Divisional road race honours are up for grabs this Sunday for the North West, Yorkshire and North East regions at the North West, Yorkshire & North East Regional Road Race Championships.

Here is our preview.

Featured image: Emma Wilcock

What is it?

Organised by Spectrum Racing, this is a combined regional road race championships, with separate regional road race honours up for grabs for the North West, Yorkshire and North East regions.

Route

Situated south of York and passing through two villages – Thorganby and Wheldrake – this course is a flat, with just 46m of elevation over its 18.5km length.

The women’s race incorporates four full laps (the lap board will show four to go when crossing the finish for the first time) and is 80km in total, while the men’s race takes in six full laps and is 120km in length.

Riders to watch

Women’s race

On a flat fast course like this, the fast-finishing junior rider Lucy Glover is one of the standout riders on the women’s startlist. Glover won her last National B road race, the Witham Hall Grand Prix, and is a good bet for more success this weekend.

Team Boompods have options in Elizabeth Hermolle, who was second at the Aughton Road Race and the RCR FatCreations Road Race this year, and Gemma Mitchell, seventh at the Aughton Road Race.

Rachel Galler (Saint Piran WRT) has been consistent in 2024, and was in the top ten at her last two National B road races, the Harrogate Nova Spring Road Race and the Oakenclough road race.

Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting riders Corinne Side and Lucy Ellmore have both had quiet seasons in 2024. Side, winner of the Curlew Cup last year, is a potential race winner if she can rediscover her 2023 form, and Ellmore should be a useful foil.

Finally, Erin Avill (Nouvelles Cycling x Prendas) will be looking to build on her fourth place at the Witham Hall Grand Prix.

Open race

Two names stand out on the startlist. Damien Clayton (Le Col RT) tops our national road race rankings after three National B road race victories this season and a further two podiums. Not far behind Clayton, Alex Luhrs (Moonglu RT) sits third in the rankings and leads the Scottish Alba Road Series after collecting two National B road race wins and three podiums in 2024. These are two domestic heavyweights, and will be closely marked.

Who can rival them though? Cycling Sheffield can play the numbers game, and in brothers Jack Hartley and James Hartley they have two recent National B road race winners. Jack beat Luhrs and Clayton in the GA Bennett s/b Pedal Pushers of Grantham road race as recently as last weekend, while James impressed with a stage win at the 360cycling Tour of the North West. The team also has Peaks 2 Day stage victor Max Krasinski as another option.

Daniel McDermott (Ride Revolution) may have had a quiet season on the National B road racing circuit this year but he showed his form when he finished an impressive sixth overall at the Rás Tailteann.

Watch out too for Harry Tanfield (Saint Piran), who returns to racing for the first time this season after a long period of illness. Don’t expect him to be in top shape, but even a sub-par Tanfield could be a threat.

Timings

Race	Start time
Women’s race	9.25
Open race	12.55

Provisional startlists

Women’s race

Bib	Rider	Age	Team	Pts
1	Megan Anderson	Senior	Team Boompods	13
2	Helen Auden	Senior	Private Member	0
3	Erin Avill	U23	Nouvelles Cycling x Prendas	40
4	Teri Bayliss	Senior	Reifen Racing	0
5	Jihanna Bonilla-Allard	Senior	Private Member	0
6	Ruth Dunstan	Senior	PDQ Property Elite	2
7	Lucy Ellmore	U23	Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting	29
8	Rachel Galler	Senior	Saint Piran WRT	79
9	Lucy Glover	Junior	Shibden Apex RT	60
10	Katie Hadnum	U23	Doltcini – Cycle Division	0
11	Katherine Handy	Senior	Valley Striders CC	13
12	Elizabeth Hermolle	Senior	Team Boompods	122
13	Jayati Hine	Senior	Loughborough Lightning	0
14	Jamie Leigh Lloyd	Junior	Liverpool Braveheart Bicycle Club	1
15	Megan Lloyd	Junior	Liv Cycling Club – Halo Films	0
16	Beth Macrae	Senior	Jadan Vive le Velo p/b Glasdon	6
17	Gemma Mann	Senior	Harrogate Nova Race Team	0
18	Eleina McFadden	Junior	Inspire Racing Adaston Scape	0
19	Emily Middlebrooke	Junior	Otley CC	0
20	Gemma Mitchell	Senior	Team Boompods	52
21	Amy Mourne	U23	Doltcini – Cycle Division	0
22	Georgina Oakley	Senior	Loughborough Lightning	23
23	Annabel Ramsay	U23	Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting	12
24	Joanne Rea	Senior	Team Kirkley Cycles	3
25	Louise Scupham	Senior	Jadan Vive le Velo p/b Glasdon	0
26	Iona Sewell	Senior	Tactic UK WRT	0
27	Corinne Side	Senior	Pro-Noctis – 200 Degrees Coffee – Hargreaves Contracting	20
28	Evie Smith	Junior	Shibden Apex RT	8
29	Lola Stevenson	Senior	Huddersfield Star Wheelers	0
30	Katherine Swithenbank	Senior	360cycling	0
31	Sophie Thackray	Senior	DAS-Hutchinson-Brother UK	7
32	Isabella Torrie	Senior	Tactic UK WRT	0
33	Jasmine Townend	Junior	Inspire Racing Adaston Scape	0
34	Lydia Turan	Senior	Private Member	0
35	Freya Whiteside	U23	Nouvelles Cycling x Prendas	0

