This Sunday (1 June) the Derek Lusher Memorial turns the quiet Suffolk lanes north-west of Ipswich into the arena for the Eastern Region’s one-day title fight.
Here is our preview.
Featured image: Mark James
What is it?
The Derek Lusher Memorial Road race this year incorporates the Eastern Road Race Championships, British Cycling’s annual divisional title-race for riders who hold an Eastern-region licence. It runs as a National B event for E/1/2/3 categories, meaning anyone can start, but only the first Eastern rider over the line is crowned regional champion. That status brings a British Cycling medal, a line on the palmarès and automatic entry to the national championships later in June.
This year’s edition, promoted by Stowmarket & District CC, rolls out of Somersham Village Hall at 14:00 on Sunday 1 June. A relatively small field will duke it out for podium medals, bragging rights and the Eastern champion’s title, ensuring aggressive racing from the gun.
Route
The covers 12 laps of a 10.3 km circuit (124 km / 77 mi) that finishes each time on the sting of Willisham Hill.
Riders leave Somersham Village Hall under neutral, roll through Offton and join the loop just beyond the Limeburners pub; racing goes live as the bunch crosses the finish line on the first pass of Willisham Hill.
From the line the road drags gently through Willisham Tye before a sharp left at Barking Tye drops the bunch onto the B1078. This straight, slightly downhill run to Ringshall is wide, exposed and usually wind-scoured—perfect terrain for cross-wind echelons or an organised chase. At Great Bricett a 120-degree left-hander fires the race onto a narrower farm lane peppered with S-bends; it is here, on the crunching accelerations out of each corner, that small groups often edge clear.
The lane spits the bunch into Offton, where another tight left sets riders onto the finishing drag. Willisham Hill is only 500 m long but bites up to 7 % in its final bends, and because the finish sits right on the crown the climb has to be raced at full gas every lap. After eleven passages that sting, the twelfth will decide the jersey: launch too early and you stall on the steepest pitch; leave it too late and the line arrives in a heartbeat.
Riders to watch
Rowan Baker of Raptor Factory Racing snatched overall victory at Peaks 2 Day with a long solo raid and followed it up by finishing fourth on the brutally steep Kennel Hill Classic. The 23-year-old’s habit of attacking early on testing terrain makes him the man everyone will mark once the race hits the Willisham back-roads.
Baker at the Jock Wadley. Image: Mark James
Monte Guerrini has been Le Col RT’s points machine in 2025, clocking wins at the Royal Navy Cup and West Thames League, runner-up spots at Evesham Vale and the Andrews Trophy, plus a sixth at DAP CC. The Italian-born rouleur packs a sharp kick after repeated accelerations, making him dangerous both from a break and in a small-group dash.
Callum Laborde has turned heads this spring: runner-up at the Kennel Hill Classic, fifth at DAP CC and, most recently, a win in the Lotus Cars League. His diesel engine thrives on exposed roads, so watch for Laborde forcing splits on the blustery B1078 before the favourites can react.
DAS Richardsons’ Frank Longstaff blends velodrome speed with road toughness. A brace of wins at the Good Friday Track Meet and victory at the Ixworth town-centre crit prove his finishing kick; add a podium in the Lotus League and Longstaff becomes the ideal foil if team-mate Alex Peters is heavily marked.
Davies wins the Andrew Trophy. Image: Mark James
Ride Revolution’s Clay Davies announced his form this year by winning the Andrews Trophy National B and placing fifth in the fast Jock Wadley Memorial. A week of hard racing at the Rás Tailteann has topped up his endurance, so expect Davies to pile on the pressure with an early move if the bunch hesitates.
Former WorldTour pro Alex Peters has rediscovered top form with second places at both the Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix and the Timmy James Memorial. Peters’ ability to cope with repeated climbs and still unleash a lethal uphill sprint makes him the rider most likely to conquer Willisham Hill if the lead group is still intact on the final lap.
This Sunday (1 June) the Derek Lusher Memorial turns the quiet Suffolk lanes north-west of Ipswich into the arena for the Eastern Region’s one-day title fight.
Here is our preview.
Featured image: Mark James
What is it?
The Derek Lusher Memorial Road race this year incorporates the Eastern Road Race Championships, British Cycling’s annual divisional title-race for riders who hold an Eastern-region licence. It runs as a National B event for E/1/2/3 categories, meaning anyone can start, but only the first Eastern rider over the line is crowned regional champion. That status brings a British Cycling medal, a line on the palmarès and automatic entry to the national championships later in June.
This year’s edition, promoted by Stowmarket & District CC, rolls out of Somersham Village Hall at 14:00 on Sunday 1 June. A relatively small field will duke it out for podium medals, bragging rights and the Eastern champion’s title, ensuring aggressive racing from the gun.
Route
The covers 12 laps of a 10.3 km circuit (124 km / 77 mi) that finishes each time on the sting of Willisham Hill.
Riders leave Somersham Village Hall under neutral, roll through Offton and join the loop just beyond the Limeburners pub; racing goes live as the bunch crosses the finish line on the first pass of Willisham Hill.
From the line the road drags gently through Willisham Tye before a sharp left at Barking Tye drops the bunch onto the B1078. This straight, slightly downhill run to Ringshall is wide, exposed and usually wind-scoured—perfect terrain for cross-wind echelons or an organised chase. At Great Bricett a 120-degree left-hander fires the race onto a narrower farm lane peppered with S-bends; it is here, on the crunching accelerations out of each corner, that small groups often edge clear.
The lane spits the bunch into Offton, where another tight left sets riders onto the finishing drag. Willisham Hill is only 500 m long but bites up to 7 % in its final bends, and because the finish sits right on the crown the climb has to be raced at full gas every lap. After eleven passages that sting, the twelfth will decide the jersey: launch too early and you stall on the steepest pitch; leave it too late and the line arrives in a heartbeat.
Riders to watch
Rowan Baker of Raptor Factory Racing snatched overall victory at Peaks 2 Day with a long solo raid and followed it up by finishing fourth on the brutally steep Kennel Hill Classic. The 23-year-old’s habit of attacking early on testing terrain makes him the man everyone will mark once the race hits the Willisham back-roads.
Monte Guerrini has been Le Col RT’s points machine in 2025, clocking wins at the Royal Navy Cup and West Thames League, runner-up spots at Evesham Vale and the Andrews Trophy, plus a sixth at DAP CC. The Italian-born rouleur packs a sharp kick after repeated accelerations, making him dangerous both from a break and in a small-group dash.
Callum Laborde has turned heads this spring: runner-up at the Kennel Hill Classic, fifth at DAP CC and, most recently, a win in the Lotus Cars League. His diesel engine thrives on exposed roads, so watch for Laborde forcing splits on the blustery B1078 before the favourites can react.
DAS Richardsons’ Frank Longstaff blends velodrome speed with road toughness. A brace of wins at the Good Friday Track Meet and victory at the Ixworth town-centre crit prove his finishing kick; add a podium in the Lotus League and Longstaff becomes the ideal foil if team-mate Alex Peters is heavily marked.
Ride Revolution’s Clay Davies announced his form this year by winning the Andrews Trophy National B and placing fifth in the fast Jock Wadley Memorial. A week of hard racing at the Rás Tailteann has topped up his endurance, so expect Davies to pile on the pressure with an early move if the bunch hesitates.
Former WorldTour pro Alex Peters has rediscovered top form with second places at both the Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix and the Timmy James Memorial. Peters’ ability to cope with repeated climbs and still unleash a lethal uphill sprint makes him the rider most likely to conquer Willisham Hill if the lead group is still intact on the final lap.
Provisional startlist
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