Today saw the start of the 2019 Cyclocross season. Amis Velo, consisting of just 12 members, put on wonderful event at Hilly fields near St Helena School in Colchester. The number of youth riders that entered was something to behold for all, especially for the sport of cycling.
Suffolk Youth Race Team had a good number of riders in a fair few categories. The team today is shown below…
U8 Boys: Callum and Frank took to the start-line looking full of confidence. Pre-race chat from the dads, with tactics taken on board by the boys. The Commissaires whistle blew to start the race and off they went. Frank got a great start, but Callum got bogged down with gear selection issues. Both boys flew around, with Frank showing great power. Eventually, after a chat with the time keepers the results were corrected to show Frank finishing 6th and Callum finishing 7th. Photos of the boys below:
Next up was the Under 10 girls race. We had Eva in the race who has come top 3 in the league every year she has competed. Although Eva has a special fashion sense when it comes to racing, she is mighty when she wants to be. Yesterday she came up with some things she wanted to change for the race on her bike that made sense, so she came to the race with a bit of an untested config. Today she got a good start and gracefully powered around the course holding off some very strong competitors. Eva had a look of someone who wanted to win, and over took with determination to move into the lead. Eva hung on to the the lead right to the end, putting in very impressive lap times, not far off some of the older riders.
Photos of Eva below:
Next up were the Under 10 boys. Aaron represented the team and got a great start. He pushed hard for the whole race. A bit of a mix-up on the last lap caused a minor issue, but Aaron dealt with it like a pro and finished 7th. Aaron has had a few months off and wants to work hard to get up into the top 3. We are sure it wont take long before he’s there. Photos below:
Next up were the Under 12 Girls. Tally and Abbey lined up towards the back of the grid, which hampered both of their starts. Abbey had to go for an outside grid place by choice to give some level of option to get to the front. This failed unfortunately, although it did help her to clear some riders. Tally got a good start, but its not easy from the row the girls were on. Tally was on her new bike and powered around the course showing great poise and skill. It was evident Tally was still getting used to her new bike as she took a few corners tentatively and sensibly. As the season progresses Tally will grow from strength to strength. Abbey got caught behind slower riders through the wooded section on lap 1 losing over 25 seconds. Her lap times came alight later on in the race where she showed what was asked of her this year, to be more robust. Abbey passed a few riders, taking herself into 2nd place, with the leader too far up the road to catch. Abbey had a moment in the woods on the last lap, allowing the 3rd placed rider to squeeze passed her. Abbeys hit a tree with her shoulder, with no major injury, just a sore shoulder. It was a great showing by both girls… They should both have a good season… Pics of both girls below:
The last race of the day for SYRT was U14 Boys. Oscar also had a bad grid placing, but got a good start driving hard around the course. Oscar rode well staying with recognised decent riders to finish 17th in under out of 33. Pretty good considering he was gridded so far back. Oscar said he is pleased with his ride on such a tough long course. Photos of Oscar below: