The inaugural Sherpa Performance Stage Race takes place this weekend in Essex, a rare national-level stage race, and an opportunity for riders to rack up points in the The British Continental road race rankings as the domestic road racing season nears its conclusion.
Here is our preview.
Featured image: Ian Wrightson/The British Continental
What is it?
A new stage race created by Sherpa Performance, a sports performance company. The race takes in four stages around the Roman town of Colchester, Essex.
The race consists of two 60 minute criteriums around a purpose built cycle track on day one, followed by a short 8km road bike time trial and a 91km undulating road race to decide the winner on Sunday.
As well as the general classification, a points classification is up for grabs, with a host of point scoring opportunities available across the stages, bar the time trial.
The stages
Saturday 3 August | Stages 1 and 2
Saturday consists of two 60 minute criteriums, run in opposite directions around the 1.6km purpose built cycle track at the Colchester Northern Gateway Sports Park, one of the longest of its sort in the country.
Flat and fast, the track is not on the technical side, featuring two long, sweeping hairpin bends as well as a number of fast corners and long straights on smooth tarmac. The stages are set to be fast and frantic, with tactical nous paramount if riders are to gain time on their rivals.
There will be intermediate sprints at the 20 and 40 minute marks, as well as across the line at the finish.
Stage 1 will be run in an anti-clockwise direction, and Stage 2 in a clockwise direction.
Sunday 4 August | Stage 3
An 8 km road bike time trial greets the riders and, a bit like the third session in golf, Stage 3 is likely to see significant movement in the leaderboard as riders will look for an advantage going into the decisive Stage 4 road race, which uses a portion of the same road.
Starting downhill and finishing with a light sting in the tail, riders will be making an all out effort with every second counting over the roughly 12 minute effort.
Sunday 4 August | Stage 4
Updated 10.00 3 August 2024
With time gaps having opened in the morning’s time trial, the race concludes with what is set to be an all action 93km afternoon road race, with the GC and points classifications on the line.
A late course change means that the riders take on 8 laps of the same circuit used for the Jock Wadley Memorial. Each lap is 11.4 kilometres long, and takes in just 67 metres of elevation gain. Flat but by no means easy. With twisty narrow lanes, crosswinds, unrelenting drags, a little kicker under a kilometre from the finish, the racing should be tough, especially as the end of a stage race. Expect the bunch to be whittled down steadily on each lap, with a solo win as likely as a reduced bunch sprint.
Riders to watch
Clay Davies (Ride Revolution Coaching) ended 2023 atop the British Cycling rankings, and although he hasn’t quite reached those heights this year he took a National B victory in the Hackney CC Road Race at the end of June and was 4th in a strong edition of the Timmy James Memorial back in May. He is one of a number of names who will be vying for the overall win here.
Davies wins the Hackney CC road race. Image: Mark James
Davies will be backed up by teammate and fellow Elite Category rider Jake Hales, who should find the criterium stage to his liking, having taken a number of victories in Milton Keynes this year as well as impressing in the National Circuit Series.
Oliver Hucks (TAAP Kalas) was third when the Jock Wadley Memorial was raced in similar roads back in March, albeit the conditions here will be very different to the rain-soaked spring affair Hucks experienced. Hucks has had a consistent season, a useful trait in a stage race, his best result coming in the PNE National B when he was second behind the now-retired Alex Richardson.
Another rider who went well at the East Cleveland Classic was Josh Housley, the aggressive HUUB BCC RT rider enjoying his best season to date including a maiden National B win at the London Dynamo Summer Road Race. Housley was in contention for overall honours at the Ronde van Wymeswold stage race in June, however his performance in a similar time trial cost him a spot on the podium.
Josh Housley wins the London Dynamo Summer Road Race, 9 June 2024. Credit: Ian Wrightson/The British Continental
19-year-old Callum Laborde (Wheelbase CabTech Castelli) is a rider in good form, having impressed to take 6th place from the early break at the Lancaster GP last weekend, after not finishing outside the top-15 in all seven rounds of the National Circuit Series.
Jamie Whitcherr (BmthCycleworks VitecFire FordCE) is a prodigious time trial talent, having taken a number of CTT victories already this season, having first come to attention with second place in the season opening Portsdown Classic. The young rider will be hoping to use the test against the clock to build his bid for the overall, just as he did in the U23 Tour of the Northwest – although on this occasion he won’t be able to use any TT specific equipment.
Jamie Whitcher at the Portsdown Classic, 11 Feb 2024. Credit: Ian Wrightson/The British Continental
One rider capable of upsetting the odds is is Bernard Galea (SPRNT), the Maltese rider winning the prologue of his home tour back in April on the way to second overall, as well as putting in strong displays in the Darley Moor criteriums and East Midlands Road Race Championships, where he took home a bronze medal.
