Sophie Lewis (DAS-Handsling) won the Santini Women’s Otley Grand Prix from a four-up sprint to become the early leader of the women’s National Circuit Series.

In the Property Development Men’s Otley Grand Prix, Bob Donaldson (TRINITY Racing) staved off the peloton to take a dramatic solo win.

Featured photo: Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com

Santini Women’s Otley Grand Prix

Report

The rain that peppered Otley throughout the afternoon disappeared ahead of the Santini Women’s Otley Grand Prix and with minimal wind and generally cool temperatures greeting the field, conditions for an action-packed, fan-filled edition of the race.

It took just half-a-dozen laps for the first major of the race to go, and it looked dangerous too. Monica Greenwood (DAS-Handsling) moved clear with Bexy Dew (Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee), Lucy Glover (Shibden Hope Tech Apex) and Flora Perkins (Fenix-Deceuninck Development Team), growing a handy but not sizeable advantage. With three of the major teams represented, it was now up to the rest of the peloton to reel them in.

That they did, the four being brought back after a few laps. But that only led to a counter-attack involving the very same four teams that were involved in the first move. Same jerseys, different riders. This time the escapees were Sophie Lewis (DAS-Handsling), our pre-race pick Cat Ferguson (Shibden Hope Tech Apex), Millie Couzens (Fenix‐Deceuninck) and Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix winner – and local rider – Robyn Clay (Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee).

This time, the break managed to grow a substantial advantage, rising from 10 to 20 seconds, and then leaping to 46 seconds as the chasing group shattered, unable to coordinate a meaningful chase. As the laps ticked by, it became clear that this would be a rare edition of Otley where a break succeeded.

That meant an explosive run-off into ‘that’ final corner and a four-up sprint to the line. Leading out of the corner, track specialist Lewis was able to sustain her speed all the way to the line to take a big win. A ferocious sprint for second went to Ferguson, taking it from Otley’s own Clay by a wheel at most, with Couzens finishing fourth.

Glover and her teammate Imogen Wolff rounded off an excellent evening for the junior Shibden Hope Tech Apex team, leading in the bunch to finish 5th and 6th respectively.

The result means that Lewis – who was 4th at the national circuit race last week – is the first leader of the 2023 National Circuit Series, with Round 2 up on Friday in Ilkley.

