Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Final Round – Canary Wharf

Halfords Tour Series 2011 Champions Rapha Condor Sharp celebrating in Canary Wharf (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Rapha Condor Sharp crowned Halfords Tour Series Champions

Jonny McEvoy and Motorpoint take final round honours at Canary Wharf

After their early round dominance wore off, Rapha Condor Sharp finally did enough to clinch their much sought after Halfords Tour Series title at Canary Wharf in the final round of the 2011 Series.

Having come third overall for each of the past two seasons of the unique team based Series, the men of John Herety’s team finally came good, to take a popular and hard fought victory.

Defending Halfords Tour Series Champions Motorpoint Pro Cycling went out with a bang, thanks to Jonny McEvoy soloing to victory in the world famous business and shopping district, leading his squad to the team win on the night, their first of 2011.

Behind Endura Racing came second on the night, to ensure the final deficit to Rapha Condor Sharp was just five points.

Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Round 7 – Woking

The sprint finish in Woking (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Superman flies to victory in Woking

Wilkinson leads Endura Racing to the win in Woking, but Rapha Condor Sharp keep lead

Ian ‘Superman’ Wilkinson completed his comeback from an early season injury to lead home teammate Scott Thwaites in an Endura Racing 1-2 in Woking, also handing the Scottish squad the team win on the night.

Wilkinson turned in an impressive performance, riding across a 30 second gap to join five leaders, who he then outsprinted in the Woking finale.

With teammate and Stoke-on-Trent round winner Thwaites taking second, Jack Bauer picked up ninth from the front of the main field to give Endura Racing their second successive round win in the unique team based Series.  Leaders Rapha Condor Sharp picked up second on the night to ensure their advantage slipped to just six points going into the Canary Wharf final round on Thursday 16^th June.

The popular Woking round proved to be the most tactical race of The Halfords Tour Series so far, with the big teams all closely marking the moves of their rivals.

When the main move did get away after around half an hour of racing it contained Endura’s Thwaites, Motorpoint’s Johnny McEvoy, Rapha Condor Sharp’s Dean Windsor and Sigma Sport – Specialized’s Simon Richardson.

Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series – Final Round – Woking

Johnson Health Tech Series winner Helen Wyman (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Helen Wyman crowned in Woking

Victory for Lucy Garner isn’t enough to overall Wyman at top of inaugural Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series standings

Sixteen-year-old Lucy Garner sprinted to victory in Woking in the final round of the Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series, but the win wasn’t enough to overhaul Series leader Helen Wyman, who took the title and the final leader’s white jersey by just three points.

Wyman came fourth on the night, behind the podium of Garner, Hannah Rich and Hannah Barnes, with the latter taking a narrow victory in the Series Sprints competition on count back.

With team, individual and sprint standings still at stake, the final round of the Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series was a controlled affair, with no riders managing to escape the main field for any prolonged period.

A consistent pace throughout meant that the favourites remained bunched together in the front group throughout, which gradually thinned out as the race progressed.

Prominent early on in proceedings was Tamina Oliver of VC Squadra Donne, making her Series debut and immediately get into the thick of the action and taking the honours at the opening intermediate sprint of the evening.

Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series – Round 3 – Oldham

Annie Simpson from Horizon Fitness win in Oldham (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Annie Simpson leads Horizon Fitness 1-2 in Oldham

Simpson and King head the field for Horizon Fitness, as Helen Wyman continues in Series lead

Annie Simpson took victory in Round Three of the Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series at Oldham, heading home teammate Dani King and Series leader Helen Wyman from a four rider breakaway group.

Fellow escapee Sarah Byrne came home fourth, but took the honours in the evening’s sprints competition for her VC St Raphael team.

In front of a large and supportive crowd in Oldham town centre, the new-for-2011 Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series reached its penultimate round.

As with the men’s race later that evening, the tough town centre course took its toll from the outset, with the 33 rider bunch soon becoming strung out around the 1.1 kilometre course.

Round One winner Hannah Barnes took the honours at the opening sprint of the evening, pipping Hannah Rich to the line, with Wyman in third.  With neither Barnes nor Rich scoring at the second sprint and Wyman only taking fourth, Barnes moved back into the lead of the competition, albeit tied on points with Rich, but donning the jersey thanks to her sprint win on the night.

