Brentwood Town Centre Cycle Races
June 8, 2008; Brentwood Town Centre
Larry Hickmott report and photos
Hannah Mayho, Alex Greenfield and Katie Colcough
Ladies National Series Circuit Race
Winner of this was a feisty Pinarello rider Alex Greenfield who won alone after she managed to make her final break stick and only a lone Katie Colclough was threatening her pursuit of victory as the Halfords Bikehut rider started to chase her down alone over the closing laps.
Like most of the races, the event started steady as the riders got acquainted with course but it was easy to see the race was by no means easy as the gaps between the riders in the peloton started to open up as the sprinting in and out of the bends started to take its toll.
Alex Greenfield was part of the reason as she made her first bid for freedom and the chase behind saw the bunch split and keep on splitting until she was brought back. Then more attacks and Helen Clayton, Jess Booth, Hannah Mayho and Katie Colcough were prominent off the front but after Jess Booth and Katie Colclough had a spell off the front together, Alex Greenfield went again and this time it was too stick and soon Katie Colclough saw that her only chance was to chase solo which she did.
The Halfords rider managed to get close to Alex but the young Welsh woman who has entertained the crowd at Revolution meetings with her sprinting, was not going to be denied a solo win and kept the pace going and Colclough was stuck in the middle of Greenfield and the bunch and that was where she stayed to finish second. In the sprint for third, a medallist in the European Championships for the Pursuit, Hannah Mayho showed she can sprint a bit by beating known fast women Danni King and Laura Trott to name but two in the rush for the line.
Alex Greenfield (above) explained afterwards that “when I first started I was feeling good so I thought I’d have a go at attacking and when I was brought back the first time, all I was thinking about then was to hang in to the end and the sprint. But I got a bit of a gap at the bottom corner and just went and they let me get away.”
On being a sprinter but winning alone, Alex told us “Winning alone is a bit of how I have developed as a rider and the coaching I have had. I used to sit in and wait for bunch gallops but I wanted to get more of a respectable win”.
“Crits like this are always hard having to sprint out of the corners and going with the attacks and everyone wanted to race hard today. Katie Colclough was attacking a lot, and everyone in that front group was having a go.” Asked if she was worried about the big sprint hopes like Danni King and Laura Trott, Alex replied “yeah, I think in the back of a few people’s minds they knew they would haven’t a chance against the likes of Laura so I think we all wanted to try and get rid of her in the front which made the race hard.”
Alex is now looking ahead to doing the Capenwray race the following weekend and then returning to Wales for the Abergavenny festival.
Race 3 Brentwood Town Centre Partnership
Women's National Road Race Series 1.00pm - 45 minutes + 5 laps
1. Alexandra Greenfield, Pinarello R.T. 55m 32s
2. Katie Colclough, Team Halfords Bikehut @8s
3. Hannah Mayho, Longstaff Cycles - BH @23s
4. Dani King, i-Team.cc
5. Lucy Martin, Dolan RT
6. Jessica Booth, Halesowen A. & C. C.
7. Charlotte Colclough, Private Member @1m 24s
8. Helen Clayton, C.C. Giro / Panache Managemet @1m 51s
9. Laura Trott, V.C. Londres
10. Sarah Reynolds, Team Swift Racing
11. Corrine Hall, Twickenham C.C.
12. Janet Birkmyre, XRT www.elmycycles.co.uk
13. Wella Sadler-Andrew, Leisure Lakes
14. Kate Calvert, i-Team.cc
15. Jeanette Caldicott, Team Luciano - Kuata
16. Hannah Rich, Pinarello R.T.
17. Harriet Owen, Bicester Millennium
Primes
At 15 minutes
5 pts Helen Clayton, C.C. Giro / Panache Managemet
3 pts Alexandra Greenfield, Pinarello R.T.
2 pts Lucy Martin, Dolan RT
1 pt Katie Colclough, Team Halfords Bikehut
At 30 minutes
5 pts Jessica Booth, Halesowen A. & C. C.
3 pts Helen Clayton, C.C. Giro / Panache Managemet
2 pts Hannah Mayho, Longstaff Cycles - BH
1 pt Alexandra Greenfield, Pinarello R.T.
FIRST PHOTOS (MORE COMING SOON)
The riders get down to business in their race at Brentwood.
Alex Greenfield lines them out in the hot sun.
First attack from Alex and the rest are no where to be seen...
Alex is caught by Hannah Mayho and Helen Clayton
Helen Clayton puts her head down out of the hairpin and is followed by Jessica Booth
The power of Clayton opens up some gaps behind
Jessica Booth goes it alone
... and Katie Colclough comes up to her to make two at the front.
Katie Colclough goes off in pursuit of leader Alex Greenfield.
Lucy Martin too tries to go it alone
Colclough can be seen in the distance closing the gap but Greenfield kept the pace high and stayed well clear.
Hannah Mayho wins the sprint for third.
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