2026 Curlew Cup & Beaumont Trophy: reports and results
Nicola Quaye soloed from the first lap to take a remarkable maiden Nat A victory at the Curlew Cup, as Tim Shoreman sprinted to victory in the Beaumont Trophy
Nicola Quaye (360cycling) made an audacious early attack pay off in remarkable fashion as she soloed from halfway round the first lap to take victory in the Curlew Cup, her first Nat A success.
In the Beaumont Trophy, Tim Shoreman (Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli) held his nerve – and his speed – to out-sprint Ollie Wood (Rapha Cycling Club) to prevail in a chaotic edition of the Open race.
Featured image: Olly Hassell/SWPix.com
Reports
Curlew Cup
The penultimate round of the National Road Series provided something of a unique feature, certainly this season, as showers ranging from light to heavy peppered the Northumberland course.
That left the roads of the former borderlands, this course just a stone’s throw from Hadrian’s Wall, with a covering of dampness, giving the 58 riders starting the Curlew Cup something slightly different to think about compared to the parched conditions experienced this summer.
Those conditions perhaps explained the approach for the first lap, with no one especially eager to launch a move in the first half lap until Nicola Quaye (360cycling) attacked on the far side of the course. Alone going up the Ryals for the first time, her advantage stretched to just under a minute, aided by the peloton splitting into two groups as they approached the climb.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
Through Fenwick and back into Stamfordham to complete the first lap, the peloton rejoined into a roughly 40-rider mass but no one was wanting to burn matches too early. As Quaye passed the feed zone and got to Blackheddon Bridge her lead had grown to 90 seconds.
For the middle lap, it was a similar story. The peloton was fracturing and reforming, with Quaye able to pace herself to a certain extent as the lead remained steady at around the minute-and-a-half mark. However, as the race approached the Ryals for the penultimate time the lead starting to shrink, 1min15sec at the top of the climb became 44sec going into Stamfordham.
With the bell ringing in their ears the peloton started to really power along, pushed forward by Lily Martin (Loughborough Lightning) to trim the lead down to 11 seconds on the run North toward Belsay Hall.
But as the race reached its crescendo, the race had one more twist in store. The Handsling Alba Development Road Team had been launching numerous attacks throughout, but it was only when Arabella Blackburn attacked in the final half-lap that something finally stuck as she bridged across to Quaye.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
Working well together, they stretched the lead back out to almost 90 seconds as the peloton settled for fighting for third rather than seeing if the leaders were able to be bridged to.
Coming into the final 3km, Blackburn said afterwards that she had tried to launch an attack on the final ascent of the Ryals but couldn’t make a move stick and, starting to cramp and fatigue, elected to sit on Quaye and put the pressure on the erstwhile leader.
Quaye, however, wasn’t going to let her final race of the season fizzle out. Counting down the kilometres until she reached the line, as soon as she saw the Stamfordham village sign she went full gas and sprinted all the way to the finish, holding enough in reserve to be able to pip Blackburn by a matter of metres. To cap off a successful season, having returned to the peloton after a few years away, Quaye also claimed the Queen of the Ryals competition.
Behind, the peloton split coming into the closing stages with a group of three – Awen Roberts (Canyon/SRAM Generation), Katie Scott (DAS-Hutchinson), and Martin – breaking clear of the rest. A ferocious three-up sprint to the finish just went the way of Roberts, with Scott fourth and Martin gaining more useful National Road Series points in fifth.
With Morven Yeoman (DAS-Hutchinson) finishing 10th, in the peloton, the gap at the top of the Series standings has shrunk down to 18 points with Yeoman on 258 and Martin on 240 with just the Ryedale Grand Prix next weekend awaiting the peloton.
In the Rapha Super-League, Yeoman has extended her advantage at the top of the standings with a 45-point lead over The Hera Project’s Daisy Taylor. Sitting on 124 points to her nearest challenger’s 79, her quest for the title – what could be a second-in-a-row for DAS-Hutchinson – was aided by a DNS for Meg Barker (Rapha Cycling Club).
