A trio of Wightlink Cycle Race Team members – Nick, Ewan and Alfie – recently travelled north to Cannock chase to compete in Round 1 of the British Cycling National MTB XCO Series.
Ewan and Alfie were first up in the Junior (17-18) category. Both were gridded mid pack and got off to a good start, Alfie had a minor crash early on but carried on and started the chase back. Ewan was riding, well asserting himself amongst the top 15 and dabbling with some of the UK’s best riders.
Ewan continued to ride strong to the finish line and whilst having a 2-up battle into the finish unfortunately hit the dirt and had to settle for 13th – a brilliant result! Alfie rode a strong second half to the race finishing in 25th after his early crash.
Next up was Nick racing his first national in the Expert category. Nick was gridded last row due to coming up from the sport category last year. Once through the traffic on the first lap Nick was able to put in a few strong laps. Jumping from group to group and with loads of attacks, Nick managed to ride through the group to finish in 15th.
The lads said:
“It was a brilliant experience to race a national. The track and competition is just next level. We’re looking forward to the next few rounds and would like to thank our sponsors for the support as well as the team for giving us the opportunity to compete in these type of races.”
Meanwhile, Mackenzie Cook raced Round 1 of the Southern Enduro, held at Milland. Mack says:
“It had a good selection of technically challenging trails with good features. The terrain was dusty, rooty and sketchy. It pushed my skill and my bike to the max. I finished 17th out of 19, which I am pleased with as this is still new to me. I have gained valuable experience on how to tackle the next race. A big thank you to all our teams sponsors, especially Wightlink for helping me get here and Wight Mountain for their support and my last minute bike repairs.”
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