The penultimate round of the British Cycling National Youth Circuit Series saw the action moving to the hills above Lancaster for day two of the North West Youth and Junior Tour.

Youth A boys

First up a huge field of U16 Boys was decimated by the early pace that saw fewer than 40 riders in contention in the main bunch after just four of the scheduled ten laps.

Mid-race saw the inevitable flurry of solo attacks start on the hill. First to have a go was Jake Crossley (LVYCC) but it was Owen Lightfoot (Bourne Wheelers) who made the first significant move that opened a gap which extended to 25 seconds at the start of lap six.

Lightfoot stuck it out for an impressive few laps solo until the chasing group including all the major players and a very active Finlay Pickering (Vive La Velo) in the national champion’s stripes, coordinated a chase to bring him back with a lap and a half to go.

The inevitable bunch sprint saw Max Poole ease clear out of the final bend to take the win ahead of Aidan Lawrence (Green Jersey RT) with Pickering in third.

Poole consolidates his general classification lead, moving eight seconds ahead of Pickering with Lawrence a further second behind going into the final day.

Youth A girls

The first significant action of the U16 girls race saw series high flyer and one of the favourites for the overall win at the end of the weekend, Kinga Ingram (Halesowen A & CC) unluckily snap a chain at the bottom of the hill as early as lap two,

Despite a brave and long run up the hill in her cleats to get a spare bike, and a solo chase, it effectively ended her race.

An elite group soon formed at the front of the race with several of the other GC contenders talking hard turns on the front up the hill and marking each other. Morven Yeoman (East Kibride RC) and Millie Couzens (PH-Mas/Paul Milnes Cycles) were the most likely looking pair, always active near the front of the bunch with stage one winner Maddie Leach (RFDA) impressively hanging in on the climb in defence of her GC lead.

The penultimate time up the climb Yeoman put in a hard effort which dragged Couzens and Flora Perkins (VCL) away from the bunch, forcing a gap of around eight seconds over the chasing group at the bell. At the line Couzens powered away for a clear win with Yeoman taking second, and Perkins in third.

Couzens takes a handy 25 second lead into the final day ahead of Yeoman with Perkins a further four seconds back.

Youth B girls

The U14 girls race stayed largely together for the two opening laps then the usual war of attrition set in as the main GC contenders put the hammer down the third time up the hill and the front group disintegrated.

National champion Awen Roberts (Towy Riders) ride strongly off the front of the bunch to increase her lead on every subsequent lap to take a massively impressive solo win by almost two minutes. The chasing bunch splintered into two with GC leader Izzy Sharp (Estrella Bikes) in the first of them along with Ella Jamieson (Clifton CC) and Cat Ferguson (Cycle Sport Pendle).

Sharp took the sprint for second ahead of Ferguson but the dominance of Roberts’ winning ride sees the Welsh rider take a massive 1’33” lead into the final day.

Youth B boys

Roberts’ stellar performance in the B girls race clearly put her in front for the performance of the day, but she was quickly matched by Oli Akers’ (Albion Cycling) outstanding win in the boys equivalent.

With not a great deal of incident in the opening three laps save the usual thinning out of the field on the hill, Akers attacked strongly and forced a gap which saw him complete a lap solo, dangling off the front of the bunch.

Eventually he was joined by previous round winner Alex Franks (Slipstreamers) and Tomos Pattinson (Halesowen A&CC), the three forming a breakaway which still only maintained a handful of seconds at the bell ahead of a ferocious, chasing pack trying to pull them back in.

Having lit the fuse, Akers somehow found even more energy to finish the job off, riding away from the break to win by five seconds from Ferguson in a stunning final lap.

Aside from the stage win, Akers’ reward for endeavour is a 13 second lead over Pattinson going into day 3’s final stage, a tight criterium circuit around the Lancaster University Campus where it will be hard to bring that kind of gap back.

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