Ben Sumner (Beeline Cycles) won the first round of the Wessex League at Oxonian’s event at Cowley to the west of Oxford. Ben out sprinted Luke Gray (Trek Cross Collective) by a second on the line to win the league opener.

The event was held within the ground of the Oxford Spires Academy on terraced football pitches which provided the climbs and a very narrow technical wooded section to the north of the school. The weather was warm and sunny and the riders had to ensure they took on plenty of fluids before and after the race.

Report by Graham Robins   Photo Gallery by Graham Robins

The Full Results are now available at the bottom of this page.  Courtesy of John Vallis and Mick Fountain.  Please address any queries to John or Mick.

Once the race got underway a select group of five riders eased themselves of the front and set about putting time into the chasers. The leading group of Ben, Luke, Will Bjergfelt (Cycle Premier/ Kovert), reigning league champion Michael Cotty (Wheelbase/ Cannondale and Andrew Hargroves (Hargroves Cycles) riding here before he travels to Belgium for the coming cross season.

This group started to ease away and the first rider to pull clear was Luke as he managed to ‘bunny hop’ the fallen tree while the others in his wake had to dismount. Will was having a steady ride while Andy slipped away and Michael rolled a tube on the third lap and had to limp to the pits to swap bikes.

Whilst the others were having troubles Ben and Luke distanced themselves by over 30secs. The two young riders were not going to get caught and it was down to them to fight it out for the spoils. Michael, now on two round wheels set about closing Andy down as the young Southampton rider was soon dropping back.

As the two leaders took the bell there was nothing between them and we waited to see who would emerge on to the playing pitches first. It wasn’t too long to wait and they both appeared together. As they weaved their way around the course Ben soon started to apply the pressure and at the last turn got a couple of meters ahead and while catching slower backmarkers he crossed the line to win the opening round of the season.

Seniors  (Provisional Result)

1^st Ben Sumner Beeline Cycles

2^nd Luke Gray Trek Cross Collective @1sec

3^rd Will Bjergfelt Cycle Premier/ Kovert

4^th Michael Cotty Wheelbase Cannondale

5^th Andrew Hargroves Hargroves Cycles

6^th Paul Lloyd Rides on Air

7^th Jamie Norfolk PedalOn

8^th Chris Minter PedalOn

9^th Ian Legg Primera Specialized

10^th James Cotty Wheelbase Cannondale

 

The day also saw races for Juniors/Vets and Women. The combined race was dead heated by Matt Hargroves (Hargroves Cycles) and Sean Williams (Wightlink Offshore). The two riders soon pulled clear of the rest after a couple of laps and increased their time. At the bell they were together and on the line they were also un-separable.

Vets/Juniors/Women  (Provisional Result)

1^st Sean Williams Wightlink/Offshore RT

Matt Hargroves Hargroves Cycles Junior

3^rd Lewis King Beeline Cycles

4^th Joe Griffiths Dream CC Junior

5^th Will Girvan North Hants RC

6^th Mike Simpson GS Henley

7^th Matt Woods Hargroves Cycles Junior

8^th Kevin Knox Vicious Velo

 

Women  (Provisional Result)

1^st Maxine Filby RWD Brakes

2^nd Tamina Oliver Hargroves Cycles

3^rd Sarah Woods Wightlink/Offshore RT

4^th Nina French Wight Mountain

 

 

 

