SCA 10 & 25 and Southdown Velo 25

Michael Valks was the lone Lewes Wanderer taking on 18 others from the host club and others on the evening of Thursday 24th for Eastbourne Rovers 7.2mile Birling Gap hilly time-trial.  Michael’s time of 20 minutes and 49 seconds placed him 13th.  On the similarly sweltering afternoon of Saturday 26th Lisa Davis was in a similar position, but it far from overwhelmed her.  Three-and-a half minutes after the course record holder had lowered her own mark in the Sussex Cycling Association ‘Sporting’ 10 in West Sussex then Lisa swept across the finish line in a time of 26 minutes and 11 seconds taking the record and her maiden victory in a non-club time-trial in the process.

The following morning Lisa’s husband Brett proved there are no slouches in their household when he lowered his personal best for 25 miles to 55 minutes and 43 seconds.  The event was the run by Southdown Velo along the A27 between Fontwell, Tangmere, Westhampnett and Arundel and Lewes were well represented.  Just ahead of Brett in 9th was Rob Rollings who posted 55:12, but the star of the show was Nick Dwyer who scorched round the course in 52:57 to finish first.  Lewes may have placed all their riders in the top ten had Tom Glandfield not taken the wrong exit from one of the many roundabouts and crossed the line in 27 minutes dead and in 13th place having ridden an extra 0.6 miles.  If it was hot in the south of England it was as nothing to the south of France where temperatures were some 10 degrees higher.  Pity then those taking part in the UCI World Masters Road Race - a 100 miles of mountain roads to the west of Albi.  In such conditions it is imperative to keep hydrated merely to finish never mind compete and Lewes Wanderers Dom Lowden was unfortunate enough to reach one of the feed stations to find the water bottles had already been taken by those ahead of him.  He persisted to the finish, but was not involved in the trophy presentation.

Lisa Davis was back in action and back in West Sussex on bank Holiday Monday afternoon in the SCA 25 mile event, essentially two-and-a half laps of the same course she mastered on Saturday afternoon.  She clearly recovered well as she won that event too in a time of 1 hour 4minutes and 55 seconds, just one second outside breaking another course record.