Kieran Savage hopes that the HSBC UK | National Road Series will present him with further opportunities to “race on the front foot” as it develops.
Savage, of Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffield, was the only non-UCI team rider in a breakaway of ten which animated the East Cleveland Klondike – round one of the series – in April, before securing a top-ten finish at the Chestnut Homes Lincoln Grand Prix on May 12.
He worked alongside riders from the likes of Madison Genesis, Canyon DHB p/b Bloor Homes and Team Wiggins Le Col at the Klondike as the group established a big lead on the peloton, only to eventually be overhauled in the latter stages of the 169km race.
Of the race, Savage said:
“My aim was to get in the early break and to get on to the final lap with enough time to give myself options in the finale. I felt I had the form to get a result, be that from the break or the peloton. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t too passive, so every time a move went which had at least four of the UCI teams in it, I’d make sure I was there, and eventually one got away.
“Unfortunately, eventually the break broke down as some riders stopped pulling turns in order to wait for team-mates behind, and then others weren’t prepared to drag them to the finish. When Tom (Moses) and Matt (Holmes) of Madison pushed on really hard over one of the climbs it was a bit too much for me to follow, so I was disappointed with that.”
Despite that disappointment, Savage was pleased with the company he kept in the break, and with the way he judged his race.
He continued:
“I’ve watched some of the other riders in that group on TV, and the combined achievements of that break are very impressive. Our team doesn’t often do races over 100 miles, but we’ve been competitive in the national series events over recent years, so I didn’t get overwhelmed in the break – almost the opposite, in fact!
“It was hard to try to sit out a few of the turns on that first lap that we were away, but knowing I was probably the weakest there, I knew I needed to save some energy for crunch time!”
Savage followed that impressive performance up with a tenth-placed finish at Lincoln earlier this month, again putting his name among those of much more established riders with a formidable ride. Of his hopes for the rest of the series, which continues in Lancaster on June 9, Savage added:
“I love to race on the front foot, so I will be getting into more breaks, and hopefully the future ones will bring me more success. At the Klondike I felt strong but my endurance let me down – I’d maybe have been able to hang on for a result with better legs.
“One race I’m particularly looking forward to is the Tour of the Reservoir, as the finish really suits me if I’m in the right situation. However, a good result in any HSBC UK | National Road Series race would be massive for me.”
The men’s HSBC UK | National Road Series now moves on to round three – the Lancaster Grand Prix – on June 9.
