3rd Team Overall in Johnson Health Tech GP series

Stoke-on-Trent hosted the final round of the Johnson Health Tech series.  The team conisted of Jo Tindley, Adel Tyson-Bloor, Bex Heath, Hannah Layland and Eleanor Jones  An excellent ride by the team saw them clinch the 3rd place prize overall by scoring 24pts, with Jo 7th, Adel 11th and Bex 16th.  The team ended up clear of Mule Bar girls in 4th by a massive 23pts. 
On the night, Jo ran Annie Simpson close for the overall sprints competition.  With Helen Wyman away by herself, there was only 4pt up for grabs in the intermediate sprints.  Jo managed to win the bunch sprint for each, ably assisted by Bex leading her out, scoring 8pt on the night and coming in just 1pt off Annie overall.  Jo ended up 7th overall in the series and Adel 11th.
The team has done an exceptional ride in the whole series and has certainly put VC St Raphael in the mix as one of the top teams in the country. 

Hannah Walker and Jo Tindley battle for sprint points 

Round Five Individual Result
1)    Helen Wyman, Kona Factory Racing
2)    Laura Massey, Vivelo Bikes / Inverse / Cyclaim
3)    Jessie Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas
4)    Harriet Owen, Node4 - Giordana Racing
5)    Hannah Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas
6)    Lucy Garner, Node4 - Giordana Racing
7)    Jo Tindley, VC St Raphael
8)    Penny Rowson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas
9)    Ruth Winder, Team VanderKitten
10)    Alice Barnes, Twenty3c.co.uk - Orbea
11)    Adel Tyson-Bloor, VC St Raphael
12)    Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas
13)    Grace Garner, RST Racing Team Trigon
14)    Louise Mahe, Mule Bar Girls
15)    Corrine Hall, Node4 - Giordana Racing
16)    Rebecca Heath, VC St Raphael
17)    Miriam Freemantle, Team Hope Factory Racing
18)    Hayley Edwards, Champion System / Maxgear / Kyklos
19)    Sarah Brook, Mule Bar Girls
20)    Nicole Walters, Team Hope Factory Racing

Final Overall Individual Standings, post Round Five (top ten)
1)    Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 77pts
2)    Helen Wyman, Kona Factory Racing, 72pts
3)    Corrine Hall, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 62pts
4)    Penny Rowson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 58pts
5)    Laura Massey, Vivelo Bikes / Inverse / Cyclaim, 57pts
6)    Harriet Owen, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 54pts
7)    Jo Tindley, VC St Raphael, 50pts
8)    Hannah Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 45pts
9)    Alice Barnes, Twenty3c.co.uk - Orbea, 31pts
10)    Lydia Boylan, Look Mum No Hands!, 28pts
11)    Adel Tyson Bloor, VC St Raphael, 27pts

Final Overall Team Standings, post-Round Five
1)    Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 202pts
2)    Node4 - Giordana Racing, 175pts
3)    VC St Raphael, 105pts
4)    Mule Bar Girls, 82pts
5)    Look Mum No Hands!, 45pts

Bex 16th at National Road Race

Jo and Bex travelled to York for the Women's National Road Race Championships today.  As per usual years the pattern of the race was set by the European based pro-riders.  After having been on antibiotics all week after a nasty bit of road rash gor infected from a crash in the JHT series, Jo struggled with form for the race.  Bex however rode a very valiant race and managed an impressive 16th place, finishing in a groups with most of the top domestic riders in country and beating many of them in the sprint for the line.  Well done Bex, brilliant effort considering this is her first season road racing!