Mirroring the morning’s Curlew Cup, the Beaumont Trophy started off as a wet affair as a rain shower just as the 110-rider peloton rolled out from Stamfordham dampened the roads just enough to make it noticeably wet under wheel.
That could explain how the race exploded on the very first lap. Heading into Stamfordham at the end of the opening tour, groups of riders were scattered across the road. The lead group of 10 were motoring along with a fair rate, aided by a pack that included the JAKROO Handsling pair of Alex Franks and Oscar Nisbett, Olivier Mangham (DAS-Richardsons), Foran CT’s Dom Jackson and Oliver Hucks, Josh Housley (Ride Revolution Cycling), Oliver Hurdle (StolenGoat 4Endurance), Cai Curtis-Roberts (360cycling), Damien Clayton (Private Member), and Matthew Warhurst (Schils-Doltcini Racing Team).
Behind, the nearest chasers were Mark Hansom (TS Racing) and Benjamin Fish (Private Member) but had Tom Martin (Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli), Ethan Squires (BCC Race Team), and Thomas Heal (JAKROO Handsling) only a handful of seconds further back.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
The leaders had a mammoth advantage over the peloton, which was 3m40sec as they crossed the line for the first time. That deficit was no doubt aided by the fact that the peloton with JAKROO riders including Rowan Baker controlling pace, wasn’t entirely keen to attack their own squad mates.
Come the end of the second of the four full laps the front 10 had, if anything, got even more comfortable in their position. Working smartly together and sharing the effort at the front, they built up a lead of two minutes on a group of eight which included Martin and Heal, alongside Henry Hunter (360cycling), Alex Beldon (NSN Development Team), Will Truelove (JAKROO Handsling), Jordan Giles (DAS Richardsons), Jonny Britton (Moonglu SpatzWear) and Oliver Snodden (Mandene Racing).
They had a decent advantage over the peloton, which was over two minutes, but as the third lap got going properly, the race was neutralised for a crash in the peloton involving half-a-dozen riders. When the race got going again with about a 45-minute delay, the action was quick to evolve.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
From the lead group, three riders departed. Franks had to retire with a mechanical, whilst Curtis-Roberts and Jackson slipped into the clutches of the lead chase group behind. That group found itself under pressure by the peloton, which had reset and was renewed in its resolve to chase down the leaders.
Formed into one cohesive unit, the peloton’s pace started to ramp up and was taking chunks of time out of the lead seven’s advantage with every kilometre ticked off.
Come the final ascent of the Ryals and the leaders had been caught and absorbed into a peloton which numbered almost 30 and wasn’t showing any signs of settling down, getting even more fractious as the climb took shape.
With no splits happening over the climb, it meant the run into Stamfordham for the final time was going to shape into a ferocious bunch downhill sprint. But, that’s where Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli used its numbers to its advantage.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
Working up through the lead group, Shoreman found himself at the rear of a fluorescent green lead out which launched him into the village in pole position. There was just one obstacle: Ollie Wood. The latter’s sprinting prowess needs no explanation, the Rapha Cycling Club rider is one of the fastest on two wheels and was side-by-side with Shoreman.
The pair were putting in maximum effort and on the run to the line, it was Shoreman who just snatched the victory by what appeared to be about half-the-width of his front tyre. He said afterwards, because he was looking down the full length of the sprint, he could see Wood’s front wheel and knew it was going to be close but just not how close until they crossed the line.
In an equally explosive sprint behind, John Bardsley (Private Member) out-muscled Beldon and Trueolve to take the final spot on the podium.
Elsewhere, Josh Housley’s early exploits in the break bagged himself enough points to win the King of the Ryals competition.
National Road Series leader Tom Armstrong, Shoreman’s teammate, took 13th on the road and bagged important points in his quest to take the series title next weekend at the North Yorkshire Grand Prix. He now leads by 45 points over teammate Tom Martin and, without wanting to put a curse on him, surely has one hand on the title.
Things are a lot more on edge in the Rapha Super-League. Two points separated Armstrong and Wood heading into this North East race but the latter’s second place has extended his advantage at the top of the points table, giving him a little more breathing room as he heads to Ampleforth in search of Super-League glory.
