Location: Orwell, Cambridgeshire
Event: 23 June 2013
Report: Sam King/Snowdon Sports
Douglas Bradshaw (Cambridge CC) took victory in the Ike Saul Memorial Road Race in Orwell, Cambridgshire on Sunday.
It was a tough race, long and windy and the attacks started early on. It seemed as though the riders had decided that the race would not end in a bunch sprint and conditions were right for the hard men.
Several times a group formed, getting up to 30-40 second gaps, but the bunch was in a chasing mood and these were all eventually closed down.
Finally, a group of three came together off the front that was working well, comprising of Glyndwr Thomas (VC Norwich), David Bamford (ELV) and Anthony Purnell (Cambridge CC).
The trio pushed on hard. However, not hard enough. Douglas Bradshaw slipped off the front going up the finish hill, gradually bridging to the group down the road as the race entered Kingston. Working together, this group pulled the gap out to 60 seconds.
Just before the bell tolled, several solo attackers coalesced into a bridging group that teased out a gap of 30 seconds, 20 behind the group up the road.
Then on the final lap, the bunch reacted. Strung out, a line riding in the gutter, they pushed on hard around the back end of the circuit, shelling riders on every slight rise.
Eventually, just over the Orwell hill, the chasing group were caught, though the bunch was still some 40 seconds behind lead group.
As the lead group approached the narrow roads of the Eversdens, a good 4km out, Bradshaw attacked.
Initially the group did not react, though the chase was soon on. Pushing on with Dave and Glyndwr chasing hard through the blind corners and up the finishing hill, Doug's gap pulled out further. At the top, exhausted, he claimed the win.
Results:
1 Douglas Bradshaw (Cambridge CC)
2 Glyndwr Thomas (VC Norwich)
3 David Bamford (East London Velo)
4 Anthony Purnell (Cambridge CC)
5 Alex Minting (Neon Velo)
6 James Moncrieff (Finchley RT)
7 Theo Doncaster (CC Ashwell)
8 Ralph Mullan (Shaftesbury)
9 Thomas Beasley (East London Velo)
10 Stuart Lindsay (St Ives)
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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.
