WCRA Handicaps - 9-Mar-02 - Milton Keynes Bowl  

Mathilde Pauls - VC de Londres, rode very strongly to win the first of the seasons WCRA handicaps held at the Milton Keynes Bowl in near gale force conditions with her fellow long marker Lainey Stockings - Reading CC, in second place at the end of the 42 kilometre race.

 A good field lined up which could have been greater except for an unfortunate decision to hold the Surrey League ‘trials’ on the same day at Eastway, with the scratch group giving 3 laps to the long markers it was up to come back international rider Michele Ward - GS Strada and Marlanda Wisdom - unattached, to try to close the gap as they soon dropped the rest of their group and although they caught rider after rider they had too much to do in the very strong winds that saw first Ruth Freestone-King - Team Cycleweb, blown to a stop and then Trudi Else - Gemini BC, blown onto the grass, both fortunately without further incident. 

The wind seemed to have little effect upon Pauls as she rode almost the whole race on her own with a smooth pedalling style although 14 year old Jenny Middlehurst - Team Letchworth, who was to claim 3rd place, must have been blown all around as she weighs about the same as two bags of sugar !

The only puncture of the day went to Carolyn Jennings - Glendale C&AC and primes were won by Stockings, Ward and Sarah Henderson - Velo Sport Jersey. 

RESULT

1.   Mathilde  Pauls                   VC de Londres                        1 hr 14 mins 18 secs

2.   Lainey      Stockings           Reading CC                            at 2 mins 10 secs

3.   Jenny       Middlehurst         Team Letchworth                    same time

4.   Rachel     Perkins                Private                                     same time

5.   Carolyn    Jennings             Glendale C&AC                      same time

6.   Anna        Widdowson         Bicester Millennium CC        at 3 mins 16 secs

7.   Nikki        Harris                   Pearce Cycles                        same time

8.   Ruth         Freestone-King   Team Cycleweb                     same time

9.   Michele   Ward                     GS Strada                              same time

10. Viljoen     Chrissie                Hemel Hempstead CC         same time

11. Carolyn    Goward                Evans Cycles RT                   same time

12. Jeanette  Tebbutt                 Bicester CC                           at 5 mins 3 secs

13. Malanda  Wisdom               Private                                     same time

14. Sarah       Henderson          Velo Sport Jersey                  same time

15. Debbie     Knott                   Icknield RC                              same time

16. Trudi         Else                     Gemini BC                              same time

17. Theresa    Jordan                CC Luton                                 same time

18. Rebecca   Jones                 GS Strada                               same time

19. Lynette      Purkis                 Coventry CC                           same time

20. Moira         Goodway           Banbury Star                           same time

21. Kathryn      McClelland        VC de Londres