News & Features

It is with sadness that we have to report the death of former multiple national time trial champion Ian White.

Formerly with Yorkshire clubs Clifton CC, Hull Coureurs CRC and other teams, White died suddenly on Saturday aged 73 at his home in North Wales.

Born in London, White moved to York as a child and it was here that his love and talent for cycling flourished.

In 1970 he broke the national 50-mile competition record, clocking 1-47-34 while riding for Clifton CC in their own 75th anniversary event on the Boroughbridge course in North Yorkshire.

But he only held the record for a matter of minutes, as team-mate John Watson bettered it by almost four minutes on his way to winning the same event.

White also took a competition record over 10 miles while with Hull Coureurs CRC, clocking 20-27 in 1975 to lower the previous best by nine seconds, a time which stood for three years.

But arguably his best year on the bike came in 1973 when he won the RTTC National Championships over 50 and 100 miles, as well as the British Cycling Individual Time Trial Championship staged at Catterick.

Lifelong friend Roy Irwin has known White since he was 17.

“He was awesome on a bike, such a strong rider!” said Irwin. “We used to do two-up time trials and in theory we should share the lead, but I would just have to sit behind because he was too fast for me to get past. It was like sitting behind a motorbike!”

His cycling career stretched into the 1980s, and included a ride in the Milk Race which unfortunately ended prematurely as he crashed out.

He was to ride the Milk Race many more times – but as a motorcycle pilot with a cameraman on the back for the BBC.

Ian set up OYB Mobiles, and went on to cover several major sporting events from the back of a motorbike including the Tour de France, Paris-Roubaix, The Tour of Ireland, Kelloggs City Centre Cycling, the London Marathon, the Commonwealth Games, the World Athletics Championships and the Great North Run.

“When his cycling career started to slow down he was asked to cover the Milk Race for Yorkshire TV,” explained Irwin. “That led to a lot of motorbike work in cycling, athletics and many other things too. I worked with him doing that over the years, and he was very well respected by broadcasters and athletes.”

He ran a bike shop in Haxby near York, and then turned the same premises into a restaurant called the Penny Farthing.

His career also saw him working for Raleigh as a sales representative, as well as similar roles with manufacturers Viscount and Viking.

Later in life he moved to Mold in North Wales, where he bred champion gun dogs and was a well-respected official and competition judge.

He leaves a wife, Judith, and two children from his first marriage, Anne and Jayne.

* All news items are copyright of Cycling Time Trials/Snowdon Sports. Not to be used without permission. BG.