Race Report: Tour of the Reservoir 2019

Part of the British racing calendar since 2005, the Tour of the Reservoir has been a rare (and valued) novelty on the domestic scene over the years: a stage race. The UK has been sorely lacking in stage races at the National A and UCI 2.2 level for some time, so whilst only two days long, the race provides domestic teams with a rare stage racing experience on home roads. Based around the Derwent Reservoir in County Durham, this year’s event featured the usual mix of British Continental and elite teams.

Stage 1

The first stage Stage involved 127 km of racing to the north and south of the Derwent Reservoir. The Blanchland loop to the south was tackled twice and featured the day’s main challenge: a four kilometre climb to Meadows Edge on exposed roads. A short punchy climb up to the finish line added a final test for the leading riders.

The racing was aggressive and uncontrolled from the gun. Various moves went off the front but the main move went after about 20 km and involved 10 riders: Chris Latham, Adam Kenway (both Vitus Pro Cycling p/b Brother UK), Jordan Peacock (Spirit Tifosi), Erick Rowsell (Madison Genesis), Will Bjergfelt, Ben Hardy (both SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling), Scott Auld (Ribble Pro Cycling), Callum MacLeod (Canyon dhb p/b Bloor Homes), Damien Clayton and (Andy Moore Autocentres Racing) Ben Healy (Team Wiggins Le Col).

The break was over 9 minutes clear at one point. The reaction behind led to the peloton splintering into pieces. A chasing group of 16 riders eventually reeled the break back, creating a 26 man lead group. The 16 included Jacob Scott, James Shaw, Ed Laverack (all SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling), Zeb Kyffin (Ribble Pro Cycling), Thomas Mein (Tarteletto – Isorex), Mark Christian (Team Wiggins Le Col), Dylan Kerfoot-Robson, Chris McGlinchey, Ali Slater (all Vitus Pro Cycling p/b Brother UK), Dan Pearson, Ollie Wood, Max Stedman, Matt Bostock (all Canyon dhb p/b Bloor Homes) Matt Holmes, Tom Moses (both Madison Genesis) and Joe Evans (Saint Piran).

Despite several attempted moves from this group, none stuck, so it came down to a sprint on the final uphill climb. Ollie Wood took the win, his first big road victory since the Ryedale Grand Prix in 2017. Jacob Scott and 2018 Tour of the Reservoir winner Tom Moses rounded out the podium.

Stage 2

Starting and finishing in Consett, the second stage was significantly longer at 177km. The route featured similar terrain to the first stage, with riders taken on loops both north and south of the Reservoir. This time, Meadows Edge was reached in the opposite direction to day one; a longer but less steep rise.

As with stage 1, the racing was aggressive all day, with various breaks going throughout the race. An attack from Pete Williams (SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling) midway through the race was one of the most notable. He was joined by our journal contributor Ed Laverack, Ben Healy and Chris McGlinchley. The four never got much more than a lead of a minute though, as a group of around 15 riders chased.

James Shaw, Matt Holmes and Mark Christian then bridged across to form a lead group of 5 with Laverack and Healy. They were chased closely behind by another 5: Steve Lampier, Will Harper (both Saint Piran), Max Stedman, Dan Pearson and Ali Slater. The two groups eventually came together to battle it out for stage win honours.

Ed Laverack led things out, and it was his teammate James Shaw who edged the win, inches ahead of Matt Holmes. Steve Lampier finished 3rd. Shaw also took the overall win, with the GC podium completed by Holmes and Mark Christian.

WATCH 📺 the final 1KM of the men’s Tour of the Reservoir! 🌊

A select group faced an uphill sprint into the town of Consett on stage two of the two day race, with both the overall leaders jersey and stage win on the line! 🙌🚴#TouroftheRes #NationalRoadSeries pic.twitter.com/HY1mfQm8K8

— HSBC UK | National Road Series (@NatRoadSeries) June 24, 2019

What we learned

• Scott Auld coming back to form. It’s been a long way back for the Ribble Pro Cycling rider after his horror crash in February, but 10th overall at the Tour of the Reservoir showed that he is back in fine shape. Let’s hope he gets plenty more opportunities to shine in the second half of the season.
• Wood reminds us he is still one to watch on the road. Ollie Wood has his sights set on track success at the Tokyo Olympics, but with his stage 1 victory he reminded he still has the road talent that saw him take 4th place in the U23 world road race championships in 2017.
• SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling show great team strength. One of their strongest riders this season, Isaac Mundy, recently left to join Richardsons-Trek, and there has been the odd rumour of team disunity. But there was no evidence of any issues on the road, as SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling put on an impressive display of team strength and coherence at the weekend. Pete Williams, Ben Hardy, Ed Laverack, William Bjergfelt and Jacob Scott all shone and the team provided excellent support to James Shaw throughout. He was quick to praise to his teammates’ efforts after he crossed the line on stage 2.