Results

Rank	#	Name	Team	Time
1	25	Sophie Lewis	DAS – Handsling Bikes	45:22
2	67	Cat Ferguson	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
3	55	Robyn Clay	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
4	96	Millie Couzens	Fenix-Deceuninck Development Team	st
5	68	Lucy Glover	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	+21
6	71	Imogen Wolff	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
7	73	Jayati Hine	Team Boompods	st
8	24	Emma Jeffers	DAS – Handsling Bikes	st
9	59	Corinne Side	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
10	23	Monica Greenwood	DAS – Handsling Bikes	st
11	6	Francesca Morgans-Slader	AWOL OShea	st
12	82	Isabel Darvill	Team Spectra Cannondale	st
13	61	Jo Tindley	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
14	97	Flora Perkins	Fenix-Deceuninck Development Team	st
15	27	Lucy Lee	DAS – Handsling Bikes	st
16	18	Harriet Graham	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	st
17	56	Bexy Dew	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
18	37	Tiffany Keep	Hutchinson – Brother UK	st
19	66	Alice Colling	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
20	104	Emily Proud	Le Col Race Team	st
21	7	Libby Smithson	AWOL OShea	st
22	58	Amy Gornall	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
23	84	Lucy Nelson	Team Spectra Cannondale	st
24	107	Matilda McKibben	Liv Cycling Club – Halo Films	st
25	76	Ellen McDermott	Team Boompods	+25
26	78	Lauren Robinson	Team Boompods	st
27	36	Samantha Fawcett	Hutchinson – Brother UK	st
28	112	Amira Mellor	Ribble Collective	st
29	72	Esther Wong	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
30	29	Sammie Stuart	DAS – Handsling Bikes	st
31	81	Xan Crees	Team Spectra Cannondale	st
32	45	Beth Harley-Jepson	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	st
33	41	Sannah Zaman	Hutchinson – Brother UK	st
34	40	Lydia Watts	Hutchinson – Brother UK	st
35	10	Sophie Enever	Alba Development Road Team	st
36	103	Caitlin Dimbleby	Le Col Race Team	st
37	117	Megan Barker	Team Inspired	st
38	35	Sian Botteley	Hutchinson – Brother UK	st
39	14	Amelia Tyler	Alba Development Road Team	st
40	114	Erin Avill	Storey Racing	st
41	105	Madelaine Leech	Lifeplus Wahoo	st
42	77	Gemma Mitchell	Team Boompods	st
43	75	Sian Marsh	Team Boompods	st
44	63	Hannah Bayes	Saint Piran WRT	st
45	57	Lucy Ellmore	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	st
46	50	Francesca Hall	Loughborough Lightning	st
47	90	Lauren Langham	Wahoo – Le Col	st
48	2	Georgia Bullard	AWOL OShea	+30
49	69	Isabel Mayes	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
50	31	Maddie Heywood	FTP – Fulfil The Potential – Racing	st
51	83	Josie Knight	Team Spectra Cannondale	st
52	5	Emily Meakin	AWOL OShea	st
53	9	Daisy Barnes	Alba Development Road Team	st
54	32	Elizabeth Sanders	FTP – Fulfil The Potential – Racing	st
55	54	Anya Tamplin	Loughborough Lightning	+38
56	38	Molly Patch	Hutchinson – Brother UK	+1:01
57	60	Millie Skinner	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	+1:16
58	102	Lucy Neatham	LDN-Academy	st
59	100	Isabella Johnson	LAKA Pedal Mafia RT	+3:34
60	70	Freya Whiteside	Shibden Hope Tech Apex	st
61	46	Miriam Jessett	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	+1 Lap
62	12	Beth Maciver	Alba Development Road Team	+1 Lap
63	87	Mari Porton	Tofauti Everyone Active	+1 Lap
64	109	Emily Middlebrooke	Otley CC	+1 Lap
65	86	Amelia Cebak	Tofauti Everyone Active	+1 Lap
66	65	Annamarie Lipp	Saint Piran WRT	+1 Lap
67	20	Hope Inglis	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	+1 Lap
68	11	Arianne Holland	Alba Development Road Team	+5 Laps
	8	Maddie Wadsworth	AWOL OShea	DNF
	13	Victoria Smith	Alba Development Road Team	DNF
	16	Ellen Bennett	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	17	Lily Brindle	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	19	Harriet Evans	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	21	Maisy Vasic	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	22	Lotta Mansfield	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	39	Dannielle Watkinson	Hutchinson – Brother UK	DNF
	42	Skye Davidson	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	DNF
	43	Louise Scupham	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	DNF
	44	Lola Ellis	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	DNF
	47	Grace Norman	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	DNF
	48	Abbie Taylor	Jadan Vive le Velo Glasdon	DNF
	52	Roisin Lally	Loughborough Lightning	DNF
	74	Katarzyna Madej	Team Boompods	DNF
	88	Coralie Arthur	Wahoo – Le Col	DNF
	89	Adele Battersby	Wahoo – Le Col	DNF
	91	Jacqueline Kinsey	AWOL Worx Galliard	DNF
	93	Melissa Denman	Contiki Velo Bavarian RT	DNF
	94	Rebecca Lineker	Contiki Velo Bavarian RT	DNF
	98	Evelyn Field	JRC INTERFLON Race Team	DNF
	99	Lindsay Toy	JRC INTERFLON Race Team	DNF
	101	Louise Davidson	LDN-Academy	DNF
	108	Niamh Murphy	Liv Cycling Club – Halo Films	DNF
	110	Sarah Briggs	RFDA	DNF
	111	Amy Mourne	RFDA	DNF
	115	Iona Sewell	Tactic UK WRT	DNF
	116	Nicola Soden	Tactic UK WRT	DNF
	119	Hayley Preen	Torelli	DNF
	120	Georgina Oakley		DNF
	121	Maya Branfoot	Wahoo – Le Col	DNF
	122	Abigail Cooper	Brother UK – Orientation Marketing	DNF
	123	Isabella Torrie	Tactic UK WRT	DNF
	128	Gabriella Butler	AWOL Worx Galliard	DNF
	129	Katie Hadnum	RFDA	DNF
	1	Charlotte Broughton	AWOL OShea	DNS
	3	Jessica Finney	AWOL OShea	DNS
	4	Marine Guerin	AWOL OShea	DNS
	15	Evie White	Alba Development Road Team	DNS
	26	Grace Lister	DAS – Handsling Bikes	DNS
	28	Beth Morrow	DAS – Handsling Bikes	DNS
	30	Sophie Thackray	DAS – Handsling Bikes	DNS
	33	Rosie Wayland	FTP – Fulfil The Potential – Racing	DNS
	34	Charlotte Berry	Hutchinson – Brother UK	DNS
	49	Eva Callinan	Loughborough Lightning	DNS
	51	Amber Harding	Loughborough Lightning	DNS
	53	Morgan Newberry	Loughborough Lightning	DNS
	62	Megan Walker	Pro-Noctis – Heidi Kjeldsen – 200 Degrees Coffee	DNS
	64	Sophie Holmes	Saint Piran WRT	DNS
	79	Lauren Watson	Team Boompods	DNS
	80	Mary Wilkinson	Team Boompods	DNS
	85	Lucy Benezet Minns	Tofauti Everyone Active	DNS
	92	Katherine Sheridan		DNS
	95	Abi Smith	EF Education-TIBCO-SVB	DNS
	106	Kate Richardson	Lifeplus Wahoo	DNS
	118	Jenny Holl	TEKKERZ CC	DNS
	124	Mia Rutterford	Tofauti Everyone Active	DNS
	125	Amelia Southall	AWOL Worx Galliard	DNS
	126	Faith Hammond	LDN-Academy	DNS
	127	Shona Mosley	Lincoln Wheelers CC	DNS

