19-May-91
19-May-91
| Sunbrite Coal Two-Day |
ONLY a stage win by Jeff Wright (Tyne Velo), prevented a clean-sweep by the Manchester Wheelers-Trumanns big-hitters in the Sunbrite Coal Products two-day race staged by Ferryhill Wheelers in Co Durham at the weekend.
Pete Longbottom and Paul Curran, flexing their Milk Race muscles, took first and second places ahead of their team-mate Alan Gornall, whose brother Mark took fifth overall from last year's winner Norman Dunn.
Spectators at the Ferryhill event, which has been held under various guises over the past 27 years, could be excused a feeling of deja vu.
Dunn won last year as well as in 1986, and Curran took the top honours in 1988, but Longbottom turned the clock back furthest by repeating his success in VC York colours as a 20-year-old in 1979.
Alan Gornall set the scene when he won the 70-mile opening stage, coming in six seconds ahead as Longbottom outsprinted Curran for second place with Simon Telford (Ridley CC) leading in the rest.
1. Alan Gornall (Manchester Wh-Trumanns) 70m in 2-48-0
2. P. Longbottom (Manchester Wh) at 6sec
3. P. Curran (Manchester Wh) st
4. S. Telford (Ridley CC) at l4sec
5. G. Millward (Keighley Velo) at 35sec
6. M. Gornall (Manchester Wh) at 2-5.
Curran pipped Longbottom by a second to take the 4.3-mile individual time trial on Sunday morning when Mark and Alan Gornall helped the Wheelers to the first four places ahead of Dunn and Telford.
1. Paul Curran (Manchester Wh-Trumanns) 9-24
2. Longbottom, 9-25
3. M. Gornall, 9-45
4. A. Gornall, 9-48
5. N. Dunn (Paragon RT) 9-53
6. Telford, 9-57.
Longbottom was beaten by Wright as a nine-man leading group contested the final 73-mile leg, with ABC Centreville pair Steve Calland and Nigel Bishop next ahead of Telford and Mark Gornall.
Curran came in eighth, just two seconds back, but Longbottom ran out overall winner by 29 seconds thanks to stage and hill bonuses.
1. Jeff Wright (Tyne Velo) 73m in 3-5-0
2. Longbottom
3. S. Calland (ABC Centreville)
4. N. Bishop (ABC Centreville)
5. Telford
6. M. Gornall, all st
8. Curran at 2 secs
1. PETE LONGBOTTOM (Manchester Wh-Trumanns) 6-1-59
2. Curran, at 29sec
3. A. Gornall, at 38sec
4. Telford, at 1-28
5. M. Gornall, at 2-33
6. Dunn, at 2-57
7. Wright, at 3-54
8. Bishop, at 4-13
9. Millward, at 4-37
10. Calland, at 5-24.