The third round of the RTTC National Series took place in Great Whitley near Worcester, with another large turnout of 121 riders taking to the start. This was another tough course taking place over 39.5 miles of rolling hills. With two large climbs in the last half of the course, the second climb was the toughest with an average gradient of around 11% for half a mile, starting just 6 miles from the finish.
Fortune favoured the riders with the weather, with dry roads and warm temperatures but a light north westerly breeze had a slight chill to it and enough just to deaden the speed on the returning roads.
Thanet had two riders at this third event, Chris and Nic Fennell.
Chris Fennell claimed 6th place (only 49 seconds off the podium) and 1st place Espoir with a time of 1:36.05 an improvement of 2.14 from last year’s event.
Chris has not been racing for a few weeks due to heart issues. Having seen a cardiologist he was informed that his condition is unlikely to cause physical harm, because of this he can race but has to accept that his condition can cause a lot of discomfort and ruin his race if he has an episode. He is now waiting for further tests to fully diagnose the problem and hopefully sort it out as soon as possible.
Nic Fennell rode a 1:53.36 to a 25th position. Another performance which he was pleased with and happy with the position alongside the strong field of riders drawn to these events.
The overall winner of the event was Philip Graves (Clifton C.C. York) with a time of 1:32.35.
2nd – Richard Bussell – 1:35.13
3rd – Matt Clinton – 1:35.16
Other local riders: A good ride from Emma Lewis (Adalta CC) with a time of 1:54.34 which took 6th place in the Women’s category.
Report by Nic Fennell and Colin Robinson posted