A group of four riders pulled clear as the race reached half distance, containing the two Horizon Fitness riders, Wyman and Biddulph’s Byrne.  The four inexorably moved clear, building their lead tour after tour, lapping much of the field.

Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Round 6 – Oldham

Endura rider Rob Partridge wins in Oldham (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Endura Racing break the Rapha Condor Sharp dominance

Series leaders ‘only’ third, as Rob Partridge flies to narrow victory in Oldham

Like buses Endura Racing wait the whole Halfords Tour Series for a win to come along, and then they take two in a week, as Rob Partridge took victory in the Series first appearance in Greater Manchester at Oldham on Thursday night.

Partridge took a narrow victory over Motorpoint’s Marcin Bialoblocki, who appeared to celebrate too soon as they hit the line, raising an arm in salute and allowing the Endura Rider to pip him to the win in a photo finish.  Defeat was a bitter pill for Bialoblocki, who had heroically ridden across a 20-second gap to the four leaders in the last few laps.

Partridge’s win helped Endura to also defeat reigning Halfords Tour Series Champions Motorpoint by the narrowest of margins, as both teams tied on the placing of their three riders, so the Welsh rider’s win gave Endura Racing their first team victory of 2011 and broke the Rapha Condor Sharp dominance.

Rapha Condor Sharp remain at the top of the standings, despite only coming third on the evening, their worst performance of the 2011 Halfords Tour Series season, although their lead slips to just seven points over Endura Racing with two rounds to go.

A tough town centre circuit with very little flat welcome The Halfords Tour Series to Oldham, for the unique team based series’ first visit to Greater Manchester.  As at the previous round at Stoke-on-Trent the pace was high from the start, with splits forming soon after the start as attacks came and went.

A large group of around 12 riders from a variety of teams went clear early on, but as that faltered the move that mattered though formed from it with just under half the race to go, as four riders pulled out a 20-second gap in one tour of the Oldham circuit.  The big three teams were represented with Partridge, Ian Bibby and Dean Downing, with Team Raleigh’s Liam Holohan making up the quartet.

Sweat ‘n Gears appears on Tour Series broadcast by ITV4

Spotted in the background sporting my Rudy Projects during the Stoke round of the Tour Series

For those of you who were watching the Tour Series on ITV4 on Wednesday evening, you may have spotted me in the background halfway through the broadcast while Marcel Six of Team Twenty3c-Orbea was being interviewed.  Now some say I looked like a nightclub bouncer (thanks Ian), but I think I looked quite dashing, sporting my Rudy Project Rydon.

So, if you agree and want to look just as good with your own pair of Rudy Project’s, make sure you check out Sport and Speed.

And if you missed the programme from Wednesday evening, you can watch it again through the ITV Player by clicking here.

Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series – Round 2 – Stoke-on-Trent

From left to right: Hannah Rich, Dani King and Helen Wyman

King crowned again in Stoke-on-Trent

Twelve months on from victory in the Horizon Fitness GP, Dani King wins again in The Potteries

Dani King repeated her victory of twelve months previously, to take the honours in Round Two of the new-for-2011 Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series, while a second successive second place elevates Helen Wyman into the lead of the standings.

King once again won alone in Stoke-on-Trent, some distance ahead of Wyman, with Hannah Rich narrowly pipping Horizon Fitness RT teammate Joanna Rowsell on the line for third place, as the Stoke-on-Trent took victory on home roads to also move into the lead of the team competition.

Having been comprehensively beaten by Motorpoint in the opening round of the Series at Peterborough, Horizon Fitness were keen to make amends in their home city, with their quintet of riders highly visible throughout the race and making all of the key moves.

Also prominent throughout was Wyman, taking second behind Rich at the first sprint, before being the most persistent chaser of lone leader King for much of the second half of the race.  Crossing the line second, Wyman’s reward was the Johnson Health Tech leader’s jersey, having finished as runner-up in both Peterborough and Stoke-on-Trent, to move her seven points clear of erstwhile leader Hannah Barnes.

