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Report: 2011 Scottish Road Race Championships

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It was deja-vu time in Stirlingshire as Evan Oliphant and Jane Barr successfully defended their Scottish RR titles. Colin Bark from organising group Vortex Racing Team reports.

Womens Championship

Defending Champion Jane Barr successfully defended her 2010 Scottish title on the Balfron circuit to win the 2011 Scottish Road Race Championships, organised by Vortex Race Team.

The women’s race took the brunt of the day’s ever changing weather, with fierce downpours, gale force winds and some standing water left on the 67km course; six tough laps of the Balfron & Endrick Valley circuit. Attacks began immediately, with Barr splitting the peleton on the first lap, this resulted in two larger groups on the road, with all the favourites making the front group. The Sandy Wallace Cycles team were launching moves and ensuring their strength in numbers resulted in a tactical advantage.

More attacks came in the first half of the event, but the leading group refused to split any more under the constant pressure during the first three laps. As the race progressed, Edinburgh Road Club & Dooleys Cycles were also attacking the lead group. In the final run-in to the finish, Jenny Stanning attacked with two others in a dangerous move, with Barr caught in the 2nd group. It came together just before the Dunmore Street downhill section towards the final corner, Barr selecting 3rd wheel into the corner and powering through the final uphill 300m to the line, closely followed by Neill, MacAulay & Stanning as the sun broke through the clouds. A thrilling race for the spectators, who got to see the events unfold as the race passed through Balfron and good crowds coming out to watch.

Jane Barr, gold medal winner told us:

"I'm over the moon to win today. Being defending champ adds some extra pressure but I was really fired up to win again, especially on a course really local to my home town. It was a brilliant race. Vortex put on a great event and Balfron was a great location for the championships. All my hard work has paid off and I can't wait to race in Holland and keep progressing. Two years in a row, it's amazing!"

RESULTS

1 Jane Barr Velocity 44 Stirling 01:56:22
2 Gemma Neill Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
3 Claire MacAulay Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
4 Jenny Stanning Edinburgh RC same time
5 Lettie Chambers Stirling Bike Club same time
6 Anda Jay Burgess Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
7 Katie Wylie Falkirk Bike Club same time
8 Laura Murray Velocity 44 Stirling same time
9 Sian Tovey Dooleys Cycles RT same time
10 Kelly Van der Toorn Dooleys Cycles RT same time
11 Alexa Mair Edinburgh RC same time
12 Mari Todd Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
13 Catriona Phin Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
14 Patricia Baird Inverclyde Velo @ 5
15 Aleksandra Szyszczakiewicz Edinburgh RC same time
16 Shelley Farrar Deeside Thistle same time
17 Victoria Ware VC Moulin @ 10:54
18 Lara MacLean Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
19 Gabriella Nordin Sandy Wallace Cycles @ 10:59
20 Anna Harris Angus Bike Chain same time
21 Laura Sarkis Deeside Thistle @ 12:05
22 Jane Ogilvie Unattached @ 12:47

Mens Championship

As in the women’s championship in the morning, the 2011 gold medal went to last year defending champion, this time Evan Oliphant (Endura Racing). The men completed 12 laps of the Balfron/Endrick Valley circuit, totalling 132km of racing, with the morning’s downpours stopped, a little rain still lingering & long spells of sunshine, the riders battled through incredibly windy conditions on a tough course.

A very strong break of 10 riders formed on the first lap, Alistair Robinson (TeamLeslieBikeShop/RightMoveWindows) was first off the front, to be joined by Oliphant, Endura/Pedalpower duo Gary Hand & Davie Lines, Tim Allan (Spokes RT), Alastair McNicol (TheBicycleWorks.com), Alan Thompson (Glasgow Couriers), Ross Creber (CyclePremier /Metaltak), Arthur Doyle (Dooleys Cycles)and the soon to puncture Stevie Russell (Team CycleLane).

The break was being driven by Doyle, Oliphant, Creber and Robinson, with Hand & Lines also contributing. Their lead over the bunch quickly grew to a healthy two minutes by lap three. At this point Russell punctured and never made it back to the lead group. With a couple of favourites like Robbie Hassan (Endura/Pedalpower) and Michael Nicolson (Asfra Racing) still in the bunch, it seemed like things had a chance of coming back together over the next 8 or 9 laps. A crash in the bunch caused some disruption to the chase, with a puncture on the super fast tailwind section (reported at up to 70kmh!) caused several riders to go down, worst affected was Stuart MacGregor, who was airlifted to a Glasgow hospital as a precautionary measure.

