A break of 8 riders escaped around half distance in the hot conditions that belied the title of the road race including eventual winner David McLean (Sherwood CC) who had earlier been involved with a crash caused by a touch of wheels that brought 10 riders down. They were joined by Ron Hewes (Harlow CC) and Tony Bradford (North Road CC) and these 10 stayed clear to finish a minute ahead of the bunch.
The Easterley's own Paul Martin was involved in the crash and although unhurt, called it a day after losing time.
| Time | Pos. | No. | RIDER | CLUB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2:48:34 | 1 | 46 | David Mclean | Sherwood CC |
| " | 2 | 34 | Phil Holloway | Southend Wheelers |
| " | 3 | 12 | Nick Hastler | Essex Roads CC |
| " | 4 | 49 | Steve Murrell | Tri and Run |
| " | 5 | 19 | Michael Gardner | Glendene CC / Bike Trax |
| " | 6 | 43 | Mark Simmonds | Kingsworth Int. Whls / Nico Sport / Lapage |
| " | 7 | 27 | Tony Bradford | North Road CC |
| " | 8 | 23 | Ron Hewes | Harlow CC / Dalkia / Impsort |
| " | 9 | 18 | Mark Porter | Glendene CC / Bike Trax |
| " | 10 | 2 | Matthew Dicker | Cambridge CC |
| @ 10 sec | 11 | 9 | Ben Nicholson | Eastern Region Velo / Bianchi UK |
| @ 20 sec | 12 | 16 | Tony Woodcock | Glendene CC / Bike Trax |
| @ 23 sec | 13 | 54 | John Earl | Cambridge University CC |
| @ 1:00 | 14 | 69 | Tim Williams | Cambridge CC |
| " | 15 | 56 | Hugh Vivian | Finsbury Park CC |
| @ 1:15 | 16 | 58 | Lawrence Oldershaw | Independant / Well Fit & Well Ltd / High 5 |
| " | 17 | 66 | John Bartram | Interbike RT / Boyer / Schils / Chateaux Wines |
| " | 18 | 13 | Nigel Brooks | Essex Roads CC |
| " | 19 | 62 | Ron Crawley | Crest CC |
| " | 20 | 35 | Carl Prewer | VC Baracchi |
| " | 21 | 73 | Richard Tozer | Deeside Thistle |
| " | 22 | 39 | Hugo Hocknell | Climb On Bikes / Range Rover |
| " | 23 | 14 | Ian Randall | Essex Roads CC |
| " | 24 | 6 | Daniel Crawley | Crest CC |
| " | 25 | 40 | Marco Coppola | Gemini BC |
| " | 26 | 24 | Clive Richardson | Harlow CC / Harlow Velodrome / Impsort / Amec |
| " | 27 | 52 | Rob Hobbs | Anglia Sport / Condor Cyles / Campagnolo / Vittoria |
| @ 2:00 | 28 | 60 | Mike Crockford | Gravesend CC |
| @ 3:00 | 29 | 29 | Frank Rawlins | North Road CC |
| First 3rd Cat | Michael Gardner | Glendene CC / Bike Trax | ||
| First 4th Cat | Ron Crawley | Crest CC | ||
| First Prime | David Mclean | Sherwood CC | ||
| Second Prime | Mark Simmonds | Kingsworth Int. Whls / Nico Sport / Lapage | ||
Paul Martin rode the A/B/C/D Cat event was away with eventual winner Carl McDonagh for many laps but as a chase group started to catch them, he slipped off his wheel and was caught. The rain then came down and he ended up a very wet 5th place.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/ciclos_uno_lvrc.htmlPaul Martin was 5th in a Surrey League RR during the week. The 3/4 race was 90km although it started at the same time as the E/1/2 race of 130km in one big bunch. As the attacks went people were shelled out the back including the E/1/2's and in the end Paul and another 3/4 rider was dropped. They rode the last lap together and sprinted out the finish (which he won) for 5th place.
Paul Martin came 17th in the 3/4/J category supporting race at this meeting that also included the Womenns National Circuit Race Championship. He was in an early break of five riders that was pulled back.
The following day, Paul and Ian Morgan rode the London to Cambridge Charity ride, which with the ride over to the start in Waltham Abbey from Brentwood and the ride home from Cambridge, ended up as a 200km ride. Ian was not taking any prisoners as they were back by 2:30.