Barnes also lost charge of the sprints jersey to Rich, while Motorpoint slip to second in the standings, nine points behind the Horizon Fitness team.

Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Round 5 – Stoke-on-Trent

Scott Thwaites (Endura Racing) takes the win (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Thwaites the winner, but Rapha Condor Sharp steamroller continues

Scott Thwaites takes the individual honours for Endura Racing, but men in black make it five from five

Scott Thwaites became the first non-Rapha Condor Sharp individual winner of the 2011 Halfords Tour Series in Stoke-on-Trent last night, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Series leaders taking their fifth team win of the season to tighten their grip on the Series.

Rapha Condor Sharp now have a nine point lead at the top of the standings with three events to go, in Oldham, Woking and the Grand Finale at Canary Wharf.

The Halfords Tour Series leaders placed Dean Downing second and Graham Briggs third, but Thwaites proved too strong on the run to the line, although with Dean Windsor also in the top ten, this was enough for win number five of 2011.

Although held on a tough circuit, The Halfords Tour Series’ third visit to Stoke-on-Trent was run off at a frantic pace, with several riders and Series Technical Director Mick Bennett commenting that it was the fastest ever Tour Series race they had seen.

Certainly that seemed the case from a spectators standpoint, as lap after lap the peloton would appear strung out around the 1.2 kilometre circuit, with attacks flourishing briefly, before diminishing just as rapidly.

While entertaining for the large crowd gathering at the finish area outside the Potteries Shopping Centre, it was tough for the riders, with a number of retirements including Malcolm Elliott and Marcel Six, wearing the Boardman Bikes Sprints jersey but still feeling the effects of his Colchester crash.

Numerous small attacks came and went, with Pendragon Le Col Colnago’s Cornishman Chris Opie one notable attackee, as he stayed away for some time, claiming the evening’s second Boardman Bikes Sprints competition.

Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Round 4 – Colchester

Dean Downing takes the win in Colchester (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

The only way is Rapha Condor Sharp

Dean Downing leads Rapha Condor Sharp to victory in Colchester

Dean Downing showed the rest of The Halfords Tour Series that the only way in Essex on Thursday night was Rapha Condor Sharp, winning the sprint from a five man break to help the team to a fourth win from four rounds.

Victory in Colchester was added to team wins at Durham, Aberystwyth and Peterborough to keep Rapha Condor Sharp at the top of the table, with 40 points from a possible 40, and crucially pull out a six point lead over nearest rivals Endura Racing, who could only finish fourth on the night.

Strong performances by Yanto Barker and Jeroen Janssen helped Pendragon Le Col Colnago and Team Raleigh to second and third on the night, elevating both teams in the standings, with just five points covering third to eighth with half the Series gone.

The ten teams of The Halfords Tour Series, plus guest outfit Team Corley Cycles, put on a fantastic evening’s racing in front of massive crowds in Colchester that lined the 1.6 kilometre town centre circuit.

The race kicks off in Colchester (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Sigma Sport – Specialized’s Simon Richardson was the races’ first attacker to succeed, going it alone early on to soon be joined by Barker and Janssen.

Downing then powered away from the pack on the long drag through the line, followed by Team UK Youth’s Niklas Gustavsson.  After a couple of laps pursuit, the leading group became a quintet with their lead growing by every lap.  With 20 laps to go the lead stood at just over thirty seconds, which gradually grew until just under the minute mark.

Flying Dutchman Jeroen Janssen took the honours at the evening’s first two Boardman Bikes Sprints of the evening, and with his second place at the third and final sprint won the competition for Team Raleigh, and moved up to third in the Boardman Bikes Sprint standings.

With a Rapha Condor Sharp rider in the front group, Endura Racing came to the front in a bid to reduce the deficit, but as Ian Wilkinson tried to attack, Ed Clancy covered, and so on resulting in a stalemate.

Similarly from the front group, every time Richardson tried to attack in a bid to shed the sprinters from the break, Downing covered in the knowledge that he’d be the favourite should the outcome be decided in a sprint.

With six laps to go a crash approaching the line disrupted the chasing pack, ensuring that the front five would contest the win alone, and thanks to Downing’s persistence, no one was able to go clear.