Women’s Race Result
1. Sharon Laws AA Drinks
2. Lizzie Armitstead, AA Drinks @ 1.36
3. Emma Pooley, AA Drinks, @ 1.41
4. Nikki Harris, Telnet @2.43
5. Sarah Storey, For Viored @3.52
6. Nicole Cooke, Faren @9.02
7. Catherine Williamson, Bizhub
8. Katie Colclough, Luliemon
9. Emma Trott, Dolmans @9.44
10. Natalie Creswick, Mulebar @9.51
11. Sarah Bryne, For Viored
12. Claire Galloway, For Viored
13. Penny Rowson, Matrix Fitness Prendas
14. Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness Prendas
15. Gemma Niel, Leslie Bikeshop
16. Rebecca Heath, VC St raphael
17. Corrine Hall, Node 4
18. Eileen Row,
19. Laura Massey,
20. Hannah Barnes
21. Lowri Bunn
22. Delia Beddis
23. Nicola Juniper
24. Keyliegh Brogan
25. Karla Boddy

Ellie wins again Thruxton

Ellie took another win last night in really windy conditions at Thruxton race circuit. She managed to outsprint her nearest rival for the win. Well done Ellie, good to see you winning a sprint :)

Ellie Wins at Portsmouth

Ellie Gilham took on a wet and windy race at Portsmouth today. This was a stage race with a prologue followed by a crit, where the women rode in with the 3rd cat men. Ellie did a strong TT to win by 2seconds and also won the crit by managing to stay in the bunch with the men and lap the other women riders. A very strong performance by Ellie, well done

Johnson Health Tech Round 4 - Woking

Jo Tindley, Bex Heath, Adel Tyson-Bloor, Ellie Gilham and Laura Clode all took on the highly technical circuit in the fourth round of the Johnson Health Tech series at Woking.
Going into this round as second in the sprints competition, behind Annie Simpson wearing the overall jersey, meant that Jo would start in the sprints jersey again. Jo rode an aggressive race, taking 3rd place in one of the sprints, edging her closer to Annie in the overall sprints competition. 

Jo stringing out the bunch

Bex was also in the front group with Jo, made up of just 14 riders. An unfortunate crash by Jo within the last lap cost her a high placed finish, but she got up and finished before the chasers, to finish in 15th place. Bex finished strongly in the front group in 13th. Adel lead home the chasers in a very respectible 17th place. Ellie and Laura worked in small groups chasing and is to their credit to have ridden such a technical course as juniors on this stage. Well done to the team for retaining their 3rd place in the team competition.



Pre-Race faces!



Going into the final round at Stoke on thursday the team lie in 3rd place, with a slim advantage over 4th placed Mule Bar Girls 3pts behind. Jo also retains her 2nd place in the sprints competition 8pts adrift of Annie Simpson and with a cushion of 3pts over 3rd place. Jo also lies in 9th place in the overall standings, within 2pts of 5th place, while Adel lies 13th in the overall standings.

For full report:
http://www.velouk.net/2012/06/13/report-johnson-health-tech-grand-prix-series/

Overall Team Standings, post Round 4 - Woking
1) Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 155pts
2) Node4 - Giordana Racing, 145pts
3) VC St Raphael, 76pts
4) Mule Bar Girls, 73pts
5) WyndyMilla UK Youth, 7pts

Sprints standings, post Round 4 - Woking
1) Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 24pts
2) Jo Tindley, VC St Raphael, 16pts
3) Hannah Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 13pts
4) Ruth Winder, Team VanderKitten, 12pts
5) Hannah Barnes, Team Ibis Cycles, 12pts
6) Lucy Garner, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 8pts
7) Harriet Owen, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 8pts
8) Helen Wyman, Kona Factory Racing, 5pts

Overall Individual Standings, post Round 4 - Woking
1) Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 68pts
2) Corrine Hall, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 56pts
3) Helen Wyman, Kona Factory Racing, 52pts
4) Penny Rowson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 45pts
5) Laura Massey, Vivelo Bikes / Inverse / Cyclaim, 38pts
6) Louise Mahe, Mule Bar Girls, 38pts
7) Harriet Owen, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 37pts
8) Hannah Barnes, Team Ibis Cycles, 37pts
9) Jo Tindley, VC St Raphael, 36pts
10) Hannah Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 29pts
11) Lydia Boylan, Look Mum No Hands!, 28pts
12) Alice Barnes, Twenty3c.co.uk - Orbea, 20pts
13) Adel Tyson-Bloor, VC St Raphael, 17pts
14) Jo McRae, Look Mum No Hands!, 16pts
15) Adele Carter, Team Hope Factory Racing, 13pts
16) Lyndsey Glazier, Team Hope Factory Racing, 8pts
17) Emily Bagnall, WyndyMilla UK Yout, 7pts
18) Grace Garner, RST Racing Team Trigon, 5pts

