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21-Mar-77

Barnesbury 'Hilly'

Bootland wins

THE first weekend of spring and the first weekend of the Tyneside time trial season combined to produce some truly wintry weather for the Barnesbury CC Hilly 21.

Twenty-six riders, including scratchman Mick Bradshaw failed to start, and who could really blame them. The snow was coming horizontally at the riders as they answered the time-keeper's call to start. Several came to grief on slippery corners and many of the later starters returned looking more like snowmen than cyclists.

John Bootland was the eventual winner, but at the nine miles check at Rothley crossroads he was five seconds down on local cyclo-cross champion, John F enwick, who after all was perhaps more at home in these conditions.

Veteran Wes Clayton was third at 36 seconds, while fourth was Teesside youngster Paul Curran at 50sec, followed by promising Houghton youngster Nick Gartland at 52sec and ex-pro Peter Chisman at 1-15.

Over the remaining 12 miles Fenwick faded badly, taking 30-28 and dropping to sixth place, and allowing Bootland and Clayton, who were only two seconds apart over the last dozen miles, to move up to first and second respectively.

The biggest surprise, however, over the second part of the race was the performance of Jim Joseph who sped round in only 27-30, 49 seconds faster than the winner, to jump up from tenth to fourth place, while only 14 seconds slower than him on this section was Dave Watson who jumped up from eighth to third.

Gartland and Curran took the two junior awards while the schoolboy prizes went to G. Dean (Cleveland Wh) 1-2-36 and R. Healey (Barnesbury CC) 1-4-45.

RESULTS

1. John Bootland (Whitley Bay) 54-49
2. Wes Clayton (Tyne RC) 55-22
3. Dave Watson (Gosforth RC) 55-53
4. Jim Joseph (Barnesbury CC) 56-20
5. Nick Gartland (Houghton CC) 56-33
6. John Fenwick (Consett Wh) 56-53
7. Paul Curran (Stockton Wh) 57-12
8. Peter Caisman (Hades RC) 57-38
9. Dennis Clayton (Tyne RC) 57-53
10. John Johnston (Tyne Velo) 57-55

Juniors: 1, Gartland; 2, Curran