The B-side: a closer look at National B road racing
For the women’s domestic peloton this weekend it’s all about the Women’s CiCLE Classic. The men might have a longer wait (15 August) for the National Road Series to begin, but they get no less than three National B road races this weekend, each with strong fields.
This is the second of our previews of the weekend’s races, focusing on the Severn Bridge Road Race. Read our Crimson Performance Road Race preview here.
One of the most prestigious National B road races in the UK. It’s a race with a rich history and an impressive list of past winners.
The race dates from the 1960s when it was organised by the late Jack Turner (an eccentric cycling genius). Crossing the first Severn Bridge it did a large circuit of Monmouthshire, finishing in Henbury. It then switched to a circuit through the Avonmouth docks, which, according to the organisers, took in the joys of “oil refineries and choking fumes of the sulphur works, where if a rider fell into one of the roadside ditches he immediately dissolved.” The race now uses the ‘Olveston circuit’ (see below).
Past winners include Jeremy Hunt (1992), Matt Bottrill (2003), Julian Winn (2004), Marcin Bialoblocki (2009 and 2012), Zak Dempster (2011) and Alex Richardson (2019). Normally positioned early in the season calendar, it was one of the few National B races run last year before lockdown arrived, with George Mills-Keeling – then of Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling, now at AVC Aix-en-Provence – taking the spoils.
The event also features a Regional A race, which starts at 10.30.
Riders to watch
ProTeam rider Alex Richardson (Alpecin-Fenix) is on the provisional startlist. As a former winner of the race, he’ll be one of the favourites again this year [Update: 23 June: Richardson has withdrawn from the race since this was first published].
The race is also set the feature three winners of recent National B races, all riders clearly in good form and capable of winning: George Wood (Cycling Sheffield), winner of the Spokes RT race last weekend, Theo Obholzer (Dolan Ellesse RT), who won the Return to Racing for Big Dogs, and Conor McGoldrick (Primera-TeamJobs), victor at the Holohan Coaching Road Race.
Of the teams fielding a full quota of four riders each, arguably the strongest are UCI Continental team Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling (Dan Bigham, Gruff Lewis, Jacob Tipper and Freddie Schescke) and the GB Senior Academy (Rhys Britton, Jack Rootkin-Gray, Ollie Stockwell and Will Tidball). Saint Piran and SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling are two of the other domestic UCI Continental teams represented on the startlist.
The podium riders at the 2019 race: Jacob Vaughan, Alex Richardson and Sam Culverwell. Photo: Bristol Road Club / MADE BY WADE
One of our U23 riders to watch, Sam Culverwell (TRINITY Racing), takes to the start and this race suits him (he was third in 2019). Joe Pidcock (Groupama-FDJ Continental) is another young rider capable of winning. And Damien Clayton (Canyon dhb SunGod) might be without any teammates, but he has shown in the past he can win this type of race without much support.
The route
The race is centred on the village of Olveston, within sight of the Severn Bridge. It takes in 10 laps of a six and a half mile loop, with the testing climb of Old Down Hill a key feature of the circuit.
The B-side: a closer look at National B road racing
For the women’s domestic peloton this weekend it’s all about the Women’s CiCLE Classic. The men might have a longer wait (15 August) for the National Road Series to begin, but they get no less than three National B road races this weekend, each with strong fields.
This is the second of our previews of the weekend’s races, focusing on the Severn Bridge Road Race. Read our Crimson Performance Road Race preview here.
Featured photo: Nick Phipps
What is it?
One of the most prestigious National B road races in the UK. It’s a race with a rich history and an impressive list of past winners.
The race dates from the 1960s when it was organised by the late Jack Turner (an eccentric cycling genius). Crossing the first Severn Bridge it did a large circuit of Monmouthshire, finishing in Henbury. It then switched to a circuit through the Avonmouth docks, which, according to the organisers, took in the joys of “oil refineries and choking fumes of the sulphur works, where if a rider fell into one of the roadside ditches he immediately dissolved.” The race now uses the ‘Olveston circuit’ (see below).
Past winners include Jeremy Hunt (1992), Matt Bottrill (2003), Julian Winn (2004), Marcin Bialoblocki (2009 and 2012), Zak Dempster (2011) and Alex Richardson (2019). Normally positioned early in the season calendar, it was one of the few National B races run last year before lockdown arrived, with George Mills-Keeling – then of Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling, now at AVC Aix-en-Provence – taking the spoils.
The event also features a Regional A race, which starts at 10.30.
Riders to watch
ProTeam rider Alex Richardson (Alpecin-Fenix) is on the provisional startlist. As a former winner of the race, he’ll be one of the favourites again this year [Update: 23 June: Richardson has withdrawn from the race since this was first published].
The race is also set the feature three winners of recent National B races, all riders clearly in good form and capable of winning: George Wood (Cycling Sheffield), winner of the Spokes RT race last weekend, Theo Obholzer (Dolan Ellesse RT), who won the Return to Racing for Big Dogs, and Conor McGoldrick (Primera-TeamJobs), victor at the Holohan Coaching Road Race.
Of the teams fielding a full quota of four riders each, arguably the strongest are UCI Continental team Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling (Dan Bigham, Gruff Lewis, Jacob Tipper and Freddie Schescke) and the GB Senior Academy (Rhys Britton, Jack Rootkin-Gray, Ollie Stockwell and Will Tidball). Saint Piran and SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling are two of the other domestic UCI Continental teams represented on the startlist.
One of our U23 riders to watch, Sam Culverwell (TRINITY Racing), takes to the start and this race suits him (he was third in 2019). Joe Pidcock (Groupama-FDJ Continental) is another young rider capable of winning. And Damien Clayton (Canyon dhb SunGod) might be without any teammates, but he has shown in the past he can win this type of race without much support.
The route
The race is centred on the village of Olveston, within sight of the Severn Bridge. It takes in 10 laps of a six and a half mile loop, with the testing climb of Old Down Hill a key feature of the circuit.
Timings
Date: Sunday, 27 June 2021
Start 13:30
Finish 16:15 approx
Provisional startlist
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