A break of 10 riders escaped in A/B/C/D race at Eastway and were nearly 2 minutes up on the bunch at the end of the race, but unfortunately Paul Martin wasn't one of them. He eventually finished in 15th position overall.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/ciclos_uno_12.htmlA tactical error by Andy Ballentyne meant that he sacrificed a higher placing than his eventual 14th place. Paul Manson (Crest CC) had broken away on the second lap and gained a 30 second lead. Mark Porter (Glendene CC) started chasing but it wasn't until Andy jumped away at the left turn in Clavering taking Neil Muir (Victoria CC) and Matthew Dicker (Cambridge CC) with him and then joined by Steve Wingham (Bishop's Stortford CC) that the first meaningful break of the race emerged. Their lead stretched to a maximum of 35 seconds before coming down to just a few yards just before Clavering with just over a lap to go. Andy and Neil sat up to rejoin the bunch but the others continued and were joined by 5 others. These fresh legs in the break meant renewed impetus and pulled the gap to nearly a minute by the end of the race with Gavin Wendon (Medway Velo) coming home the winner. Andy was 5th in the bunch sprint.
http://www.bcf.uk.com/results/2004/06_june/20_eagleRC.shtmlSmall breaks of two's and three's tried to get away in the early laps but it wasn't until a group of four got away on the third lap that a significant gap formed. The bunch were content to let them go and wait for a bunch sprint. This group of four disintegrated however allowing junior rider Ed Whitehorn (Glendene CC) to go away for a solo victory. In the bunch Paul Martin tried a couple of times to get in chasing groups but they came to nothing. With a few miles to go, Paul and Andy Ballentyne positioned themselves at the front however only Andy managed to stay there - Paul being in his own words 'too polite'! The bunch nearly caught the remnants of the break however Andy was 5th in the sprint to be placed 8th overall.
http://www.bcf.uk.com/results/2004/06_june/06_NorthRoad.shtmlA large field and relatively calm conditions ensured the pace was kept high enough to discourage any serious breaks except for Mat Talbot who clipped off the front with lap to go to come home the winner 5 seconds clear of the bunch. Andy Ballentyne led out the sprint but faded in the last 100 metres and eventually came 9th. Paul Martin found himself too far back to get anywhere and was eventually 32nd.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/ecca_crits_3.html
Gary Baker escaped with 6 others with 7 laps to go in the last race of the day and sprinted home in first place. Chris Burley missed the break however but finished to score another 20 point for the team competition.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/ecca_crits.html
A high powered break of 15 riders including Gary Baker, GB squad rider Kristian House, John Charlesworth and Jason White escaped the bunch at half distance. The break was whittled down further when these four riders plus Keir Williams escaped the rest. In a tight sprint, Gary Baker just edged out Kristian House, with Jason White 3rd, John Charlesworth 4th and Keir Williams 5th. Andy Ballentyne finished in the main bunch to complete his longest race for 4 years.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/ecca_rr.html
An average speed in close to 26mph in the warm sunny conditions ensured that no breaks managed to succeed and it all ended in a bunch sprint. Andy Ballentyne managed to avoid a crash just after Matching Tye and got himself in good position for the finish eventually coming 11th but was credited with joint 10th along with about 10 others.
Full Result:-
http://www.bcf.uk.com/results/2004/04_april/25_harlowcc.shtml
ESL 2nd Spring Rumble
Paul Martin and Andy Ballentyne both rode the 2/3/4 Category race and both came away empty handed. The race ended in a full bunch sprint and neither got themselves in a position to really contest the sprint. Andy will be hoping for better in next weeks Harlow road race however Paul and Ian will be riding the Omloop Het Volk.
http://www.londoncyclesport.com/reports2004/rumble_2.html
http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/results/2004/04_april/17_rumble.shtml
With 15 laps to go of the 25 lap Master C+ category (i.e. Veterans), a break of seven riders formed including Andy Ballentyne (Easterley), Ron Hewes (Glendene), Martin Meades (API), Kevin Chambers (API), former professionals Russell Williams (Geoffrey Butler) and Gary Baker (Anglia Sport) and his brother Ken Baker (Colchester Rovers) and Steve White (VC Londres). They worked to gain a almost a half lap lead but with the prime at 7 laps to go, Andy was dropped from this leading group. The break stayed away with Gary Baker jumping the others on the last lap to take the win from Russell Williams. Andy meanwhile was caught by the bunch with 2 laps remaining but recovered sufficiently to sprint home for 9th place.
In the afternoon's 32 lap 3/4/J/W, Andy again rode but this time with team mate Paul Martin. Andy was feeling the effects of the morning's race and although positioned himself near the front at the end of race, didn't have the legs in the generally hectic bunch sprint. Paul had the legs but but not the position and did't get placed either.
Full Results
A weekend of mixed fortunes for the Easterley riders. Dave Spencer and Chris Burley managed to avoid a crash in the ESL Spring Rumble at Eastway on Saturday but Dave wasn't so lucky in this event. After several breaks had tried to get away and were pulled back, the peloton readied themselves for a full bunch sprint in the narrow lane by the radar station at Woodham Ferrers. However in the jostling that ensued, Dave had a clash of wheels and went over the handlebars, hitting his head and breaking his collar bone. Andy Ballentyne however had positioned himself out of harms way near the front of the bunch and sprinted home in 8th place behind the winner Paul Smith (Interbike RT). Paul Martin meanwhile had punctured with a lap to go.
Dave will be out for at least 6 weeks if the break heals cleanly but will not be trying to emulate Tyler Hamilton!