Despite failing to score any points in either of the Maldon CC races, St Ives Cycling Cub maintained their lead at the top of the Eastern Road Race League club standings.
Two races were staged on a course round the village of Steeple, south of Maldon in Essex on Sunday 7th October. Both followed a similar pattern, being fast and frenetic, with numerous attacks which failed to stick until the last lap. Both races even had crashes in similar places on the course, though none of the St Ives riders went down.
Each of the races covered a number of laps of the course before turning off onto a final stretch, including a short but very steep ascent, followed by a flat last kilometre. Lee Desborough and Malcolm Smith were up against some very accomplished riders in the 106km race for Elite, 1st, 2nd and 3rd Category riders. Both of them were active in attempts to escape, though none of their efforts stuck. On the last lap a group of six escaped from which Jake Hales of the national Team IG Sigma Sport took a win. Both Desborough and Smith were baulked by a badly parked car, meaning both finished out of the points. This could have been a disaster, but luckily both riders from rival club, East London Velo also failed to score.
In the 3rd/4th category race, Owen Rogers had eight riders from the rival club to deal with, but managed to keep a watchful eye on them all, finishing in 13th place with only one from East London ahead.
The club now take a lead of 16 points into the season’s last race at Welwyn Garden City next week.