Rider of the race

An obvious pick, but as we said in our Circuit of the Mendips report, it was only a matter of time before James Shaw took a win, such has been his consistency and aggression this season. He was once again a chief provocateur throughout the race and has surely done enough now to prove he is well worthy of another shot at the World Tour in 2020.

Looking Ahead

The domestic riders will now turn their attentions to the National Road Championships in Norfolk this week. The time trials will be contested on Thursday, while the new national road race champions will be crowned on Sunday. The National Road Series then resumes on 7 July with the Beaumont Trophy.

Highlights of the Tour of the Reservoir will be shown on Eurosport. Timings tbc

Standings

Tour of Britain qualification standings here.

National Road Series standings here.

Results

Stage 1

Rank	#	Name	Team	Time
1	15	Oliver Wood	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	3:13:56
2	28	Jacob Scott	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
3	1	Thomas Moses	Madison Genesis	st
4	5	Matthew Holmes	Madison Genesis	st
5	26	James Shaw	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
6	44	Alistair Slater	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
7	16	Scott Auld	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
8	40	Adam Kenway	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
9	32	Mark Christian	Team Wiggins Le Col	st
10	12	Max Stedman	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
11	10	Daniel Pearson	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
12	120	Thomas Mein	Tarteletto-Isorex	+5
13	9	Matthew Bostock	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
14	46	Christopher McGlinchey	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
15	23	Ben Hardy	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+8
16	30	Will Bjergfelt	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+9
17	34	Ben Healy	Team Wiggins Le Col	st
18	96	Damien Clayton	Andy Moore Autocentres Racing	st
19	8	Erick Rowsell	Madison Genesis	st
20	20	Zeb Kyffin	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
21	45	Dylan Kerfoot-Robson	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
22	24	Edward Laverack	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
23	70	Joe Evans	Saint Piran	+15
24	122	Callum Mcleod	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	+18
25	81	Jordan Peacock	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	+24
26	41	Christopher Latham	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	+55
27	64	Kieran Savage	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	+6:02
28	48	Jim Bradford	ActiveEdge Race Team	st
29	11	Louis Rose-Davies	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
30	78	Rupert Graham	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	+6:04
31	79	Leon Mazzone	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	st
32	42	Michael Mottram	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
33	31	Lawrence Carpenter	Team Wiggins Le Col	st
34	17	Alex Dalton	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
35	118	Fergus Robinson	Zappi Race Team	st
36	65	Louis Szymanski	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	+6:07
37	47	Felix Barker	ActiveEdge Race Team	st
38	27	Peter Williams	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
39	71	William Harper	Saint Piran	st
40	73	Steve Lampier	Saint Piran	+6:36
41	29	Julian Varley	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+7:25
42	87	James Coates	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
43	59	Elliot Harrison	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	st
44	62	Joseph Clark	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	st
45	13	Charlie Tanfield	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
46	100	Andrew Taylor	Dab Cycling Club	st
47	22	Alex Luhrs	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
48	52	Richard McDonald	Bioracer- Moriarty Bikes	st
49	106	Ross Fawcett	Pedal Power Cycles Ipswich	st
50	68	Darnell Moore	Cycling Ulster	st
51	113	Angus Fyffe	Cycling Ulster	st
52	39	Graham Briggs	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	+7:37
53	101	Neil Scott	Deeside Thistle CC	+7:40
54	76	Alex Platt	Saint Piran	+10:17
55	66	James Curry	Cycling Ulster	+10:21
56	91	Joe Reilly	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
57	90	Cameron Richardson	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+10:22
58	86	Matt Clarke	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
59	43	Frederik Scheske	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	+10:24
60	25	Jordan Reed	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
61	21	Gruffudd Lewis	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
62	116	Ryan Reilly	Cycling Ulster	st
63	7	Jon Dibben	Madison Genesis	st
64	112	David Bolland	Velo Schils Interbike RT	st
65	123	Archie Cross	B38 / Cycles in Motion	st
66	94	Matthew Clements	Richardsons-Trek RT	st
67	72	Cameron Jeffers	Saint Piran	+10:32
68	4	Richard Handley	Madison Genesis	st
69	74	Oliver Maxwell	Saint Piran	st
70	77	Frazier Carr	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	st
71	6	Jonathan McEvoy	Madison Genesis	st
72	104	Yorben Van Tichelt	Neon-Velo Cycling Team	st
73	88	Ben Barlow	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+12:47
74	82	Matthew Dobbin	TBW23 Stuart Hall Gett Taxi	st
75	58	Matt Hallam	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	+12:49
76	102	Donal Shearer	Cycling Ulster	+12:52
77	107	Gary Freeman	Pedal Power Cycles Ipswich	+12:54
78	51	Thomas Gelati	Bioracer- Moriarty Bikes	+12:55
79	56	Jonathan Fowles	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	+12:57
80	57	Tarn Fynn	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	+13:04
81	69	Gareth Oneill	Cycling Ulster	+13:06
82	60	Adam MacRae	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	+13:12
83	63	Daniel Pullen	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	+13:17
84	36	Oliver Robinson	Team Wiggins Le Col	st
85	35	Callum Riley	Team Wiggins Le Col	+13:19
86	93	Fraser Martin	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
87	19	Richard Jones	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
88	124	William Perrett	Leisure lakes bikes.com	st
89	67	Ronan Mc Laughlin	Cycling Ulster	st
90	111	Oliver Richardson	Twickenham CC	+13:22
91	2	Ian Bibby	Madison Genesis	st
92	121	Charlie Passfield	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	st
93	18	Jacob Tipper	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
94	80	Jake Hales	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	st
95	105	Joe Howcroft	Otley CC	+13:36
96	117	Eliot Ward	BC Private Member	+14:01
97	50	Sam Woodfield	ActiveEdge Race Team	+15:09
DNF	85	Ryan Watkins	TBW23 Stuart Hall Gett Taxi
DNF	83	Matthew Hanford	TBW23 Stuart Hall Gett Taxi
DNF	95	Steven Parsonage	Richardsons-Trek RT
DNF	92	Finlay Robertson	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	115	David Hewett	BC Private Member
DNF	55	Jonathan Bridge	Crimson Orientation Marketing R
DNF	110	Craig Gow	Team Andrew Allan Architecture