Nicola Quaye (360cycling) made an audacious early attack pay off in remarkable fashion as she soloed from halfway round the first lap to take victory in the Curlew Cup, her first Nat A success.
In the Beaumont Trophy, Tim Shoreman (Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli) held his nerve – and his speed – to out-sprint Ollie Wood (Rapha Cycling Club) to prevail in a chaotic edition of the Open race.
Featured image: Olly Hassell/SWPix.com
Reports
Curlew Cup
The penultimate round of the National Road Series provided something of a unique feature, certainly this season, as showers ranging from light to heavy peppered the Northumberland course.
That left the roads of the former borderlands, this course just a stone’s throw from Hadrian’s Wall, with a covering of dampness, giving the 58 riders starting the Curlew Cup something slightly different to think about compared to the parched conditions experienced this summer.
Those conditions perhaps explained the approach for the first lap, with no one especially eager to launch a move in the first half lap until Nicola Quaye (360cycling) attacked on the far side of the course. Alone going up the Ryals for the first time, her advantage stretched to just under a minute, aided by the peloton splitting into two groups as they approached the climb.
Through Fenwick and back into Stamfordham to complete the first lap, the peloton rejoined into a roughly 40-rider mass but no one was wanting to burn matches too early. As Quaye passed the feed zone and got to Blackheddon Bridge her lead had grown to 90 seconds.
For the middle lap, it was a similar story. The peloton was fracturing and reforming, with Quaye able to pace herself to a certain extent as the lead remained steady at around the minute-and-a-half mark. However, as the race approached the Ryals for the penultimate time the lead starting to shrink, 1min15sec at the top of the climb became 44sec going into Stamfordham.
With the bell ringing in their ears the peloton started to really power along, pushed forward by Lily Martin (Loughborough Lightning) to trim the lead down to 11 seconds on the run North toward Belsay Hall.
But as the race reached its crescendo, the race had one more twist in store. The Handsling Alba Development Road Team had been launching numerous attacks throughout, but it was only when Arabella Blackburn attacked in the final half-lap that something finally stuck as she bridged across to Quaye.
Working well together, they stretched the lead back out to almost 90 seconds as the peloton settled for fighting for third rather than seeing if the leaders were able to be bridged to.
Coming into the final 3km, Blackburn said afterwards that she had tried to launch an attack on the final ascent of the Ryals but couldn’t make a move stick and, starting to cramp and fatigue, elected to sit on Quaye and put the pressure on the erstwhile leader.
Quaye, however, wasn’t going to let her final race of the season fizzle out. Counting down the kilometres until she reached the line, as soon as she saw the Stamfordham village sign she went full gas and sprinted all the way to the finish, holding enough in reserve to be able to pip Blackburn by a matter of metres. To cap off a successful season, having returned to the peloton after a few years away, Quaye also claimed the Queen of the Ryals competition.
Behind, the peloton split coming into the closing stages with a group of three – Awen Roberts (Canyon/SRAM Generation), Katie Scott (DAS-Hutchinson), and Martin – breaking clear of the rest. A ferocious three-up sprint to the finish just went the way of Roberts, with Scott fourth and Martin gaining more useful National Road Series points in fifth.
With Morven Yeoman (DAS-Hutchinson) finishing 10th, in the peloton, the gap at the top of the Series standings has shrunk down to 18 points with Yeoman on 258 and Martin on 240 with just the Ryedale Grand Prix next weekend awaiting the peloton.
In the Rapha Super-League, Yeoman has extended her advantage at the top of the standings with a 45-point lead over The Hera Project’s Daisy Taylor. Sitting on 124 points to her nearest challenger’s 79, her quest for the title – what could be a second-in-a-row for DAS-Hutchinson – was aided by a DNS for Meg Barker (Rapha Cycling Club).
Beaumont Trophy
Mirroring the morning’s Curlew Cup, the Beaumont Trophy started off as a wet affair as a rain shower just as the 110-rider peloton rolled out from Stamfordham dampened the roads just enough to make it noticeably wet under wheel.
