Lucy Harris (Loughborough Lightning) emerged the strongest at the Banbury Star CC road race, winning a three-up sprint to take Round 3 of the British Team Cup.
Grace Reynolds (Brother UK-OnForm) kickstarted the move of the day, pulling clear of the peloton on the first lap. Keen not to let Reynolds’ advantage grow too much, Georgina Oakley (Loughborough Lightning) began to pull on the front of the bunch to keep Reynolds in sight.
Harris pushes the pace up Edge Hill, pursued by Langham. Image: Mark James
As the peloton reached the bottom of Edge Hill, the circuit’s main climb, Oakley’s teammate, National Road Series leader Lucy Harris, moved to the front, setting a hard pace, intent on creating a split.
Harris’ pace was so strong that only three riders could follow, with Zoe Langham (Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting), Ruth Shier (DAS-Hutchinson-Brother UK) and Katy Hill (London Academy) joining Harris to form a select escape group. The four caught Reynolds to make five, and the quintet pushed on over the top of the climb to maximise their advantage.
The gap continued to grow as the collaboration continued, with the leaders 1 minute 40 seconds ahead towards the end of the second lap. At the top of the second ascent of Edge Hill, however, Hill dropped her chain, and despite her breakaway companions riding easy in the hope she might be able to rejoin, she was eventually dropped.
The break continued to work well together, however, despite the loss of Hill and by the third lap the lead was two minutes.
On the final lap Shier made a move on the flat, but with a headwind to contend with her efforts were nullified. Langham made her move on the last ascent of Edge Hill. The effort jettisoned Reynolds, and briefly distanced Shier too, but Harris remained on Langham’s wheel.
Harris attacked through the final two corners with just over kilometre left, a move which dropped Shier. As they reached the bottom of the 500m climb to the finish line, however, Shier had battled back once again. Langham took to the front, Harris coming round her to take her first ever National B road race win. Langham held on for second, with Shier in third.
Harris was delighted with the win, her consistency this season finally paying off. “I feel like I’m consistently in the top 10 and I almost never win,” she told The British Continental after the race. “It felt really good to do it with my parents and the whole of the local club there watching.”
The result means that DAS-Hutchinson-Brother UK move above the Phoenix Collective in the British Team Cup standings. FTP (Fulfil The Potential) Racing remain third, but Harris’ win means Loughborough Lightning has reduced FTP’s advantage to just 35 points.
Lucy Harris (Loughborough Lightning) emerged the strongest at the Banbury Star CC road race, winning a three-up sprint to take Round 3 of the British Team Cup.
Featured image: Mark James
Report
The sun was out in full force as a big field fought on the 2024 edition of the Banbury Star CC road race, with riders facing four laps of a challenging circuit near Drayton, Oxfordshire.
Grace Reynolds (Brother UK-OnForm) kickstarted the move of the day, pulling clear of the peloton on the first lap. Keen not to let Reynolds’ advantage grow too much, Georgina Oakley (Loughborough Lightning) began to pull on the front of the bunch to keep Reynolds in sight.
As the peloton reached the bottom of Edge Hill, the circuit’s main climb, Oakley’s teammate, National Road Series leader Lucy Harris, moved to the front, setting a hard pace, intent on creating a split.
Harris’ pace was so strong that only three riders could follow, with Zoe Langham (Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting), Ruth Shier (DAS-Hutchinson-Brother UK) and Katy Hill (London Academy) joining Harris to form a select escape group. The four caught Reynolds to make five, and the quintet pushed on over the top of the climb to maximise their advantage.
The gap continued to grow as the collaboration continued, with the leaders 1 minute 40 seconds ahead towards the end of the second lap. At the top of the second ascent of Edge Hill, however, Hill dropped her chain, and despite her breakaway companions riding easy in the hope she might be able to rejoin, she was eventually dropped.
The break continued to work well together, however, despite the loss of Hill and by the third lap the lead was two minutes.
On the final lap Shier made a move on the flat, but with a headwind to contend with her efforts were nullified. Langham made her move on the last ascent of Edge Hill. The effort jettisoned Reynolds, and briefly distanced Shier too, but Harris remained on Langham’s wheel.
Harris attacked through the final two corners with just over kilometre left, a move which dropped Shier. As they reached the bottom of the 500m climb to the finish line, however, Shier had battled back once again. Langham took to the front, Harris coming round her to take her first ever National B road race win. Langham held on for second, with Shier in third.
Harris was delighted with the win, her consistency this season finally paying off. “I feel like I’m consistently in the top 10 and I almost never win,” she told The British Continental after the race. “It felt really good to do it with my parents and the whole of the local club there watching.”
The result means that DAS-Hutchinson-Brother UK move above the Phoenix Collective in the British Team Cup standings. FTP (Fulfil The Potential) Racing remain third, but Harris’ win means Loughborough Lightning has reduced FTP’s advantage to just 35 points.
Bernard Galea (SPRNT) was the winner of the morning’s Regional A road race.
Results
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