Team IG Sigma Sport's Matt Cronshaw won the sprint at the Jeff Schils Memorial Road Race, which saw a number of breaks come and go thanks to the electric pace of the bunch and strong winds on the Colchester parcours.
The National A race on rural roads to the south of Colchester was run out at a frantic pace - 154km in three hours and 40 minutes for the bunch. After the first 12km lap around Layer Breton, the sprints competition began with Marcin Biaboloki first over the line.
Only after two of the longer 20km laps did a break establish with IG Sigma Sport's Peter Hawkins taking the sprint from Tobyn Horton of Team UK Youth in a move that became a 12-man break, containing Tobyn Horton, Yanto Barker, George Harper, Andrew Griffiths, Peter Hawkins, Dean Shannon, Rhys Howells, William Bjergfelt, Samuel Williams, Mark Baines, Andrew Hastings, and Martin Ford. Herbalife-Leisure Lakes Bikes.com
The break's lead grew to 1 minute and 39 seconds but even with strong presence for the leading teams, the gap closed and more riders came across in a strengthening breeze that put chasers along the gutter over the reservoir, or whistling along in a tailwind.
The 12 man break was then augmented by Jamie Caldwell, Harold Evans, Ben Greenwood, Matt Cronshaw, Wouter Sybrandy, Hugh Wilson, Jason White, James Lowsley-Williams, Marcin Bialoblocki, Niklas Gustavsson, Ashley Cox and Steve Lampier.
This reinforcement of the bigger teams still did not sort out the final groupings as some riders fell back from the lead group and into the clutches of an insistent peloton being pulled along by Alex Peters of Madison Genesis and other strong riders.
The reshuffle of the breakaway left nine riders out front; Harold Evans, Andrew Hastings, Jamie Caldwell, Samuel Williams, Andrew Griffiths, Matt Cronshaw, Tobyn Horton, Yanto Barker and Rhys Howells.
With the bunch still down but not out, the leaders increased their speed and through the bell there were riders falling back and others coming forwards in threes and fours.
Fast and furiously strung-out to the finish, it was IG Sigma Sport's Matt Cronshaw who won the two-up sprint from Team UK Youth's Yanto Barker. Samuel Williams (NFTO) took third and Tobyn Horton (UKYouth) fourth at the end of his successful race in which he had cleaned-up the sprints competition with four wins and two seconds. Andrew Hastings (Finchley RT) took fifth , Harold Evans (Aprire) sixth and Jamie Caldwell (MG Maxifuel) seventh.
Patrick, Nicki and Natalie Schils of organiser Interbike Schils Velo would like to thank everyone who made the Jef Schils Memorial such a success. See you on the same weekend next year for this successful event's fourth running.
Results
1st Matt Cronshaw, Team IG Sigma Sport
2nd Yanto Barker, Team UK Young (UCI Team)
3rd Samuel Williams, NFTO
4th Tobyn Horton, Team UK Youth (UCI Team)
5th Andrew Hastings, Finchley Racing Team
6th Harold Evans, Aprire Bicycles
7th Jamie Caldwell, MG Maxifuel
8th Rhys Howells, Twenty3c.co.uk-focus
9th Peter Williams, Team IG Sigma Sport
10th Marcin Bialoblocki, Team UK Youth (UCI Team)
11th Martin Ford, Herbalife-Leisure Lakes
12th George Harper, Team IG Sigma Sport
13th William Bjergfelt, MG Maxifuel
14th Steve Lampier, Node 4 Giordana
15th Lloyd Chapman, Glendene CC
16th Simon Wilson, Team Corley Cycles
17th Owen Lake, Twenty3c.co.uk - Focus
18th Mark Baines, Spirit Bikes
19th Christopher Dredge, Spirit Bikes
20th Luke Ryan, Twenty3c.co.uk - Focus
21st Alex Peters, Madison Genesis
22nd Andrew Griffiths, Team IG Sigma Sport
23rd Hugh Wilson, NFTO
24th Ashley Cox CC Luton
25th Peter Hawkins, Team IG Sigma Sport
26th Dominic Schils, To Win Josan
27th Chris Opie, Team UK Youth (UCI Team)
28th James Lowsley Williams, Team UK Youth (UCI Team)
29th Niklas Gustavsson, Team UK Youth (UCI Team)
30th Alex Carnier, Pedal Heaven
31st Joshua Green, Glendene CC
32nd Jacob Tipper, Biketreks Racing Academy
33rd Jonathan Shuster, Team Corley Cycles
34th Russell Hampton, Team Raleigh
35th Jake Hales, Team IG Sigma Sport
36th Michael Smith, Team Corley Cycles
37th Harry Godding, PMR
38th Wouter Sybrandy, Team IG Sigma Sport
39th Stephen Swindley, PMR
40th Wojciech Szachta, Twenty3c.co.uk-Focus
41st Mike Debney, London Dynamo
42nd Andy Lyons, Twenty3c.co.uk-Focus
43rd Hugo Humphries, Leeds University
44th Daniel Young, Glendene CC
45th Jason White, Private
46th Billy Joe Whenman, Zannata
47th Anthony Moye, Velo29
48th Ben Greenwood, Team IG Sigma Sport
49th Coen Rijpma, Hanse Renners Zwolle
50th James Jobber, Neon Velo
51st Oliver Rossi, Twenty3c.co.uk-Focus
52nd Matthew Butt, Team ASL360
53rd Simon Alexander, Twenty3c.co.uk-Focus
54th Mike Wragg, Arbis Colbert/Cycles RT
55th James Moss, Team IG Sigma Sport
56th Dean Shannon, Twenty3c.co.uk-Focus