That could explain how the race exploded on the very first lap. Heading into Stamfordham at the end of the opening tour, groups of riders were scattered across the road. The lead group of 10 were motoring along with a fair rate, aided by a pack that included the JAKROO Handsling pair of Alex Franks and Oscar Nisbett, Olivier Mangham (DAS-Richardsons), Foran CT’s Dom Jackson and Oliver Hucks, Josh Housley (Ride Revolution Cycling), Oliver Hurdle (StolenGoat 4Endurance), Cai Curtis-Roberts (360cycling), Damien Clayton (Private Member), and Matthew Warhurst (Schils-Doltcini Racing Team).
Behind, the nearest chasers were Mark Hansom (TS Racing) and Benjamin Fish (Private Member) but had Tom Martin (Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli), Ethan Squires (BCC Race Team), and Thomas Heal (JAKROO Handsling) only a handful of seconds further back.
The leaders had a mammoth advantage over the peloton, which was 3m40sec as they crossed the line for the first time. That deficit was no doubt aided by the fact that the peloton with JAKROO riders including Rowan Baker controlling pace, wasn’t entirely keen to attack their own squad mates.
Come the end of the second of the four full laps the front 10 had, if anything, got even more comfortable in their position. Working smartly together and sharing the effort at the front, they built up a lead of two minutes on a group of eight which included Martin and Heal, alongside Henry Hunter (360cycling), Alex Beldon (NSN Development Team), Will Truelove (JAKROO Handsling), Jordan Giles (DAS Richardsons), Jonny Britton (Moonglu SpatzWear) and Oliver Snodden (Mandene Racing).
They had a decent advantage over the peloton, which was over two minutes, but as the third lap got going properly, the race was neutralised for a crash in the peloton involving half-a-dozen riders. When the race got going again with about a 45-minute delay, the action was quick to evolve.
From the lead group, three riders departed. Franks had to retire with a mechanical, whilst Curtis-Roberts and Jackson slipped into the clutches of the lead chase group behind. That group found itself under pressure by the peloton, which had reset and was renewed in its resolve to chase down the leaders.
Formed into one cohesive unit, the peloton’s pace started to ramp up and was taking chunks of time out of the lead seven’s advantage with every kilometre ticked off.
Come the final ascent of the Ryals and the leaders had been caught and absorbed into a peloton which numbered almost 30 and wasn’t showing any signs of settling down, getting even more fractious as the climb took shape.
With no splits happening over the climb, it meant the run into Stamfordham for the final time was going to shape into a ferocious bunch downhill sprint. But, that’s where Wheelbase-CabTech-Castelli used its numbers to its advantage.
Working up through the lead group, Shoreman found himself at the rear of a fluorescent green lead out which launched him into the village in pole position. There was just one obstacle: Ollie Wood. The latter’s sprinting prowess needs no explanation, the Rapha Cycling Club rider is one of the fastest on two wheels and was side-by-side with Shoreman.
The pair were putting in maximum effort and on the run to the line, it was Shoreman who just snatched the victory by what appeared to be about half-the-width of his front tyre. He said afterwards, because he was looking down the full length of the sprint, he could see Wood’s front wheel and knew it was going to be close but just not how close until they crossed the line.
In an equally explosive sprint behind, John Bardsley (Private Member) out-muscled Beldon and Trueolve to take the final spot on the podium.
Elsewhere, Josh Housley’s early exploits in the break bagged himself enough points to win the King of the Ryals competition.
National Road Series leader Tom Armstrong, Shoreman’s teammate, took 13th on the road and bagged important points in his quest to take the series title next weekend at the North Yorkshire Grand Prix. He now leads by 45 points over teammate Tom Martin and, without wanting to put a curse on him, surely has one hand on the title.
Things are a lot more on edge in the Rapha Super-League. Two points separated Armstrong and Wood heading into this North East race but the latter’s second place has extended his advantage at the top of the points table, giving him a little more breathing room as he heads to Ampleforth in search of Super-League glory.
Results
Curlew Cup
Beaumont Trophy
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