Open race

Bib	Rider	Age	Team	Pts
1	Benjamin Arey	Junior	Clifton CC	0
2	Luca Bednarek	Junior	Fensham Howes – MAS Design	0
3	Joe Boothroyd	Senior	Giant Kendal-Sidas Uk	0
4	Jonny Britton	Senior	Moonglu Race Team	0
5	Richard Butler	Senior	Giant Kendal-Sidas Uk	0
6	Euan Cameron	Senior	Shibden-A.Fawcett Racing	0
7	Michael Chadwick	Senior	Spirit TBW Stuart Hall Cycling	0
8	Damien Clayton	Senior	Le Col Race Team	458
9	Matthew Cole	Junior	Zappi Junior Race Team	0
10	Russell Crowley	Senior	Addform-Vive Le Velo	0
11	George Daly	Senior	Geared Up RT	0
12	Ewan Dowes	Senior	Private Member	0
13	Adam Duggleby	Senior	Addform-Vive Le Velo	40
14	Tobias Edwards	Senior	Team Lifting Gear Products	0
15	Matthew Ellmore	U23	Prologue Racing Team	6
16	Archie Fletcher	U23	360cycling	0
17	Alexander Foster	U23	Cycling Sheffield	2
18	Hamish Graham	Senior	Private Member	0
19	Mark Hansom	Senior	Leadout Performance	0
20	Nikolas Hansen	Senior	Valley Striders CC	0
21	Charles Harrison	U23	Prologue Racing Team	0
22	Jack Hartley	U23	Cycling Sheffield	98
23	James Hartley	U23	Cycling Sheffield	79
24	Taylor Hill	U23	Private Member	0
25	Ed Hindmarsh	Senior	Wolf Cycles	0
26	Alex Hodgkins		Otley CC	0
27	Elliot Holt	Junior	Fietsen Tempo	0
28	Colin Holt	Senior	Fietsen Tempo	0
29	Henry Hunter	U23	Kendal Cycle Club	27
30	James Ingham	Junior	The Green Jersey CC	11
31	Matthew Jones	Senior	Spectrum Racing	0
32	Sam Kettlewell	U23	Spirit TBW Stuart Hall Cycling	0
33	Max Krasinski	U23	Cycling Sheffield	61
34	Matthew Leach	Senior	Addform-Vive Le Velo	0
35	Matthew Lock	Senior	TAAP Kalas	0
36	Alex Luhrs	Senior	Moonglu Race Team	327
37	Barry McDonald	Senior	Tactic Sport UK Race Team	0
38	Conor McKinnon	U23	Dolan Ellesse Race Team	35
39	Ben Mewes	Senior	Moonglu Race Team	17
40	Oliver Moss	Junior	Clifton CC	5
41	James Moss	Senior	Saddleback Racing	0
42	James Parkin	Senior	Wolf Cycles	0
43	Ben Pease	Senior	Moonglu Race Team	47
44	Tristan Pilling	U23	360cycling	0
45	Jack Rees	Senior	Moonglu Race Team	54
46	George Safranauskas	U23	HIVE Racing	19
47	Toby Simpson	U23	Fietsen Tempo	0
48	Liam Slinn	Senior	Prologue Racing Team	0
49	Michael Smith	Senior	EMC	0
50	Harvey Stroh	U23	TAAP Kalas	2
51	Craig Summersgill	Senior	Wolf Cycles	0
52	Harry Tanfield	Senior	Saint Piran	0
53	Will Thomson	U23	Shibden-A.Fawcett Racing	0
54	Joseph Turnbull	Junior	Prologue Racing Team	0
55	Ross Turner	Senior	Leadout Performance	27
56	Mark Walker	Senior	Wold Top The Edge Pactimo	0
57	Dean Watson	Senior	Wold Top The Edge Pactimo	2
58	Robert Watson	Senior	Paceline Cycles North	0
59	Scott Wolfenden	Senior	Private Member	0
60	Joseph Wright	Senior	Wolf Cycles	0
61	Reserve – Alexander Foster	U23	Cycling Sheffield	2
62	Reserve – Daniel McDermott	Senior	Ride Revolution Coaching	1
63	Reserve – Daniel Smith	Senior	Leadout Performance	0