At the sprint Downing took control, leading up the centre of the road, as Gustavsson just failed to pip on the near side with Janssen in close attendance and Barker and Richardson trailing behind.

Dale Appleby of the CyclePremier.com Metaltek team brought in the bunch sprint at the front of a Halfords orange clad peloton, with James McCallum’s eighth and Andy Tennant’s ninth ensuring that once again Rapha Condor Sharp took the honours.

With Endura Racing only claiming seventh, eleventh and twenty fifth at the line, the nearest challengers faltered to slip to six points in arrears.  Reigning Halfords Tour Series Champions Motorpoint endured another evening to forget, coming seventh to slide to sixth in the standings, twenty points off the lead.

Week Three of The Halfords Tour Series sees the Series visit Stoke-on-Trent on Tuesday 7^th June and Oldham on Thursday 9^th June, for the first round to take place in Greater Manchester.

Both events also see the Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series return to the Halfords Tour Series schedule for the second and third events of the four race series.

Round Four, Colchester, Results

Team Results

1. Rapha Condor Sharp
2. Pendragon Le Col Colnago
3. Team Raleigh
4. Endura Racing
5. Team UK Youth
6. Sigma Sport – Specialized
7. Motorpoint Pro Cycling
8. CyclePremier.com Metaltek
9. Twenty3c Orbea
10. Wilier GoSelfDrive.com

Individual Results

1. Dean Downing                           Rapha Condor Sharp
2. Niklas Gustavsson                   Team UK Youth
3. Jeroen Janssen                         Team Raleigh
4. Yanto Barker                             Pendragon Le Col Colnago
5. Simon Richardson                   Sigma Sport – Specialized
6. Dale Appleby                             CyclePremier.com Metaltek
7. Scott Thwaites                           Endura Racing
8. James McCallum                      Rapha Condor Sharp
9. Andrew Tennant                      Rapha Condor Sharp
10. Marcel Six                                   Twenty3c Orbea

Boardman Bikes Sprints winner

1. Jeroen Janssen                        Team Raleigh

Team Standings, after Round Four

1. Rapha Condor Sharp                         40pts
2. Endura Racing                                     34pts
3. Sigma Sport – Specialized                24pts
4. Team Raleigh                                        22pts
5. Pendragon Le Col Colnago              21pts
6. Motorpoint Pro Cycling                   20pts
7. Team UK Youth                                   20pts
8. Twenty3c Orbea                                  19pts
9. CyclePremier.com Metaltek          14pts
10. Wilier GoSelfDrive.com                   6pts

Boardman Bikes Sprints standings, after Round Four

1. Kristian House             Rapha Condor Sharp             27pts
2. Marcel Six                    Twenty3c Orbea                       18pts
3. Jeroen Janssen            Team Raleigh                           14pts

For more information from the Halfords Tour Series, visit: www.tourseries.co.uk And for more images from the racing, visit Velo UK. The race report on Round 3 can be found here.

Halfords Tour Series 2011 – Round 3 – Peterborough

Graham Briggs takes the win (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Graham Briggs leads Rapha Condor Sharp to hat trick

Rapha Condor Sharp keep up their unbeaten record in 2011 Halfords Tour Series

Rapha Condor Sharp added victory in Peterborough on Tuesday evening to wins at Durham and Aberystwyth as they made it three wins from three in The Halfords Tour Series.

It wasn’t just the team win heading the way of the men in black, who are rapidly becoming the men in Halfords orange.  Graham Briggs took the individual win on the night, joining teammates Zak Dempster and Ed Clancy who took victories in Rounds One and Two of the Series.

Briggs headed home teammate Dean Downing and Scott Thwaites of Endura Racing, who once again took the runners-up spot behind Rapha Condor Sharp, to keep themselves in the hunt for The Halfords Tour Series title.

Reigning Champions Motorpoint Pro Cycling endured an evening to forget, coming home a disappointing ninth, with their best placed rider Malcolm Elliott in 25^th position, thus unable to replicate the victory by their women’s team earlier in the day in the opening round of the Johnson Health Tech Women’s Grand Prix Series,

With large crowds and sunny skies, conditions were far more benign than for Round Two in Aberystwyth, leading to a race run off at high speeds, meaning attacks had to work hard to stay away for just a handful of laps.