Property Development Men’s Otley Grand Prix

Report

The men’s race was fast and furious, so much so that riders struggled to break clear of the speeding peloton in the early phases.

Ben Chilton (Ribble Collective), Sam Culverwell (Dolan Ellesse), David Hird (ROKiT-SRCT) and William Smith (TRINITY Racing) edged out a slender gap on lap 4 but a lap later they were reeled back in.

Harry Birchill (Saint Piran) then had a brief cameo out front but he too was brought back quickly. Dexter Leeming-Sykes (Wold Top The Edge Pactimo) and George Kimber (Embark Spirit BSS) were the next to break clear, but once again, their escape was short-lived.

TRINITY Racing rider Bob Donaldson then surged off the front and, for the first time in the race, there was meaningful daylight – or should that be twilight -between the escape and the bunch.

His lead had stretched out to around 15 seconds with seven laps remaining. Not definitive, certainly, but as Saint Piran tried to coordinate a chase, Donaldson’s TRINITY Racing teammates set about blocking. A lap later Donaldson was joined by teammate Will Smith and junior rider Zak Machin of the BCC Race Team. Would this trio now have the firepower to stay clear until the finish?

With four to go, the three riders had an advantage of 15 seconds, and with three to go, their lead was down to just 9 seconds, with Birchill chasing solo just ahead of the bunch. This was going down to the wire.

Two to go now and still the lead was barely budging, the trio danging 7 seconds clear of Birchill, who in turn just had a second on the peloton.

The three were still clear as they took the bell, but with their lead dwindling, Donaldson decided to take matters into his own hands, launching a solo move on the back straight in an attempt to stave off the charging bunch.

Behind, Birchill, Smith and Machin were all swallowed up but Donaldson continued to remain clear. Could he pull it off?

The answer was an emphatic yes, Donaldson raising his arms into the air just two seconds ahead of the marauding peloton.

