Team News: Wightlink-Wight Mountain CRT

On Sunday 15th October, Wightlink Wight-Mountain team members James Brett and Oli Nolan travelled to Popham Airfield near Basingstoke for the sixth round of the Wessex Cyclocross season, hosted by Pedalon and North Hampshire RC.

Team News: Wightlink-Wight Mountain CRT

Race Report – w/e 29/10/2023

Although there had been significant rainfall in the week leading up to the event, the course remained surprisingly dry throughout the day due to the well-draining nature of the venue. The course featured open straights and sweeping corners in a large grassy field, as well as some more tight, twisty and technical sections in a section of woodland that also included ruts, roots and rocks.

James was first to race in the competitive Vet 40-49 category. With numerous top riders returning to the regional scene after two successful National Trophy rounds, the pointy end of the race was hard fought. James battled hard to finish in 20th place – an excellent result. Oli, participating in the final race of the day, was looking to return to the top 10 after last week’s challenging race at Southampton. Starting on the third row of the grid, he passed multiple riders throughout, making use of the less technical areas of the course to put the power down. Achieving his goal, he crossed the line in a credible 10th place. Overall, a brilliant day of racing.

On Sunday 29th October, Allan Cook, Ewan Cook and Nick Earley travelled to Frimley Green in Surrey to compete in the Gorrick Halloween XC Classic. Ewan was first off on a very slippery course. Luckily the rain held off for his race but despite his best efforts to chase down the leader over the 2 laps he had to settle for a well-earned 2nd place. Allan put in another solid performance in the Vet race and finished mid-pack.

The final race of the day was the men’s Sport Category (4 laps). Due to the adverse weather and the number of tyres on the ever-worsening track, this meant for a muddy, sloppy affair. Nick started well, soon establishing himself in the top 5. After a bit of overtaking and with other riders struggling in the conditions, he found himself in a head-to-head race with one other rider. On one of the last muddy climbs Nick was gapped, leaving him to ride smooth through the conditions to take a creditable 2nd place. After the race Nick said: ‘I’m really happy with the result in that weather and conditions. I want to thank my Dad for being pit crew in the rain and Wightlink Isle of Wight Ferries for their continued support’.