We use cookies on this website to personalize your experience and track site usage. To learn more, please visit our cookies policy.
The RTTC National 50 Mile Championships take place this weekend on the brand new J4/34 course in East Cheshire. A detailed preview of the course can be found here. This blog will be a short read that looks ahead at some of the times we might expect for Sunday’s race - these predictions come with uncertainty as the forecast is subject to change and there’s always unknown quantities (like roundabouts being clear and the possibility of a generational ride from someone we’ve all never heard of).
We are likely to see course records across the board though here as the course is brand new.
The final female riders set off between 8:15 and 8:25am. In order to crack the top 3, female riders are likely to have to dip under 2:00. Our prediction for the fastest feasible women’s time is between 1:50 and 1:52 on this rolling course though Sunday’s winning time may be slower. With only a small women’s start list this year, the range of possible times is very high and thus, our prediction comes with some uncertainty.
John Archibald is the one to watch, being the owner of a national record of 1:30:08 from last year. Conditions on Sunday, using that effort as a guide, lead us to a prediction for him around 1:33 - with Sunday being a slightly slower day and the course having a little more elevation than the R50/1B on which he broke the record. Any riders thinking about an overall podium are likely to have to ride significantly under 1:36.
Due to the roundabouts on the faster sections, some luck will play a role in the speed held - which adds an extra layer of uncertainty into our predictions. You’ll be able to follow the results as they come in via CTT Live and you can get a more detailed forecast here.