Matt Fox of elite team Wheelbase CabTech Castelli led in the bunch to take an outstanding second, while Jim Brown (Cross Team Legendre) was third.

Donaldson now leads the National Circuit Series ahead of the Lister Horsfall Men’s Grand Prix on Friday.

Results

Rank	#	Name		Team	Time
1	61	Robert Donaldson		Trinity Racing	1:01:26
2	73	Matthew Fox		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+3
3	120	Jim Brown		Cross Team Legendre	st
4	100	Ben Chilton		Ribble Collective	st
5	78	Tim Shoreman		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
6	39	Harry Birchill		Saint Piran	st
7	117	Dexter Leeming-Sykes		Wold Top The Edge Pactimo	st
8	43	Leon Mazzone		Saint Piran	st
9	126	Oliver Wood			st
10	58	Ollie Peckover		trainSharp Elite	st
11	36	William Truelove		ROKiT – SRCT	st
12	42	Tom Mazzone		Saint Piran	st
13	63	Joe Pidcock		Trinity Racing	st
14	75	Callum Laborde		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
15	14	Cai Davies		Kalas Motip Race Team	st
16	67	Huw Buck Jones		Wales Racing Academy	st
17	33	David Hird		ROKiT – SRCT	st
18	6	James Hartley		Cycling Sheffield	st
19	110	Finn Crockett		Saint Piran	st
20	44	Bradley Symonds		Saint Piran	st
21	88	Sam Culverwell		Dolan Ellesse Race Team	st
22	108	Daniel Barnes		Team Spectra Cannondale	st
23	86	Josh Housley		Derby CC Webuycycle Huub RT	st
24	101	Tom Couzens		Ribble Collective	st
25	125	Thomas Armstrong		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
26	34	Josh Price		ROKiT – SRCT	st
28	19	Sebastian Grindley		MAS Design – Fensham Howes	st
29	38	Tom Williams		ROKiT – SRCT	st
30	94	Rowan Baker		London Dynamo	st
31	52	Harry Paveley		Team PB Performance	st
32	12	Will Perrett		Embark Spirit BSS	st
33	51	Tom Palfrey		Team PB Performance	st
34	55	Joe Holt		TEKKERZ CC	st
35	21	Daniel McDermott		Moonglu Race Team	st
36	27	Hugo Lutz Atkinson		Ribble rechrg Race Team	st
37	31	Joseph Beckinsale		ROKiT – SRCT	st
38	11	George Kimber		Embark Spirit BSS	st
39	79	Jacob Smith		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
40	66	Ben Bright		Wales Racing Academy	st
41	70	Griff Lewis		Wales Racing Academy	st
42	40	Rhys Britton		Saint Piran	st
43	5	Joe Coukham		Cycling Sheffield	st
44	50	Liam Flannery		Team PB Performance	st
45	77	Lee Rosie		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	st
46	18	Alex Beldon		MAS Design – Fensham Howes	st
47	22	Ben Mewes		Moonglu Race Team	st
48	68	William Harding		Wales Racing Academy	+13
49	84	Zak Machin		BCC Race Team	+15
50	113	Oliver Peace		Tofauti Everyone Active	st
51	65	William Smith		Trinity Racing	st
52	41	Lucas Jowett		Saint Piran	st
53	85	Robert Scott		Cross Team Legendre	st
54	74	Aaron King		Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+22
55	119	Matthew Kingston		Zappi Racing Team	st
56	16	Cameron McLaren		Kalas Motip Race Team	+37
57	9	Damien Clayton		Embark Spirit BSS	+57
58	72	Ed Morgan		Wales Racing Academy	+1:08
