The Hafren CC time trial series is well under way and after 4 races, the 30+ riders at every event are starting to eye up their rivals even before a pedal has be turned. Be it vying for a top 3 finish, the father and son rivalry or solely after bragging rights between mates, the competition is as strong as the friendship!
This was all thrown out of the window last Wednesday night however when Hafren CC hosted round 7 of the Friction and Hydraulic Services Shropshire Championship Points Series at Welshpool. 24 other TT-ers signed up for the event which meant that the usual HCC members could see how they fared against some of the top riders in the area.
A sensational first ever win in an Open event left Delwyn Jones ecstatic. The Wrekinsport rider took victory ahead of Paramount fast man Dave Griffiths by twelve seconds with a great effort of 22 minutes 4 seconds in the Hafren CC promoted event, leaving a number of quality riders in his wake despite less than ideal preparation.Griffiths’ 22:16 only just took the runner-up spot with Mid Shropshire Wheelers’ Tony Harvey a mere two seconds behind – but things might have been different if not for some bad luck after he had a slow puncture for the last four miles.
Whilst the strong riders from Wrekinsport CC, Paramount CRT, Mid Shropshire Wheelers and Ludlow CC lead the way in the overall standings, the future’s bright for the Hafren team with the first 3 places in the junior section all going to their home grown talent. 18 year old Max Gethin put that home advantage to good use, stopping the watch on 22:51 – good enough for 7th place overall and moving him into second place in the Junior Series. This took the win from 14 year-old club mate Tomos Owens, putting in a mightily impressive cycle of 24:09. George Coe took third in a time of 25:53.
It was a similar three-way battle in the Ladies Series, but this time with all riders representing Wrekinsport. Amanda Whitmore took her second victory in five days with a fine effort of 26:39, 25 seconds ahead of Vicki Bale.
The other Hafren riders who pitched themselves in the 10 mile event were Graham Harris who was 10th overall in a time of 23:44. He was closely followed by Medwyn Jones in 11th,9 seconds back. Bryn Davies (15th), Paul Bufton (18th), Ian Coe (21st) and Mike Filek (24th) all put in strong performances against a top quality field.