Kristian House (Rapha Condor JLT) has won the Durham round of the 2013 Pearl Izumi Tour Series, repeating his victory of 12 months ago.
The Texan chased down a move by Ian Bibby (Madison-Genesis), rode clear when his rival suffered mechanical woes, and held off a determined pursuit by the combined forces of Raleigh and Team UK Youth.
House’s second victory cements an enviable record on the cobbled streets of the historic city: he is yet to finish outside the top six in four visits to the north east, and has finished off the podium just once.
House said: “At first when the group was whittled down, I tried to take things easily, because Ed [Clancy] had been caught behind and I knew that for the team race we needed numbers in the front. Eventually though when John [Herety – team manager] told me the others weren’t coming back behind I knew it was time to go.”
His latest victory also propelled him to the top of the IG Sprint standings after sweeping up bonus points as he led the field home.
Raleigh maintained their lead in the team standings by posting three riders in the top 10. The New Zealander, Tom Scully, continued his excellent season by finishing fifth, ahead of team-mates, Evan Oliphant, who was sixth, and seventh placed Lachlan Norris.
After two rounds, the Nottingham-based outfit has a four-point margin over Team UK Youth at the top of team leader board, with Madison-Genesis third in the team’s debut season.
Roger Hammond’s men delivered a strong performance to place two riders in the top 10. Andy Tennant, a world champion on the track, was fourth, while Bibby recovered to finish eighth.
Bibby had delivered the first significant move of the race by riding clear of the bunch. House responded and the pair rode together briefly before the challenge of the Madison-Genesis man was curtailed by mechanical issues.
The next round of the Pearl Izumi Tour Series will be held on Tuesday (May 21), when the series will return to Stoke-on-Trent.
Pearl Izumi 2013 Tour Series: round two (Durham) – result
1) Kristian House (GBR) – Rapha Condor JLT
2) Tobyn Horton (GBR) – Team UK Youth
3) Roman Van Uden (NZL) – Node4 Giordana Racing
4) Andy Tennant (GBR) – Madison Genesis
5) Tom Scully (NZL) – Team Raleigh
6) Evan Oliphant (GBR) – Team Raleigh
7) Lachlan Norris (AUS) – Team Raleigh
8) Ian Bibby (GBR) – Madison Genesis
9) Steve Lampier (GBR) – Node4 Giordana Racing
10) Richard Handley (GBR) – Rapha Condor JLT
Team standings after two rounds
1) Team Raleigh – 20pts
2) Team UK Youth – 16pts
3) Madison Genesis -15pts
4) Node4 Giordana Racing -15pts
5) Rapha Condor JLT – 14pts
6) MG Maxifuel – 8pts
7) Metaltek – Knights of Old – 7pts
8) Team Hope Factory Racing – 7pts
9) Team IG Sigma Sport – 6pts
10) Spin Rotor – Primal – C-Originals – 2pts