Results:  Senior Race

	Name	Club	Time	Cat	No.
1	Ben Summer	Beeline	57:00	23	116
2	Luke Gray	Trek Cross	57:00	23	103
3	Will Bjergfelt	Cycle Premier Kovert			84
4	Michael Cotty	Wheelbase			67
5	Andy Hargroves	Hargroves Cycles		23	111
6	Paul Lloyd	Rides on Air			204
7	Jamie Norfolk	Pedalon			80
8	Richard Schofield	Hants Police CC			61
9	Christopher Minter	Pedalon			112
10	Ian Legg	Primera			109
11	Peter Kench	GWR			203
12	James Cotty	Wheelbase			85
13	Chris Atkins	Team Specialised			73
14	Chris Boote	Zappis			63
15	William Girvan	North Hants		45	89
16	James Atherton	VC St Raphael			62
17	Mark Hedditch	unattached			101
18	Jason Painton	Rides On Air	At 1 Lap.		99
19	Mike Holborow	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap.		72
20	Richard Lewis	CC Basingstoke	At 1 Lap.		106
21	Phil Hersey	Eagle RC	At 1 Lap.		82
22	Nick Onslow	Pedalon	At 1 Lap.		65
23	Stephen Bradbury	AW Cycles	At 1 Lap.	23	86
24	Andy Powell	Hargroves Cycles	At 1 Lap.		202
25	Adam Studholme	Zappis	At 1 Lap.		77
26	Ryan Keynes	1st Gear Cycles	At 1 Lap.	23	200
27	Adam Buckland	Banjo	At 1 Lap.		114
28	Ben Hall	Bristol RC	At 1 Lap.		108
28	Aaron Tayler	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap.		59
30	Tim Doole	Oxford Tri	At 1 Lap.		118
31	Kevin Ball	Dulwich Paragon	At 1 Lap.		98
32	Tony Parker	North Hants	At 1 Lap.		102
33	Fraser Macdonald	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap.	23	69
34	Oliver Coe	Zappis	At 1 Lap.		76
35	Graham Dance	Southdown Velo	At 1 Lap.		60
36	Steve Bale	Reading CC	At 1 Lap.	40	88
37	Mark Chick	Swindon	At 1 Lap.	12	96
38	James Brett	Wightlink	At 1 Lap.	40	68
39	Stu Thompson	Andover Whs	At 1 Lap.		104
40	Tim Jones	Zappis	At 1 Lap.	12	91
41	Matthew Rowley	Oxonian CC	At 2 Lap(s).	45	110
42	Stuart Watson	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).		78
43	Malcolm Rose	Oxonian CC	At 2 Lap(s).		87
44	Nick Hatchard	GS Henley	At 2 Lap(s).		113
45	Matt Walsh	Zappis	At 2 Lap(s).		75
46	James Flockton	unattached	At 2 Lap(s).		66
47	Geoff Booker	Oxonian CC	At 2 Lap(s).	60	58
48	Paul Cox	Bicester CC	At 2 Lap(s).		81
49	David Blakey	BOB	At 2 Lap(s).		100
50	Troy Kirk	GS Henley	At 2 Lap(s).		92
51	Stuart Hathaway	Oxonian CC	At 2 Lap(s).	55	83
52	D Woods	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	50	191
53	Tom Chapman	Zappis	At 2 Lap(s).		79
54	Jo Walsh	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).		70
55	Clive Sealock	Didcot Phoenix CC	At 2 Lap(s).	45	117
56	Kevin Lister	Kenilworth	At 2 Lap(s).		115
57	Martin Cooper	Amersham RCC	At 2 Lap(s).		119
58	Sandy Legge	Day Member	At 2 Lap(s).		201
59	Chris Hobson	Day Member	At 3 Lap(s).		105
60	Richard Mynott	North Hants	At 3 Lap(s).	55	90

 

