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Location: Ludgershall, Wiltshire
Event: 21 January 2012
Report: Snowdon Sports
After finishing third in the opening round, John Russell (Strada Cycles) stepped up to the top of the podium with victory in the E123 race at the Ludgerhall Winter Series in Wiltshire on Saturday.
Russell, a 41-year-old second category rider from Bristol, crossed the line around five seconds ahead of his breakaway rivals at the end of the near hour-long race, which was run off in windy but much warmer conditions than the previous week’s opening round.
A large field of 90 riders lined up for the increasingly popular series, with the majority riding the supporting 3/4 cat race.
The elite race saw a number of attempted breakaways come to nothing, but five riders finally broke clear at around one-third distance, and they were to stay away until the end of the race, which is run off over 45 minutes plus five laps.
They worked well together and were quickly out of sight of the bunch, which they eventually lapped.
Having punctured earlier and taken a lap out, disaster struck for Neil Rutter (Swindon Road Club) who suffered a second deflation but could not take a second lap out and dropped back from the leaders, leaving four up front while he was in no man’s land, but managed to hold off the bunch.
With two miles to go Russell attacked, obviously not content to wait for a sprint finish. He quickly got a gap on his rivals, and crossed the line five seconds clear of second-placed Ben Anstie (Adeo Cadence).
Elite category rider Jason Streather (VC St Raphael) took third, just holding off James Gray (Gillingham & Dist Wh), while Rutter came home fifth, around a minute ahead of the bunch who were led him by Anstie’s team-mate Simon Snowdon (Adeo Cadence).
In the supporting 3/4 category race, Nick Noble (unattached) took victory in a bunch sprint, while Shaun Green (Army CU) was second and one of four Army riders in the top seven.
Results:
E/1/2/3:
1st John Russell Strada Cycles 57:42
2nd Ben Anstie Cadence Cannondale @ 5sec
3rd Jason Streather VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles @ 8sec
4th James Gray VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
5th Neil Rutter Swindon RC
6th Simon Snowdon Cadence Cannondale
7th James Wilson supernovacycles.co.uk
8th Thomas Marshall Cadence Cannondale
9th Mark Ottaway Wyndamilla / Maxifuel
10th James Cartridge Cadence Cannondale
11th Matthew Conner supernovacycles.co.uk
12th Rowan Horner VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
13th Simon Brooks VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
14th Scott Leakey Cadence Cannondale
15th Jamie Streather VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
16th David Barnaville Felt Colbournes RT
17th John Hyde VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
18th Patrick Martin Wyndamilla / Maxifuel
19th Paul Derrick Strada Cycles
20th Stuart Thompson Andover Wheelers
21st David Young Fareham Wheelers Cycling Club
22nd David Hooper MJS Racing Team
23rd Ian Legg BC PM - South
3/4:
1st Nick Noble Bristol Road Club
2nd Shaun Green Army Cycling Union
3rd Carsten Duke Army Cycling Union
4th Jordan Wade Poole Wheelers
5th Deacon Cutterham Army Cycling Union
6th Michael Greaves Gannett CC
7th Chris Mattocks Army Cycling Union
8th Jason Painton Rides On Air
9th Hugh Knusden Yeovil CC
10th Michael Holborow Swindon RC
11th Aaron Tayler Swindon RC
12th Kieran Blair VC Bristol
13th Will Hunt Army Cycling Union
14th Mark Field Addiscombe CC
15th Alain Ritchie Kyklos/Edco Race Team
16th Jan Labrooy Behind The Bikeshed
17th Adam Morris Army Cycling Union
18th Nigel Pratt Andover Wheelers
19th Mike Smith Gillingham and District Wheelers
20th David Billings supernovacycles.co.uk
21st David Hooper MJS Racing Team
22nd Paul Jones Army Cycling Union
23rd Oscar Hutchings Exeter Uhniversity CC
24th Anthony Turner Oxonian CC
25th Paul Coles Chippenham Wheelers
26th Alan Starsmeare east grinstead cc
27th Chris Hutchings BC PM - South
28th Glenn Duffy VC Meudon
29th Paul Carson Cult Racing
30th Michael Widera Vivelo-bikes/Inverse cycaim RT
31st David Mixell Andover Wheelers
32nd Steve Cottington Cadence RT
33rd Tony Solon Cadence RT
34th Ben Gritton Offcamber
35th James Wilding supernovacycles.co.uk
36th Jamie Shearer Andover Wheelers
37th Pete Phillips Bath CC
38th Lee King Beeline Cycles
39th Matthew Hargreaves Bath CC
40th Sam Harper BC PM - South
41st Tim Jay Somer Valley CC
42nd Felix Young Bath University
43rd Simon Parton Kingston Wheelers
Women:
1st 41 Adel Tyson-Bloor VC St Raphael / Waite Contracts / Hewitts Cycles
2nd 42 Hannah Drewett
British Cycling would like to thank the organising team, officials and everyone else who helped promote this event. Our sport could not exist without the hundreds of people, many of them unpaid volunteers, who put in many hours of hard work running events, activities and clubs.
