Great turn out for final race of series – Planet X’s Janet Birkmyre – wraps up the series with victory.

Janet Birkmyre (PLanet X) and Caroline Kloiber ( Rapha Condor) battling it out!

When the weather was giving many a battering of torrential rain, thunder and lightning, Hillingdon it seemed, was the only place it didn’t rain yesterday. In fact the conditions were the nicest I’ve ever seen there.
Warm, light breeze, spots of sunshine and 17 women ready to race.

The field could have been significantly larger if not for coinciding with the Junior National Track Champions being held at Newport this week. Regulars like Louise Mahe, Alice Monger Godfrey, Lara Wann, Emily Hogge and Charley Docker are all competing at Newport.

This being the last race of the series and with it being sewn up last week by Janet Birkmyre, it was BCF points and some prize money that the women were racing for. Within the race was the battle for second and third places as separated by 50 points were VC Meudons Hannah Bussey and Velocity the Exercise Decks Nikki Wheeler and a couple of places between them could shift the final placings in either direction.

The action kicked off early in the race by Hannah Bussey and this was to cause a counter attack by Rapha Condor rider Caroline Kloiber, who powered over the top of the circuits small climb, keeping the pressure on for half a lap. This caused the first culling of the bunch with several riders losing touch with the main field.

The mid race action saw attacks from Lea Valley CC’s Anna Grundy, Mo O’Reilly (Twickenham CC), Hannah Bussey again and also from Kim Kabatoff of London Dynamo. The latter rider, Kabatoff, has shown some very improved performance in the last few races, and with her putting some pressure on the front to open up a small gap, it has been a remarkable turn around from being one of the first off the back at the start of the season. What will Kim do next year?

In the final 10 or so laps, Caroline Kloiber put in some huge turns and stretching the field to almost breaking point, whilst being chased relentlessly by Birkmyre , Bussey and Wheeler, she reduced the lead group to just 9 riders. Kloiber has been a bit of a revelation this season, having won several of the more hilly national road race series events, and shortly will be one of the favourites for the National Time Trial Champs being held near Reading on the 3rd of September. Pushing for National Team selection, a good result against known TT stars Julia Shaw and Wendy Houvanhagel, Kloiber may have a good chance given the circuit is quite lumpy which is right up her street.

Tarne Bevan cornering hard!

For those women not racing the TT Champs, there are still places left at the Tour of Britain support races organised by the Surrey League (see http://www.londoncyclesport.com/news_2006/tob6.html) and with £500 prize money, it is definitely worth turning up for.

Down to the final laps which had last gasp efforts from London Phoenixs’ Jane Kilmartin and Lea Valleys Anna Grundy who attacked up the climb but when they were brought back by the attentive field, the London Dynamo twins of Kabatoff and Cherie Blackman set off down the back straight. They too were brought back and it wasn’t until the last 250 metres that the sprint was started by Janet Birkmyre, who used her track 500m TT acceleration experience to good use by monstering a big gear, opening up a sizeable gap and winning by 5-6 bike lengths from Kloiber with Bussey, Grundy and Wheeler rounding off the top 5.

Great rides from Addiscombe CC’s Maria David who, like Kim Kabatoff, has improved significantly this season plus with this being the last race of the series, it was pleasing to see 6 new riders in the field.

Race 10 – Top 10

1. Janet Birkmyre (Planet X-Cycling Plus)
2. Caroline Kloiber ( Rapha Condor)
3. Hannah Bussey (VC Meudon)
4. Anna Grundy (Lea Valley CC)
5. Nikki Wheeler (Velocity the Exercise Deck)
6. Jane Kilmartin (London Phoenix)
7. Mo O’Reilly (Twickenham CC)
8. Cath Pennefather (Pearson Cycles)
9. Maria David (Addiscombe CC)
10. Cheryl Owens (Planet X-Cycling Plus)

Final Standings for the Series

1. Janet Birkmyre – 860
2. Nikki Wheeler – 490
3. Hannah Bussey – 460
4. Alice Monger-Godfrey – 390
5. Louise Mahe – 370
6. Mel Williams – 200
7. Leda Cox – 180
8. Caroline Kloiber – 160
9. Lara Wann – 150
10. Corin Wilkins – 140

Thanks to Twickenham CC’s Bill Butterworth (and wife Eileen) for organising & running the series.

See you all again next year.

David Jack
www.natureskiss.net

The pack!