Bex 4th at Capernwray

Bex Heath and Ellie Gilham travelled to the testing circuit of Capernwray for the 3rd round of the Womens National Road Race series. The small field of 30 riders that took to the start line is testament to the challenging nature of a circuit that suits the climbers. The group split on the very first time up the climb, which they were to tackle 5 times, and Bex was in the select few that made the cut of about 10 riders. A couple of attacks on the hill saw 3 riders go the road with Bex chasing to try and bridge the gap over the top of the climb. Up the hill on the final climb and Bex attacked the group she was with to claim 4th place and a silver medal in the North West Regional Road Race champs.

Bex Silver in NW Regional Road Race Champs

Result
1. Sarah Storey, For Viored
2. Tamina Oliver, Abergavenny RC
3. Sarah Byrne,
4. Rebecca Heath, VC St Raphael
5. Penny Rowson, Matrix Fitness/Prendas
6. Lowri Bunn, Abergavenny RC
7. Laura Massey, Vivelo-Bikes/Inverse Cyclaim RT
8. Molly Weaver, Scott Contessa
9. Claire Galloway, For Viored
10. Laura Murray, Velocity 44 Stirling

For full report and pictures:
http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/road/article/roa20120610-road-Road--Sarah-Storey-wins-Capernwray-0

Eleanor wins at Shrewsbury

Eleanor Jones and Heather Bamforth both rode the womens race in the Shrewsbury Sports Village Circuit Races. The pair worked well together having formed a break away of 6 riders that they drove. Their teamwork paid off as Eleanor came away with the win, with Heather in 6th. Great result and great teamwork.

Results:
1 Eleanor Jones (VC St Raphael)
2 Nikola Butler (Vivelo-Bikes/Inverse Cyclaim RT)
3 Manon Lloyd (Towy Riders)
4 Katie Evans (Team Type 1)
5 Tracy Dresch (Squadra Donne - Shutt VR/Bikefood)
6 Heather Bamforth (VC St Raphael)

Hillingdon

Fresh from riding the tour series at Colchester this week, Nicci raced at Hillingdon in the womens only race. Having chased down many attacks in the latter stages of the race and keeping the bunch together, Nicci finished well to place 6th in the sprint. A great result.

Johnson Health Tech Round 3 - Colchester

Colchester hosted the 3rd round of the Johnson Health Tech series and it turned out to be a wet and windy race. The length cut down from 45mins to 35mins and the weather conditions meant all attacks were neutralised and no riders managed to escape the bunch. Jo scooped more points in the sprints competition by placing second in both primes. This means that she lies 2nd overall with a slim margin of 1pt over Hannah Barnes in 3rd. An unfortunate crash where Louise Mahe took out Bex going into the last sprint prime 3 laps before the finish meant that she would never regain contact with the lead bunch. Bex did however manage to finish well in 13th, while Jo finished in the lead group in 9th. Adel finished high up in the 2nd group on the road to take 15th, Caroline in 25th and Nicci in 27th. This was a very strong ride by the team and they claimed 2nd place on the night. The team go into the penultimate round at Woking on tuesday night in 3rd place overall in the series. Jo will wear the sprinters jersey at Woking, earned by her 2nd place to Annie Simpson in the overall standings for that competition.

Start of race

Overall Team Standings, post-Round Three
1) Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 108pts
2) Node4 - Giordana Racing, 108pts
3) VC St Raphael, 58pts
4) Mule Bar Girls, 50pts
5) Look Mum No Hands!, 45pts
6) WyndyMilla UK Youth, 6pts

Sprints standings, post Round Three1) Annie Simpson, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 24pts
2) Jo Tindley, VC Raphael, 13pts
3) Hannah Barnes, Team Ibis Cycles, 12pts
4) Harriet Owen, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 8pts
5) Lucy Garner, Node4 - Giordana Racing, 5pts
6) Hannah Walker, Matrix Fitness - Prendas, 5pts
7) Helen Wyman, Kona Factory Racing, 5pts

