WCRA Handicaps - Milton Keynes Bowl  

Saturday 23 March 2002

As the riders were warming up for the final race in the WCRA series, news came through that one of the Judges, noted time trial star of the past Ann Ilingworth and long time Treasurer of the WCRA had crashed on the motorway on her way to the event after a lorry driver pulled out to overtake another vehicle;  although her car somersaulted several times landing in the adjacent field becoming a complete write off, she and her passenger were miraculously uninjured and were able to continue to the Bowl with WCRA President Molly Swann, in her car.

 The race brought both ends of the cycling time scale together; making her first appearance of the season after her Silver and Bronze medals in the World Masters Championships held in October was Sally Boyden - Classic Walls CRT leading the scratch group pitted against a team from Maindy Flyers, who fielded two 12 year olds, and two 13 year olds - making the long trip south with Alan Davies. They were in the long markers group but despite the excellent riding of the Boyden group the girls from Wales stayed away to fill the first 5 places.

The race was held in warm sunny weather and this brought the best from the riders who, with the overall classification still up for grabs, had plenty to think about.

The scratch group surprisingly lost Caroline Goward - Evans Cycles RT early on and began attempting to take back the 4 laps they owed to the long marker group with Boyden, cheered on by almost year old son Zak,  testing her renowned sprinting legs to win the prime.

With 7 laps remaining of the race the scratch group caught the ‘green’ group with 13 year old Jenny Middlehurst - Team Letchworth and Helen Gutteridge - Beeston RC hanging onto them as they passed which proved to be a good move.

Although the Boyden group were riding strongly they really had to much of  a handicap and it allowed the Maindy Flyers to claim the leading positions.

Mathilde Pauls - VC de Londres did just enough to clinch the overall classification by 4 points from Rainey Stockings - Reading CC.

Result

1.   Lucy           Richards           Maindy Flyers                     1 hour 8 mins 10 secs

2.   Katie          Curtis                Maindy Flyers                     same time

3.   Sian           Brown               Maindy Flyers                     at 30 secs

4.   Liz              Webb               Cardiff Ajax                         same time

5.  Rachel        Davies             Maindy Flyers                     at 2 mins

6.  Helen          Gutteridge       Beeston RC                        same time

7.  Imogen       Thornburgh      Team Milton Keynes          at 4 minutes

8.  Louise        Potter               Stourbridge CC                  same time

9.  Moira          Goodway         Banbury Star                       same time

10. Ann            Widdowson     Bicester Millennium            same time

11. Sally          Boyden             Classic Walls CRT             at 5 mins .20 secs

12. Nikki         Harris                Pearce Cycles                    same time

13. Mathilde    Pauls                VC de Londres                   same time

14. Clara         Beard               Team Quest                         same time

15. Jeanette    Tebbutt            Bicester Millennium             same time

16. Debbie      Knott                Icknield RC                           same time

17. Lainey        Stockings       Reading CC                          at 6 minutes

18. Lynette       Purkis             Coventry CC                         same time

19. Caroline     Goward          Evans Cycles RT                  same time

20. Linda          Greenfield      Cardiff Ajax                           same time

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION

1.    Mathilde   Pauls                  VC de Londres                       59 points

2.    Nikki         Harris                 Pearce Cycles                        55 points

3.    Rainey      Stockings          Reading CC                            53 points

4.    Anna         Widdowson       Bicester Millennium                50 points

5.    Moira        Goodway           Banbury Star                           47 points

6.    Jeanette   Tebbutt              Bicester Millennium                45 points

7.    Rachel      Perkins             Private                                      44 points

8.    Jenny        Middlehurst       Team Letchworth                    42 points

9=   Caroline   Jennings            Glendale C&AC                     41 points

9=   Lynette     Purkis                 Coventry CC                           41 points