The wind was well and truly blowing for the second round of the NFCC Road Bikes Only TT Series on the P170/10 course – one that suits a road bike perfectly. The 10m/16km out-and-back course ends with a gruelling 0.8m/1km climb to the finish line. The first 4.5m/7km were comfortable with a tail, or cross-tail wind, but the return leg saw riders scrub up to 10mph/16kph from their average speed across the flat, open and exposed airfield section due to the gusty headwinds.

In what seems to be a tradition for Club time trials this year, a new record turnout of 28 riders crossed the finish line, and after catching their breath, they all seemed to have a smile on their face and be pleased with their results.

Regular visitor Dave Dent (G.S. Stella) bettered the NFCC riders to take the win on the evening by just 9 seconds, finishing in 23:44. Phill Brown (NFCC) finished second at 23:53 and Paul Lockyer (NFCC) rounded out the podium at 24:21. Ted Ward (NFCC) was only 14 seconds behind at 24:35 and Henry Lloyd-Williams (NFCC) a further 11 seconds adrift at 24:46.

Out of the five women racing it was an NFCC 1-2-3-4 with Sien van der Plank taking the line honours at 27:20, with Natalie Green finishing second at 28:27. Completing the top 5, Bev Hards finished in 28:46, Emma Shepherd in 29:35 and regular visitor Michelle Lock (G.S. Stella) in 29:57.

The fight for the Road Bike Series has taken an early turn with riders who have good times on the board yet to do their marshal duty, giving Phill Brown, Robert Sweatman and Ben George bragging rights at the top of the table. With four more rounds and only six more marshalling slots available, it’s going to be interesting to see how the series plays out. Check the Marshal Roster here for events listed with RB and sign up before it’s too late.

See the current standings for the Road Bike TT Series by clicking here.

One noticeable omission of the rules for the first two rounds has been the use of aerodynamic clothing (e.g. skinsuits, overshoes etc.) which is not in the spirit of the Road Bike TTs – the events are designed to level the playing field and make Club time trialling more accessible to non-time trial riders who may not have specialist equipment. To help keep the series fair, any Club Members who may gain an advantage through their kit choice may face a time penalty at future events.

A huge thanks to the nine volunteers who gave up their time to make the event happen this evening – we couldn’t do it without you.

Full results from the night can be found in the table below and a gallery of images can be found by clicking here.