Location: Old Warden, Bedfordshire
Event: 11 September 2011
Report: Snowdon Sports
WITH a combined age of 129 years, the top three riders in the Hitchin Nomads Late Summer Road Race in Bedfordshire proved that experience is key to winning events.
iCycle rider James Stewart took the win alone, the 51-year-old from Melchbourne crossing the line around a minute and a half ahead of his nearest rival.
And behind him, the sprint for second was won by 37-year-old Edward Ashby, while Team Milton Keynes' 41-year-old vet Simon Cannings took third spot, edging out 17-year-old junior Samuel Gilzean (Welwyn Wheelers).
The five lap race used a circuit of roughly ten miles based on Old Warden in Bedfordshire, and there was plenty of action on a breezy and largely dry day.
Among the early breakaway attempts was one by Phil Holland (Bedfordshire Roads CC) and Stuart Lindsey (St Ives CC) - but it came to an abrupt end when Holland crashed out with a broken collar bone, and Lindsey dropped back to the bunch.
The decisive move came towards the end of the third lap.
Another small break was being reeled in, and just as the bunch made contact Stewart attacked with team-mate Paul Carr.
The pace proved too much for Carr, but Stewart powered on and had opened up a lead of around a minute and a half by the finish.
Results:
1 James Stewart (iCycle) 2:05:30
2 Edward Ashby (unattached) @ 1:30
3 Simon Cannings (Team Milton Keynes)
4 Samuel Gilzean (Welwyn Wheelers)
5 Graeme Davidson (Kenilworth Wheelers)
6 Richard Stanton (Arbis LLP)
7 Stephen Colbert (Renault Rotor Colbert RT)
8 Paul Caton (Anders TMG)
9 Daniel Hardy (Hitchin Nomads CC)
10 Chris Grange (Hemel Hempstead CC) all @ same time
British Cycling would like to thank the organising team, officials and everyone else who helped promote this event. Our sport could not exist without the hundreds of people, many of them unpaid volunteers, who put in many hours of hard work running events, activities and clubs.