For full report and results:
http://www.velouk.net/2012/06/08/report-johnson-health-tech-gp-colchester/

Jubilee Road Race - Womens Team Series

A wet and hilly race saw our 5 riders of Jo Tindley, Adel Tyson-Bloor, Bex Heath, Ellie Gilham and Eleanor Jones tackle 4laps of an undulating circuit...with a killer climb. The hill split the bunch into 3 groups on the road from the first lap, Jo and Bex in the front group and Adel and Ellie in the second. Valiant efforts of all our riders on the hill and at the finish meant they took 5th team on the day with Jo finishing in 8th, Bex 11th, Adel 27th, Ellie 48th and Eleanor Jones 54th. Well done to all the girls on such a tough circuit in miserable
conditions!

Jo at the top of the 14% climb

For more details and full results:
http://www.velouk.net/2012/06/03/report-womens-team-series-banbury/

Hillingdon GP - Womens National Series

Riding this race we had Jo Tindley, Adel Tyson-Bloor, Eleanor Jones, Bex Heath, Ellie Gilham, Caroline Harding and Nicci Meadows.

The brief for this race was to be aggressive and attack to force a break-away, that would be our best chance to win the race as Lucy Garner, the world junior road race champion was riding. The girls did just this and there were several moves that went up the road with one of our riders featuring in each of them. Bex Heath was away with a group early on in the race but the other riders she was with weren't working so it was doomed to fail. Adel did a brilliant lead-out for Jo who took one of the primes.



Jo taking Prime, lead-out by Adel

 A move just over half way through the race saw Adel, and 3 other riders clear of the bunch. They were soon joined by Lucy Garner and Elinor Barker. With the major teams represented this move stuck and saw them clear of the bunch by over a minute. Adel ended up 6th and Jo did a very respectable sprint to come in 4th in the bunch gallop and take 10th overall!



Adel in the 6-(wo)man break!

The girls worked brilliantly as a team, putting in work for team-mates when required. Great team work!

Post race hug, Ellie, Adel, Bex, Caroline, Jo

Having taken 10th place at the Cheshire Classic, the first round of the National series back in April, Jo now lies in 10th place in the standings. Adel lies in 17th overall having been away racing the Tour of Korea when Cheshire was on.

For full report and results:
http://www.velouk.net/2012/05/27/report-hillingdon-grand-prix/

Womens National Omnium Series - Welwyn 2nd June

VC riders included: Adel Tyson-Bloor, Caroline Harding, Eleanor Jones, Laura Clode

Caroline attacked in the scratch race and soloed to victory. Adel and Caroline came 3rd and 4th in the pursuit respectively. More aggressive riding from Adel and Eleanor in the points race saw them clear up the points in the last sprint.

Final results: Adel 6th, Caroline 7th, Eleanor 11th and Laura 15th. Great result for the team.

Laura and Eleanor in the bunch

Johnson Health Tech Round 2 - Peterborough

Riders for this round included Jo Tindley, Adel Tyson-Bloor, Bex Heath, Caroline Harding and Laura Clode.

Jo in the Sprinters Jersey at the start of the race

The second round at Peterborough was not such a technical circuit but wasn't without its challenges....and crashes. Jo started this round wearing the sprinters jersey, earnt for her 2nd place in the standings. Luck was not with us for this round as Caroline and Adel had both been ill coming into the round. Also crashes meant that the girls were held up along the way. Unfortunately Bex was caught up in an early crash and an epic chase back on to the hurtling bunch is testiment to her strength that she managed to get back on. Both Jo and Bex were safely in the bunch but had missed out on the move of 3 riders up the road. This move was never brought back and so it was a bunch sprint for the group of 20ish riders. Some questionable sprinting saw a rider go down just in front of Jo and Bex who were then held up and unable to get through. Bex ended up 14th and with the crashes and illnesses of both Adel and Caroline, the team slipped down to 5th in the round and 5th overall. Jo lies in 9th place overall.

For full report and results:
http://www.velouk.net/2012/05/30/harriett-owen-conquers-peterborough-for-node4/