Week two of this year’s Carlisle Cycling Association evening series took place on a warm Thursday evening.
The first race of the night was open to Category 4 men and women of any category.
Category 4 is British Cycling’s entry level classification for racers making this race ideal for less experienced riders.
A good sized field took to the start line ranging from those competing in their first ever event to more experienced riders close to gaining their category 3 licence.
It proved to be night for the visitors, with a particularly good showing for North East cyclists.
First woman was Joanne Reay, of Team Boompods, and the top two places on the men’s podium also went to North East riders.
Alistair Boyd, of Muckle Cycle Club, was very pleased to achieve the first victory of his career and Gabriel Sonczek, of South Shields Velo, rode strongly to second place.
Third place went to West Lothian’s Stephen Miles who managed to keep top placed Cumbrian rider Johnny Bouch, of Wolf Cycles, off the podium.
There was also a good mix of locals and visitors in the night’s other race for more experienced riders.
Two Cumbrian riders, Jude Davison riding for Cog Set Papyrus Race Team and Velo Club Cumbria’s Jonathan Wilson were joined by Muckle CC’s Jake Dobson to form a three man breakaway.
A strong chasing group were unable to catch the trio who worked well together to build up a commanding lead over the course of the race.
In the end it was Jude who got the better of his companions to win the race and 10 British Cycling ranking points.
Jake edged out Jonathan for second. The fastest lap of the evening was ridden by Jonathan, who covered the 1km loop in 1 minute 14.86 seconds.
Racing returns to Carlisle next Thursday when there will be races for children of all age groups from Under-8 to Under -6 followed by a contest for Category 3 and 4 adults.
Riders who don’t hold a British Cycling race licence are required to pay an additional fee for a one-day licence but to encourage more children to try racing, the association will cover the day fees next week for any youngsters who don’t hold a licence.
For more information, email [email protected]