On lap 7 the lead group was further reduced to 8 riders, where time gaps indicating a reduction in their lead by a group of 11 chasers, this resulted in another drive from the break, who opened up the lead to over 2 minutes again. With 3 laps to go the attacks were starting in earnest and McNicol was next to lose contact. More attacks followed with 2 to go from Oliphant & Robinson. Oliphant created a good sized solo gap and managed to slowly increase it until he was out of sight.

Behind Robinson made a move on the final series of climbs towards the finish, splintering the group & taking Creber & Hand with him. Meanwhile Oliphant had crossed the line with just over a minute on the chasers. Hand took 2nd place & Creber 3rd , with Robinson suffering for his attacks on the draining uphill sprint to the line & finishing in 4th .

RESULTS

1 Evan Oliphant Endura Racing 03:27:09
2 Gary Hand Endura/Pedalpower development team @ 01:07
3 Ross Creber Cycle Premier/ Metal tek same time
4 Alistair Robinson Team Leslie Bikeshop/Right Move Windows @ 01:08
5 Tim Allan Spokes RT @ 01:18
6 David Lines Endura/Pedalpower development team same time
7 Arthur Doyle Dooleys Cycles RT @ 01:23
8 Alan Thomson Glasgow Couriers - DB Development @ 01:28
9 Peter Murdoch Team Cyclelane @ 05:00
10 Alastair McNicol Thebicycleworks.com same time
11 Robin Wilkins Equipe Velo Ecosse / Montpellier same time
12 Gordon Murdoch Team Cyclelane @ 05:02
13 Robert Hassan Endura/Pedalpower development team @ 06:48
14 Paul Coats ViaMazzini RaceTool same time
15 Craig Adams GJS Racing Team same time
16 Scott McCrossan Endura/Pedalpower development team same time
17 Stephen Russell Team Cyclelane @ 07:05
18 Eddie Addis Equipe Velo Ecosse / Montpellier same time
19 Paul Rennie Dooleys Cycles RT same time
20 Matthew MacDonald Thebicycleworks.com same time
21 Eddie Cowle Stirling Bike Club same time
22 Tommy Murray Glasgow Wheelers same time
23 Alister Watt Granite City RT same time
24 David Martin Thebicycleworks.com same time
25 Veli-Matti Raikkonen Granite City RT same time
26 David Murdoch Team Cyclelane same time
27 Andrew Matheson Musselburgh Roads CC same time
28 Ross Crook Edinburgh RC same time
29 Tom Fernie Equipe Velo Ecosse / Montpellier same time
30 Lewis Oliphant Equipe Velo Ecosse / Montpellier same time
31 John Kermode Spokes RT same time
32 Lindsay Gordon Thebicycleworks.com same time
33 Allan Clark Sandy Wallace Cycles same time
34 Jordan Stokes Endura/Pedalpower development team same time
35 Richard McDonald Stirling Bike Club same time
36 Gary McCrae Team Leslie Bikeshop/Right Move Windows same time
37 James McPake GJS Racing Team same time
38 Gerald Grant GJS Racing Team same time
39 Barry Crumlish Glasgow Couriers - DB Development same time
40 Ian Brown Deeside Thistle CC same time
41 John McQuade GJS Racing Team same time
42 Euan Pope Glasgow Couriers - DB Development same time
43 Mark Skilling Ayr Roads / Harry Fairbairn CC same time
44 Jon Clarke Glasgow Wheelers same time
45 Andrew Davies Thebicycleworks.com @ 07:12
46 Phil Brown Equipe Velo Ecosse / Montpellier same time
47 Keith Laird Glasgow Couriers - DB Development same time
48 Gareth Barnes Walkers CC @ 09:07
49 Craig Moffat Falkirk Bicycle Club @ 09:47
50 Neil Taylor Edinburgh RC @ 10:00
51 Franco Porco GJS Racing Team @ 10:07
52 Mark Baugh Stirling Bike Club @ 13:11

British Cycling would like to thank the organising team, officials and everyone else who helped promote this event. Our sport could not exist without the hundreds of people, many of them unpaid volunteers, who put in many hours of hard work running events, activities and clubs.