Drake Wins Wasp Road Race
Location: Ogmore Vale, South Wales, 66 miles
Event: 21 August 2011
Report: Snowdon Sports
TEAM Elite rider Giles Drake proved strongest as the remains of a break powered up the tough Bwlch mountain pass at the end of the Wasp Road Race at Ogmore Vale in South Wales on Sunday.
The 66-mile race - sponsored by headquarters venue Ogmore Vale Life Centre as well as McTaggarts Solicitors - took in three passes of an out and back climb after leaving the, before heading towards a gruelling six-kilometre finish climb of the Bwlch pass.
Early rain was dried up by a stiff breeze by the time the race begun, and it didn't take long for the first attack of the day to get away.
Ten riders escaped, including winner Drake and eventual runner-up Mike Simpson (GS Henley) as well as Rob Jones from the promoting club Ogmore Valley Wheelers.
They stayed clear for much of the day, with their lead topping out at around 2:36. The bunch chased and narrowed the gap to around a minute and a half, but they had left it too late to chase them down.
As the leading group reached the bottom of the Bwlch climb which signalled six kilometres to go, Simpson attacked, and while Drake went with him he struggled to match his early pace as zig-zagged up the mountain.
But with two hairpins remaining, and about two and a half kilometres to go, Drake took over and crossed the line around 30 seconds ahead of Simpson, while junior Luke Grivell-Mellor (Mid-Shropshire Wheelers) took third, about a minute back.
Results:
1 Giles Drake (Team Elite) 2:55:00
2 Mike Simpson (GS Henley) @ 30sec
3 Luke Grivell-Mellor (Mid-Shropshire Wh) @ 1:00
4 Dan Pearson (Port Talbot Wheelers)
5 Luke Dunbar (Team Qoroz)
6 Daniel Bill (Cult Racing) @ 1:10
7 Conor Ryan (VC Montpellier)
8 Joe Harris (Reading CC)
9 Tom Kiss (Stratford CC)
10 Glyndwr Griffiths (Team Cyclemart)
