Gill Snelson	Paramount CRT	95
=6	Kathryn Rossiter	North Shropshire Wheelers	85
=6	Rebecca Pugh	Paramount CRT	85
8	Sophie Edge	Dave Scott Coaching	60
=9	Hannah Lancaster	Ludlow CC	55
=9	Laura Sheppard	SCCA Private Member	55
=9	Lauren Turley	Bridgnorth Cycling Club	55

Road Bikes

Road Bike Pos’n	Name	Club	Cat	Best 12
1	Stuart Proctor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	290
2	Jonathan Goh	Paramount CRT	V	220
3	Andrew Dawson	Paramount CRT	V	185
4	David Scott	Dave Scott Coaching	S	155
5	Thea Osmund-Smith	Paramount CRT	FV	105
6	Mark Fenn	Shropshire CCA	V	100
7	Paul Duncan	Paramount CRT	V	95
=8	Karl Moseley	Bridgnorth Cycling Club	V	85
=8	Max Baker	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	S	85
10	Luke Taylor	Dave Scott Coaching	V	65

Juniors

Junior Pos’n	Name	Club	Best 12
1	Taliesin Goh	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	60

Top Club Award

Position	Club	Total Points
1	Paramount CRT	2155
2	Dave Scott Coaching	755
3	Aerologic RT	740
4	North Shropshire Wheelers	370
5	Wrekinsport CC	290
6	Mid Shropshire Wheelers	280
7	Holohan Coaching Race Team	275
8	Bridgnorth Cycling Club	230
9	Hafren CC	205
10	Ludlow CC	140
11	Oswestry Paragon CC	100
12	Market Drayton Cycling Club	60
13	Newport (Shropshire) CC	20