Winter training miles brought summer smiles for Leighton Buzzard cyclist as they filled the podium with first, second and third place in London’s Archer GP Road Race.
With the sun finally shining, Team LBRCC-Solgar had six riders competing in a field of more than 60 for the fourth category classic at HIllingdon’s closed road racing circuit in west London.
The race started with LB’s Julian Thrasher leading the peloton around for the first five high-paced laps before the peloton settled.
And with the pace fairly steady, Stuart King attacked off the front with a solo break, opening up a gap of around 20 seconds for two further laps.
But with nobody bridging the gap, he was pursued and sucked back into the strong and fast peloton.
With LB’s Tim Edwins and Matt Rushton comfortable in the top 10, club-mate Graeme Clarke shot from the front for another solo effort, but was then reeled in.
With three laps to go LB’s Rob Nelson moved up into the top 10 and was looking strong as the pace increased.
With the bell approaching the last lap, the melee began and the riders came out of the final corner heading for the finish.
Rushton was first to cross the line, with Edwins second, just holding off King in third place, completing a stunning 1-2-3 for the club.
With Nelson finishing just out of the points and Thrasher and Clarke both in the bunch, it was a fantastic day for Team LBRCC-Solgar who used all of their rehearsed and very well planned team tactics to earn the result they targeted.
This was a fantastic start to the season for the Leighton Buzzard team and a special mention goes to Rushton for his race win, and to King and Edwins for promoting three new third category riders for the team. It was a dominant performance from them all.
Clarke also raced in the main category 123 race with a strong field and a very fast pace. He finished in the pack but with a huge field couldn’t break through into the points.
It looks set to be a strong season for the club which was established in 2011 by a small group of like-minded cyclists but is now recognised by and affiliated to British Cycling.
It’s a very fast growing club based in Leighton, but many of its members come from the surrounding villages. Team LBRCC-SOLGAR is the club’s dedicated race team with 16 race members for 2013, led by race team manager Andy Barrett.
See www.lbrcc.co.uk for more information.