Finally, Thomas Heal (StolenGoat RT) has already demonstrated his stage race form this season, finishing third in the four-stage Totnes Vire stage race in Devon. Can he repeat his podium feat here?
The inaugural Sherpa Performance Stage Race takes place this weekend in Essex, a rare national-level stage race, and an opportunity for riders to rack up points in the The British Continental road race rankings as the domestic road racing season nears its conclusion.
Here is our preview.
Featured image: Ian Wrightson/The British Continental
What is it?
A new stage race created by Sherpa Performance, a sports performance company. The race takes in four stages around the Roman town of Colchester, Essex.
The race consists of two 60 minute criteriums around a purpose built cycle track on day one, followed by a short 8km road bike time trial and a 91km undulating road race to decide the winner on Sunday.
As well as the general classification, a points classification is up for grabs, with a host of point scoring opportunities available across the stages, bar the time trial.
The stages
Saturday 3 August | Stages 1 and 2
Saturday consists of two 60 minute criteriums, run in opposite directions around the 1.6km purpose built cycle track at the Colchester Northern Gateway Sports Park, one of the longest of its sort in the country.
Flat and fast, the track is not on the technical side, featuring two long, sweeping hairpin bends as well as a number of fast corners and long straights on smooth tarmac. The stages are set to be fast and frantic, with tactical nous paramount if riders are to gain time on their rivals.
There will be intermediate sprints at the 20 and 40 minute marks, as well as across the line at the finish.
Stage 1 will be run in an anti-clockwise direction, and Stage 2 in a clockwise direction.
Sunday 4 August | Stage 3
An 8 km road bike time trial greets the riders and, a bit like the third session in golf, Stage 3 is likely to see significant movement in the leaderboard as riders will look for an advantage going into the decisive Stage 4 road race, which uses a portion of the same road.
Starting downhill and finishing with a light sting in the tail, riders will be making an all out effort with every second counting over the roughly 12 minute effort.
Sunday 4 August | Stage 4
Updated 10.00 3 August 2024
With time gaps having opened in the morning’s time trial, the race concludes with what is set to be an all action 93km afternoon road race, with the GC and points classifications on the line.
A late course change means that the riders take on 8 laps of the same circuit used for the Jock Wadley Memorial. Each lap is 11.4 kilometres long, and takes in just 67 metres of elevation gain. Flat but by no means easy. With twisty narrow lanes, crosswinds, unrelenting drags, a little kicker under a kilometre from the finish, the racing should be tough, especially as the end of a stage race. Expect the bunch to be whittled down steadily on each lap, with a solo win as likely as a reduced bunch sprint.
Riders to watch
Clay Davies (Ride Revolution Coaching) ended 2023 atop the British Cycling rankings, and although he hasn’t quite reached those heights this year he took a National B victory in the Hackney CC Road Race at the end of June and was 4th in a strong edition of the Timmy James Memorial back in May. He is one of a number of names who will be vying for the overall win here.
Davies will be backed up by teammate and fellow Elite Category rider Jake Hales, who should find the criterium stage to his liking, having taken a number of victories in Milton Keynes this year as well as impressing in the National Circuit Series.
Oliver Hucks (TAAP Kalas) was third when the Jock Wadley Memorial was raced in similar roads back in March, albeit the conditions here will be very different to the rain-soaked spring affair Hucks experienced. Hucks has had a consistent season, a useful trait in a stage race, his best result coming in the PNE National B when he was second behind the now-retired Alex Richardson.
Another rider who went well at the East Cleveland Classic was Josh Housley, the aggressive HUUB BCC RT rider enjoying his best season to date including a maiden National B win at the London Dynamo Summer Road Race. Housley was in contention for overall honours at the Ronde van Wymeswold stage race in June, however his performance in a similar time trial cost him a spot on the podium.
19-year-old Callum Laborde (Wheelbase CabTech Castelli) is a rider in good form, having impressed to take 6th place from the early break at the Lancaster GP last weekend, after not finishing outside the top-15 in all seven rounds of the National Circuit Series.
Jamie Whitcherr (BmthCycleworks VitecFire FordCE) is a prodigious time trial talent, having taken a number of CTT victories already this season, having first come to attention with second place in the season opening Portsdown Classic. The young rider will be hoping to use the test against the clock to build his bid for the overall, just as he did in the U23 Tour of the Northwest – although on this occasion he won’t be able to use any TT specific equipment.
One rider capable of upsetting the odds is is Bernard Galea (SPRNT), the Maltese rider winning the prologue of his home tour back in April on the way to second overall, as well as putting in strong displays in the Darley Moor criteriums and East Midlands Road Race Championships, where he took home a bronze medal.
Finally, Thomas Heal (StolenGoat RT) has already demonstrated his stage race form this season, finishing third in the four-stage Totnes Vire stage race in Devon. Can he repeat his podium feat here?
Provisional startlist
Entries will be available on the line.
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