The second round of the evening 10 mile time trial series saw another bumper field of riders pit themselves against the technical and sporting Southill course. The wind was blowing strongly from the north-east which meant that the southern sections of the course near Ireland and along the "G&M Growers" road were hard going.
Despite the weather there were several sub-26 minute rides, given that this is still the beginning of the season it bodes well for the months ahead.
Frank Turner kept the time, Geoff Perry, James Spence, Clive Collins and Michael Levitt assisted in getting riders on their way and safely back.
The evening series is proving popular with newcomers to time trialling with Charlie Pugh getting closer to breaking 30 minutes.
Tonight's race saw four new riders take part on a "come and try it" basis - judging by their fledgling times, it looks like there are good time trialling careers in the offing.
Nick Hickman improved on his round one time by nearly a minute. Mike Webb made his debut for the season following a winter training period hampered by back injuries, despite this he posted a "short 27" which augers well for the Interclub event later in April. James Gomm also debuted as did Steve Smith and Jon Traynor.
Simon Doyle was fastest Nomad but was pushed hard by great rides by Jason Lane of CC Ashwell and second-claim Nomad, Ryan Witchell. Witchell was forced to use a spare rear wheel which stubbornly refused to change gear. Former Nomads Captain, Neil JJ Fraser recorded an impressive time in his first appearance of the year.
Results
S Doyle 25.21, M Webb 27.29, N Hickman 28.19, J Gomm 29.58, C Pugh 30.25, J Traynor 30.26, S Smith 33.25
Non-Nomads
J Lane (CCA) 24.29, NJJ Fraser (SCC) 25.05, R Witchell (WW) 25.18, G Ashfield (unatt) 26.01, J McVey (unatt) 26.15, P Gell (BRCC) 26.25, J Izzo (BRCC) 27.21, D Watson (unatt) 27.47, J Daly (unatt) 33.48
SCC - Stevenage CC, WW - Welwyn Wheelers, CCA - CC Ashwell, BRCC - Beds Road CC