Results:  Veterans/Women/Juniors

	Name	Club	Time	Cat
1	Sean Williams	Wightlink/Offshore RT	41:40	40
2	Matthew Hargroves	Hargroves Cycles		Jn
3	Lewis King	Beeline		40
4	Joe Griffiths	Dream CC		Jn
5	Bill Girvan	North Hants RC		45
6	Mike Simpson	GS Henley		40
7	Matt Wood	Hargroves Cycles		Jn
8	Kevin Knox	Vicious Velo		40
9	Sean Dunlea	Cyclos Uno		Jn
10	Pete Smith	Team Jewson		55
11	Dave Mcmullen	GWR Team		60
12	David Phillips	Cotswold Veldrijden		50
13	Robin Willmott	GA Cycles		40
14	Rob Bolwell	Wight Mountain		Jn
15	Gareth Dridge	Southdown Velo		40
16	Steve Dance	Andover Whs		40
17	Martyn Dymond	Wight Mountain		45
18	Sean Bolton	Swindon RC		45
19	Keith Sheridan	Cotswold Veldrijden		45
20	David Hobbs	Cotswold Veldrijden		45
21	Sam Harper	Sotonia		Jn
22	Andy Roberts	GWR Team		55
23	Ray Robinson	Day Member		60
24	Paul Axon	Cycle experience		45
25	Simon Meadwell	Bournemouth Jub		40
26	Peter Hutchinson	Cotswold Veldrijden		45
27	Martin Evans	Cotswold Veldrijden		45
28	Chris Smith	Team MK		40
29	Andy Smith	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	45
30	Jason Pitt	AW Cycles	At 1 Lap(s).	Jn
31	Robin Akers	Beeline	At 1 Lap(s).	55
32	Maxine Filby (W)	RWD Brakes	At 1 Lap(s).
33	David Garrett	Rugby Velo	At 1 Lap(s).	50
34	Robert Carter	VC Venta	At 1 Lap(s).	40
35	Harvey Lowe	Hargroves Cycles	At 1 Lap(s).	Jn
36	Steve Robinson	North Hants RC	At 1 Lap(s).	45
37	Andre Posthuma	North Hants RC	At 1 Lap(s).	40
38	Tamina Oliver (W)	Hargroves Cycles	At 1 Lap(s).
39	Tony Turner	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	40
40	James Morris	GS Henley	At 1 Lap(s).	45
41	Dave Lloyd	Day Member	At 1 Lap(s).	65
42	Steve Dines	Wight Mountain	At 1 Lap(s).	55
43	Richard Bremner	North Hants RC	At 1 Lap(s).	45
44	Peter Graham	North Hants RC	At 1 Lap(s).	60
45	Darren Chappell	Behind the Bike Shed	At 1 Lap(s).	40
46	Simon Guard	Sotonia	At 1 Lap(s).	40
47	Darren Dollery	Whitelink RT	At 1 Lap(s).	45
48	Sarah Barber (W)	North Hants RC	At 1 Lap(s).
49	Sarah Woods (W)	Wightlink/Offshore RT	At 1 Lap(s).	40
50	Paul Sewell	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	45
51	Phill Chinn	Fareham	At 1 Lap(s).	45
52	Nick Adnitt	Andover Whs	At 1 Lap(s).	50
53	Graham Hughes	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	45
54	Matt Fowler	Swindon RC	At 1 Lap(s).	Jn
55	Duncan Sherwood	Hillingdon	At 1 Lap(s).	50
56	Gareth Walker	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).
57	David Scott	Behind the Bike Shed	At 1 Lap(s).	65
58	Kev Day	Sotonia	At 1 Lap(s).	50
59	Nina French (W)	Wight Mountain	At 1 Lap(s).	45
60	Harjinder Obhi	South Bucks	At 1 Lap(s).	40
61	Corinne Clark (W)	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).
62	Paul Langdon	Day Member	At 2 Lap(s).	45
63	John Kechane	GS Henley	At 2 Lap(s).	45
64	Ruby Baker (W)	Behind the Bike Shed	At 2 Lap(s).	23
65	Ian Golding	Day Member	At 2 Lap(s).	45
66	Richard Robinson	North Hants RC	At 2 Lap(s).	Jn
67	Chris Devine	Day Member	At 2 Lap(s).	60
68	Adan Newlove	Chapel tri	At 2 Lap(s).	Jn
69	V Moore	Crabwood	At 2 Lap(s).	55
70	Andy Gibbs	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	50
71	Keith Rothwick	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	50
72	Peter Bird	VC 10	At 2 Lap(s).	50
73	Kerrie Hutchinson (W	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	Jn
74	Samantha Jones (W)	Four4th	At 2 Lap(s).	40
75	Bill French	Wight Mountain	At 2 Lap(s).	65
76	Bethany George (W)	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	Jn
77	Hannah Gibbs (W)	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 2 Lap(s).	Jn
78	Caroline Hawley (W)	Day Member	At 2 Lap(s).
79	Richard Bennett	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 3 Lap(s).	40
80	John Burrows	Poole Whs	At 4 Lap(s).	50