Team Raleigh’s Matt Cronshaw was the first rider to go it alone, being joined a lap later by Ed Clancy, Magnus Backstedt and two others, but next time around it was just Olympian Clancy a few lengths clear of the field, illustrating the ever changing complexion of the race.

Clancy was often towards the front during the race, which came all back together again for the final time with five laps remaining.  From then on Endura Racing and Rapha Condor Sharp kept the pace high to deter any last ditch attacks bringing the race down to a final bunch sprint.

There was plenty of Halfords orange at the front in the sprint, with Briggs narrowly heading home last year’s Peterborough winner Dean Downing for his first Halfords Tour Series win since the first ever Tour Series round, at Milton Keynes in 2009.

Behind Downing’s second place and Clancy’s sixth ensured a comfortable victory, with the fourth Rapha Condor Sharp rider in the top ten, James McCallum, not even having to come into play in the unique team based series, where a team’s result is calculated on the lowest finishing position for a team’s leading three riders.

It wasn’t all Rapha Condor Sharp on the night though, with the three intermediate Boardman Bikes Sprints falling to James Stewart (Team UK Youth), Peterborough rider Steve Lampier and Tom Murray (both Sigma Sport – Specialized).  Thanks to points gained on the night, Marcel Six moved into second in the standings in the Boardman Bikes Sprints, pulling on the yellow jersey of leader thanks to the absence of Kristian House.

Halfords Tour Series leaders Rapha Condor Sharp (photo credit: Tour Series/VeloUK)

Rapha Condor Sharp now lead the way in the overall Halfords Tour Series standings by three points from Endura Racing, with Sigma Sport – Specialized in third, eleven points behind.

Colchester returns to The Halfords Tour Series schedule on Thursday evening.  In 2009, the last time the Essex venue hosted Tour Series racing, Tom Southam won for Rapha Condor Sharp after an impressive attacking ride.  Rivals of Rapha Condor Sharp will hope that history doesn’t repeat itself in 2011, as they bid to put an end to their winning run.

Round Three, Peterborough, Results

Team Results

1. Rapha Condor Sharp
2. Endura Racing
3. Twenty3c – Orbea
4. Sigma Sport – Specialized
5. CyclePremier.com – Metaltek
6. Team UK Youth
7. Team Raleigh
8. Pendragon Le Col Colnago
9. Motorpoint Pro Cycling
10. Wilier GoSelfDrive.com

Individual Results

1. Graham Briggs                      Rapha Condor Sharp
2. Dean Downing                       Rapha Condor Sharp
3. Scott Thwaites                      Endura Racing
4. Marcel Six                               Twenty3c – Orbea
5. Jason White                            CyclePremier.com – Metaltek
6. Ed Clancy                                 Rapha Condor Sharp
7. Ian Wilkinson                         Endura Racing
8. Magnus Backstedt                Team UK Youth
9. Rafa Rodriguez Segarra      Twenty3c – Orbea
10. James McCallum                   Rapha Condor Sharp

Boardman Bikes Sprints winner

1. Marcel Six                    Twenty3c – Orbea

Team Standings, after Round Three

1. Rapha Condor Sharp                            30pts
2. Endura Racing                                         27pts
3. Sigma Sport – Specialized                    19pts
4. Twenty3c – Orbea                                   17pts
5. Motorpoint Pro Cycling                       15pts
6. Team Raleigh                                            14pts
7. Team UK Youth                                       14pts
8. Pendragon Le Col Colnago                  12pts
9. CyclePremier.com – Metaltek            11pts
10. Wilier GoSelfDrive.com                        5pts

Boardman Bikes Sprints standings, after Round Three

1. Kristian House              Rapha Condor Sharp
2. Marcel Six                      Twenty3c Orbea
3. Jonny McEvoy             Motorpoint Pro Cycling

For more information from the Halfords Tour Series, visit: www.tourseries.co.uk And for more images from the racing, visit Velo UK. The race report on Round 2 can be found here.