Stage 2

Rank	#	Name	Team	Time
1	26	James Shaw	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	4:33:11
2	5	Matthew Holmes	Madison Genesis	st
3	73	Steve Lampier	Saint Piran	st
4	71	William Harper	Saint Piran	st
5	32	Mark Christian	Team Wiggins Le Col	st
6	12	Max Stedman	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
7	24	Edward Laverack	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+12
8	44	Alistair Slater	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	+21
9	34	Ben Healy	Team Wiggins Le Col	+26
10	10	Daniel Pearson	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	+28
11	28	Jacob Scott	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+1:48
12	8	Erick Rowsell	Madison Genesis	st
13	9	Matthew Bostock	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
14	46	Timothy Torrie	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
15	16	Scott Auld	Ribble Pro Cycling	st
16	23	Ben Hardy	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	+1:52
17	120	Thomas Mein	Tarteletto-Isorex	+1:53
18	65	Louis Szymanski	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	st
19	102	Donal Shearer	Cycling Ulster	+2:03
20	17	Alex Dalton	Ribble Pro Cycling	+2:50
21	64	Kieran Savage	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	st
22	67	Ronan Mc Laughlin	Cycling Ulster	st
23	15	Oliver Wood	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
24	30	Will Bjergfelt	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
25	56	Jonathan Fowles	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	st
26	74	Oliver Maxwell	Saint Piran	st
27	78	Rupert Graham	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	st
28	21	Gruffudd Lewis	Ribble Pro Cycling	+2:57
29	42	Michael Mottram	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	+5:52
30	1	Thomas Moses	Madison Genesis	st
31	6	Jonathan McEvoy	Madison Genesis	st
32	70	Joe Evans	Saint Piran	+8:47
33	40	Adam Kenway	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	st
34	13	Charlie Tanfield	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
35	122	Callum Macleod	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	st
36	7	George Pym	Madison Genesis	st
37	29	Stephen Bradbury	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
38	27	Peter Williams	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	st
39	68	Darnell Moore	Cycling Ulster	+12:32
40	47	Felix Barker	ActiveEdge Race Team	+20:49
DNF	104	Yorben Van Tichelt	Neon-Velo Cycling Team
DNF	66	James Curry	Cycling Ulster
DNF	116	Ryan Reilly	BC Private Member
DNF	113	Angus Fyffe
DNF	69	Gareth Oneill	Cycling Ulster
DNF	58	Matt Hallam	Crimson Orientation Marketing R
DNF	57	Tarn Fynn	Crimson Orientation Marketing R
DNF	121	Charlie Passfield	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team
DNF	82	Matthew Dobbin	TBW23 Stuart Hall Gett Taxi
DNF	90	Cameron Richardson	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	43	Frederik Scheske	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother
DNF	91	Joe Reilly	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	107	Gary Freeman	Pedal Power Cycles Ipswich
DNF	117	Eliot Ward	BC Private Member
DNF	51	Thomas Gelati	Bioracer- Moriarty Bikes
DNF	76	Alex Platt	Saint Piran
DNF	63	Daniel Pullen	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie
DNF	96	Damien Clayton	Andy Moore Autocentres Racing
DNF	48	Jim Bradford	ActiveEdge Race Team
DNF	100	Andrew Taylor	Dab Cycling Club
DNF	60	Adam MacRae	Crimson Orientation Marketing R
DNF	18	Jake Gray	Ribble Pro Cycling
DNF	111	Oliver Richardson	Twickenham CC
DNF	2	Ian Bibby	Madison Genesis
DNF	39	Graham Briggs	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother
DNF	45	Scott Thwaites	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother
DNF	81	Jordan Peacock	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team
DNF	80	Jake Hales	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team
DNF	79	Leon Mazzone	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team
DNF	31	Lawrence Carpenter	Team Wiggins Le Col
DNF	41	Christopher Latham	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother
DNF	77	Frazier Carr	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team
DNF	123	Archie Cross	B38/Cycles in Motion
DNF	72	Cameron Jeffers	Saint Piran
DNF	4	Richard Handley	Madison Genesis
DNF	112	David Bolland	Velo Schils Interbike RT
DNF	52	Richard McDonald	Bioracer- Moriarty Bikes
DNF	11	Louis Rose-Davies	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes
DNF	36	Oliver Robinson	Team Wiggins Le Col
DNF	105	Joe Howcroft	Otley CC
DNF	94	Matthew Clements	Richardsons-Trek RT
DNF	88	Ben Barlow	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	59	Elliot Harrison	Crimson Orientation Marketing R
DNF	35	Callum Riley	Team Wiggins Le Col
DNF	124	William Perrett	Leisure Lake Bikes.com
DNF	93	Fraser Martin	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	19	Richard Jones	Ribble Pro Cycling
DNF	20	Zeb Kyffin	Ribble Pro Cycling
DNF	86	Matt Clarke	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	87	James Coates	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli
DNF	118	Fergus Robinson	Zappi Race Team
DNF	106	Ross Fawcett	Pedal Power Cycles Ipswich
DNF	25	Jordan Reed	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling
DNF	50	Jesse Yates	ActiveEdge Race Team
DNF	115	David Hewett	BC Private Member
DNF	101	Neil Scott	Deeside Thistle CC
DNF	22	Alex Luhrs	Ribble Pro Cycling
DNF	62	Joseph Clark	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie

General classification

Rank	#	Name	Team	Time
1	26	James Shaw	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	7:47:07
2	5	Matthew Holmes	Madison Genesis	7:47:07
3	32	Mark Christian	Team Wiggins Le Col	7:47:07
4	12	Max Stedman	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	7:47:07
5	44	Alistair Slater	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	7:47:28
6	24	Edward Laverack	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	7:47:28
7	10	Daniel Pearson	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	7:47:35
8	34	Ben Healy	Team Wiggins Le Col	7:47:42
9	28	Jacob Scott	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	7:48:55
10	16	Scott Auld	Ribble Pro Cycling	7:48:55
11	9	Matthew Bostock	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	7:49:00
12	46	Timothy Torrie	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	7:49:00
13	8	Erick Rowsell	Madison Genesis	7:49:04
14	120	Thomas Mein	Tarteletto-Isorex	7:49:05
15	23	Ben Hardy	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	7:49:07
16	15	Oliver Wood	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	7:49:57
17	30	Will Bjergfelt	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	7:50:06
18	1	Thomas Moses	Madison Genesis	7:52:59
19	71	William Harper	Saint Piran	7:53:14
20	73	Steve Lampier	Saint Piran	7:53:43
21	65	Louis Szymanski	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	7:55:07
22	40	Adam Kenway	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	7:55:54
23	64	Kieran Savage	Cycling Sheffield Giant Sheffie	7:55:59
24	17	Alex Dalton	Ribble Pro Cycling	7:56:01
25	78	Rupert Graham	Spirit Tifosi Racing Team	7:56:01
26	70	Joe Evans	Saint Piran	7:56:09
27	122	Callum Macleod	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	7:56:12
28	42	Michael Mottram	Vitus Pro Cycling  p/b Brother	7:59:03
29	21	Gruffudd Lewis	Ribble Pro Cycling	8:00:28
30	74	Oliver Maxwell	Saint Piran	8:00:29
31	27	Peter Williams	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	8:02:01
32	102	Donal Shearer	Cycling Ulster	8:02:02
33	56	Jonathan Fowles	Crimson Orientation Marketing R	8:02:54
34	67	Ronan Mc Laughlin	Cycling Ulster	8:03:16
35	29	Stephen Bradbury	SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling	8:03:19
36	13	Charlie Tanfield	Canyon dhb P / B Bloor Homes	8:03:19
37	6	Jonathan McEvoy	Madison Genesis	8:03:31
38	7	George Pym	Madison Genesis	8:06:18
39	68	Darnell Moore	Cycling Ulster	8:07:04
40	47	Felix Barker	ActiveEdge Race Team	8:14:03