 

 Results:  Youths

	Name	Club	Time	Cat
1	Christopher Rothwell	Swindon RC	26:30	U16
2	Jack Saunders	Swindon RC	@30 secs	U16
3	Edward Gronbech	Oxford City RC	@40 secs	U14
4	Emily Wadsworth	Beeline Cycles	@2:41	U14 G
5	Conuli Brown	Hemel Hempstead CC	@3:01	U16
6	Tom Sewell	Swindon RC	@3:25	U16
7	Jacob Tresham	Team MK	@5:22	U14
8	Charlie Cooper	Chapel Tri Stars	@6:07	U14
9	Ieuan Woods	Charlotteville CC	@7:03	U14
10	Liam Sewell	Swindon RC	@7:10	U14
11	Erin Baker	Southdown Velo	@7:21	U14
12	Ciara Hutchinson	Swindon RC	@7:30	U16 G
13	Zoe Sheehan	Swindon RC	@7:48	U16 G
14	Rhianne Jones	Swindon RC	@9:19	U16 G
15	Joseph Williams	Wightlink/Offshore RT	@1 lap	U16
16	Seren Jones	Swindon RC	@1 lap	U14 G
17	Lucy Burrows	Poole Wheelers	@1 lap	U16 G

 

 Results:  Under 12s

	Name	Club	Time	Cat	No.
1	Noah Tresham	Team MK		12	20
2	Jay Allen	Palmer Park Velo		12	18
3	Angus Hawkins	Palmer Park Velo		12	16
4	Harry Dridge	SDV		12	32
5	Maddie Wadsworth (W)	Palmer Park Velo		12	3
6	Aldernay Baker (W)	Southdown Velo		12	6
7	Luke Morgan	Swindon RC		12	8
8	Conor Hutchinson	Swindon RC		12	7
9	Anna Wadsworth (W)	Palmer Park Velo		10	2
10	Abbie Manley (W)	Chapel Tri		12	10
11	Ryan Hodgyns	Poole Wheelers		12	4
12	Madeline Cooper (W)	Chapel Tri		10	11
14	Ellis Jones	Swindon RC		10	28
15	Alexa Hawkins (W)	Palmer Park Velo		10	15
16	Finn Hawkins	Palmer Park Velo		10	14
17	Rachel Thompson (W)	Palmer Park Velo		12	19
18	Natalie Moore (W)	Swindon RC		12	13
19	Thomas Wadsworth	Palmer Park Velo	At 1 Lap(s).	10	1
20	Tyler Smith	Swindon RC	At 1 Lap(s).	10	22
20	Bobby Letters	Banjo Cycles	At 1 Lap(s).	10	24
21	Ollie Valmer	Swindon RC	At 1 Lap(s).	10	12
22	Mack Mellish	Zappis	At 1 Lap(s).	10	9
23	Harrison Phillips	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	12	27
24	Kieran Rose	Oxonian CC	At 1 Lap(s).	12	37
25	Amelia Cox (W)	Bicester CC	At 1 Lap(s).	10	30
26	Ella Duafree (W)	Corinium	At 1 Lap(s).	12	33
27	Isabel Phillips (W)	Cotswold Veldrijden	At 1 Lap(s).	12	26
28	Oliver Thornton	Oxonian CC	At 1 Lap(s).	10	17
29	Bev Evertonicz (W)	Not Known	At 1 Lap(s).	10	36
30	Lewis Jones	Swindon RC	At 2 Lap(s).	10	29
31	Marshal Thomas	Andover Whs	At 2 Lap(s).	10	5
32	Charlie Rose	Oxonian CC	At 2 Lap(s).	10	38
33	Toby Letters	Banjo Cycles	At 2 Lap(s).	10	25
34	Imogen Cox (W)	Bicester CC	At 2 Lap(s).	10	31
35	Daisy Taylor (W)	Swindon RC	At 2 Lap(s).	10	21