Good day at the vet's nationals for Craig

A good day at the LVRC nationals for flying Craig P, ably supported by Gianluca and Gabriel. Having missed the break all three were forced to chase with two to go. The chase proved successful but there was some confusion over if there was someone still up the road as Craig rode kamikazee down the hill before turning into the longish finishing hill to win the gallop, with Gianluca - still recovering from time off after a broken ankle - in 9th and Gabriel in 11th. Unfortunately there was still one away, giving Craig the runner up spot.

Photos:
http://swarbrick.com/

Here's the organiser's report:

The LVRC 2011 National Road Race Championships for ABC categories
On a glorious hot summers day 125 riders turned out to compete in the Reading CC hosted Championships on an acknowledged deceptively tough 7.8 mile circuit near Henley on Thames – made doubly so as the heat increased through the day, peaking at 28C. All of the races were exceptionally animated and very competitive and made for a fantastic day of racing.
In the A category, 35 riders set off for 8 laps of the circuit (62miles) averaging just under 20 minutes a lap. Mike Simpson from the local club GS Henley, had storming last two laps eventually coming home the winner in 2hrs 35mins and 1min 25secs clear of the next finisher – Craig Peter - Cycle Kingdom who just edged ahead of Paul Bell - Peak RC, Mike Jones – Paramount CRC – all three covered by less than 0.5 sec.
In the B category, 45 riders set off for 7 laps of the circuit (55 miles) and on lap 2 proceeded to set the fastest lap of the day at 18mins 50sec. Another clear winner in Malcolm Smith – St Ives CC in 2hrs 15mins, and 8 secs clear of Nigel Stephens – Finchley RT, with Simon Alexander a further second back.
After a lunch break, a further 45 riders in the C category race set off on their 7 laps (55 miles) – which despite the heat turned into a real cracker of a race. On lap 4 under the constant attacks and heat, attrition truly set in with 14 riders abandoning – and a further 5 doing so by the end. With a little over 2 laps to go a strong group of 4 riders had forged a good break and worked well together – Jim Moffatt, Martin O’Grady, David Stevens and Steven Marrow. The peloton started to implode as a hard working chasing group formed – Bendan Heaslip, Mick Davies, Patrick Schils, Nick Giles and Les Liddiard. On the final lap Moffat and O’Grady attacked and went clear and in the last 2 miles, Jim Moffat went again to come home the winner in 2hrs 19mins, with Martin O’Grady just 11secs behind, followed by David Stevens at 1min 14secs and Steven Marrows at 1min 33secs. Riders came in 1’s and 2’s up to 5mins 30secs later.
In the supporting race for DEF categories only 17 riders came out to play, over 5 laps (40 miles). Don Parry, Barrie Jones and Ray Robinson attacked at th end of lap one – were never seen again, and finished in that order.
With numerous complimentary reports from the competitors, Reading CC can be proud of putting on an event worthy of a National Championship.