59	23	Ben Pease		Moonglu Race Team	+1:12
60	54	Alec Briggs		TEKKERZ CC	+1:13
61	8	James Wordsworth		Cycling Sheffield	+2:19
62	10	Sam Kettlewell		Embark Spirit BSS	st
63	56	Olivier Mangham		TEKKERZ CC	st
64	45	William Tidball		Saint Piran	+1 Lap
65	96	Max Rushby		Materiel-Velo.Com	+1 Lap
66	57	James Bevan		trainSharp Elite	+1 Lap
67	48	Harry Macfarlane		TAAP Endura	+4 Laps
68	35	Scott Redding		ROKiT – SRCT	+4 Laps
69	47	Josh Knowles		TAAP Endura	+4 Laps
70	93	Archie Fletcher		Innovation Racing	+4 Laps
71	17	Vaughn Pretorius		Kalas Motip Race Team	+4 Laps
72	80	Isaac Lawrence		503	+4 Laps
73	49	Harvey Stroh		TAAP Endura	+4 Laps
74	26	Joshua Horsfield		Ribble rechrg Race Team	+5 Laps
75	97	Felix Whetter		Mid Devon CC	+5 Laps
76	121	Archie Wright	503		+5 Laps
77	25	Carrick Hewing	Ribble rechrg Race Team		+5 Laps
78	106	Conal Davidson	Spokes Racing Team		+6 Laps
79	30	Joe Thorp	Ribble rechrg Race Team		+6 Laps
80	29	Fergus Robinson	Ribble rechrg Race Team		+7 Laps
	1	Euan Cameron	A.Fawcett Racing		DNF
	2	George Fox	A.Fawcett Racing		DNF
	3	Jack Lucas	A.Fawcett Racing		DNF
	13	Joe Wilson	Embark Spirit BSS		DNF
	15	Harry Green	Kalas Motip Race Team		DNF
	24	William Taylor	Moonglu Race Team		DNF
	28	Max Lutz Atkinson	Ribble rechrg Race Team		DNF
	37	Matthew Warhurst	ROKiT – SRCT		DNF
	46	James Ambrose Parish	TAAP Endura		DNF
	59	Tim Torrie	trainSharp Elite		DNF
	60	Matt Webster	trainSharp Elite		DNF
	69	Spencer Davies	Wales Racing Academy		DNF
	76	Jenson Brown	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli		DNF
	81	Sam Shepherd	503		DNF
	82	David Bolland	Army Cycling Union		DNF
	90	Sam Hollis	Eiser Hirumet		DNF
	91	Tiago Fougo	Giant Dijon Track Team (UCI Track Team)		DNF
	92	Struan McInnes	Holmfirth Cycling Club		DNF
	95	Cameron Keyworth	LVC Racing		DNF
	99	Joe Howcroft	Otley CC		DNF
	114	Harry Johnson	VC St Raphael		DNF
	118	Cavan Walker	Wold Top The Edge Pactimo		DNF
	124	Daniel Hepton	Team Bikestop Tyrekey 3FS		DNF
	4	Will Thompson	A.Fawcett Racing		DNS
	7	James McKay	Cycling Sheffield		DNS
	20	Ben Wiggins	MAS Design – Fensham Howes		DNS
	32	Matthew Ellis	ROKiT – SRCT		DNS
	62	Finlay Pickering	Trinity Racing		DNS
	64	Oliver Rees	Trinity Racing		DNS
	71	Fred Meredith	Wales Racing Academy		DNS
	83	Sean Dodsworth	Army Cycling Union		DNS
	87	Tobias Bartlett	Doddington Cycling Club		DNS
	89	Rory Webster	dooleys cycles		DNS
	98	Ross Birrell	Mini Discar		DNS
	102	Peter Cocker	Richardsons Trek DAS		DNS
	103	Jacob Avery	Ride Revolution Coaching		DNS
	104	Jake Hales	Ride Revolution Coaching		DNS
	107	Keir Gaffney	Spokes Racing Team		DNS
	109	Theodor Obholzer	Team Spectra Cannondale		DNS
	111	Archie Ellen	The Cycling Academy		DNS
	112	Denholm Edwards	Tofauti Everyone Active		DNS
	115	Benjamin Hellebo	Wheelsuckers		DNS
	116	Finlay Tarling	Willebrord Wil Vooruit		DNS
	122	Thomas Adby	Velo Club Venta		DNS
	123	Preslav Dimitrov	503		DNS
	53	Andrew Dalzell	Team PB Performance		DSQ