News & Features

National hill-climb champion Illi Gardner begins her 2023 campaign in Somerset this weekend, while her male counterpart Andrew Feather is also riding in the South West as he bids to overcome illness and kick-start his season.

Wahoo-Le Col rider Gardner tackles the Bridgwater CC climb of Crowcombe Hill on Saturday, with the 1.2-kilometre course being used for the first time.

Former national champion Ed Laverack (Backpedal) is expected to be fastest male rider there, while Gardner should prove an easy winner of the women’s prize as well as beating most of the men’s field too!

She then moves on to the Minehead CC double header on Sunday, which has a 1.25-mile climb of Porlock Hill first followed by the 4.2-mile Porlock Toll Road climb later in the morning.

After failing to finish last weekend’s Border City Wheelers climb because of illness, Andrew Feather (HuntBikeWheels.com) will be hoping to get back on form with a win in the first of the Minehead CC climbs, with Laverack expected to not be too far behind.

Following that, Feather sits out the longer later Porlock climb, with 2019 national champion Laverack facing a challenge from 2015 national hill-climb champion Richard Bussell (AeroCoach).

Saturday’s Cheshire Maverick CC climb of Bakestonedale Road in Pott Shrigley has several top riders, including former national champion Adam Kenway (Team Brother UK) as well as fastest male and female at last weekend’s Buxton CC Bunsall Cob climb, Ross Howcroft-Jones (High North Performance) and Alice Larkin (Glossop Kinder Velo).

But others to look out for on the 1.25-mile climb include Team Lifting Gear Products colleagues Kieran Wynne-Cattanach and Nicholas Latimer.

Wynne-Cattanach goes on to tackle Sunday’s GS Metro climb of Hedley on the Hill in Northumberland, but he will face a stiff challenge on the 1.1-mile climb by Andy Cunningham (Wheelbase-CabTech) as well as Martin Mikkelsen-Barrow (VC Cumbria) who won the AIMS Cycling climb last Saturday. Hannah Farran (Team Boompods) looks set to be fastest female in Northumberland.

In time trialling, there’s a good field for the Icknield Road Club 10 at Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire.

Team Bottrill colleagues Kate Allan and Emily Martin will do battle along with Sally Turner (HUUB WattShop, while the tandem pairing of Ian Greenstreet and Rachael Elliott (Newbury Velo) could be looking at a new competition record.

The men’s event also has a strong field including Adam Duggleby (ADDFORM Vive le Velo), Jake Sargent (Team Bottrill), Andy Critchlow and Paul Burton (both Paceline RT).

The North Lancashire TTA 50-mile championship event sees Dougie Watson (GTR-Return to Life) as pre-race favourite, but Anthony Jones (VMCC powered by Y Beic) and Tristan Pilling (360 cycling) could challenge him, while in the women’s category Deborah Moss (Springfield Financial RT) and Joanna Cebrat (360 cycling) look set to compete for the win.

On the Isle of Bute in Scotland there is a weekend of events being staged by Bute Wheelers.

Saturday sees a hill-climb on Serpentine Hill in Rothesay in the morning, followed by a two-up 20-mile event round the island. Then on Sunday there’s a 10-mile event too.

Elsewhere on Sunday it’s the VTTA National 10-Mile Championships in Staffordshire, the Lea Valley CC 30-mile event in Essex, while the VTTA Surrey/Sussex hold a 25-mile event near Maresfield, East Sussex.

Edinburgh Road Club stage a two-up 22-mile event near West Saltoun in East Lothian, while in Norfolk it’s the Eastern Counties CA 10-mile time trial near Hingham.

Check back to the CTT website and social media feeds for reports on events as the weekend progresses!

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