Vickers leaves rivals trailing in cycling series

Kirk Vickers powered to victory as the Friction Hydraulics Series added a road bike only event to the schedule.

Road bikes are the 'in thing' in time trialing and the new initiative was introduced for round seven - the North Shropshire Wheelers Andy Durber Memorial 9.7.

A brand new course created especially to celebrate the club’s 100th anniversary and named after the club’s former president provided the competitors with a stern 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 per cent finish of Marchamley cutting, unused in a time trial since the early 1990s.

A flying Vickers (Holohan Coaching) hurled himself up the final hurdle in best hill climb form to stop the watch on 23 minutes, 33 seconds.

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 and I was pleased with my performance on this shorter time trial," said Vickers.

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 claimed victory in the Female category as she pushed out Paramount’s Thea Osmund-Smith by 1:12.

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, who 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.

Proctor extended his Friction Road Bike Series lead thanks to his adjusted 25:32 – just one second ahead of Scott on handicap . Proctor (-0:15) also took the win in the Friction Veterans' ahead of Duncan (-0:24).

The first Junior entrant of the season took on the challenge as 14-year-old Mid Shropshire Wheeler Taliesin Goh finished in a very respectable 32:02 for 17th place overall.

Round six of the Series - the Aerologic RT 15 - saw Dan Watts make an instant impact after putting in a belated appearance.

Watts stopped the watch on the Hodnet bypass-Crudgington-Wollerton course on 32 minutes, 32 seconds.

The female win went to Paramount CRT’s Osmund-Smith, who had never tried this distance before. She crossed the line in 38:01, 1:31 ahead of Laura Sheppard.

Overall runner-up Rob McGregor shook off the effects of illness to put in a real shift and push out Paramount team-mate Chris Riley in the process.

McGregor made it 2-2 in intra-club bragging rights with a 33:45 effort, with Riley taking third spot 59 seconds down.

But Riley didn’t go home empty-handed as he took the honours in the Veterans' category in +6:34 - ahead of team-mate John Westwood (+5:28).

Jon Goh took the win in the Friction Road Bike Series.

When the handicapping system was applied, Goh’s 35:33 pushed out Sheppard by 16 seconds into the runner-up spot.