Hafren Claim Two National Championship Golds at the Hill Climb.

Storm Callum made its presence felt in the run up to the 2018 Welsh Hill Climb Championships.  Three days of rain and high winds meant travelling to Abergavenny was a tricky proposition.   Sadly a few competitors found the journey nigh on impossible due to storm damage and flooding but the vast majority made it to the start line on Sunday.

Fortunately the wind abated and The Tumble, whilst wet, was never going to suffer from any serious flooding so the event could safely proceed.  The Tumble is one of the most notorious climbs in South Wales at 5km long with a steady 10% gradient for much of the ascent.  It has been used in many events over the years including the Tour of Britain.

The rain did ease off as the morning progressed but it was a cold, damp affair for the riders willing to brave the climb.  Despite the tough conditions the 56 starters put in some great performances with notable success for local riders from Hafren CC who were up against the best climbers in the country.

Rebecca Richardson became Women’s Champion narrowly beating Nikki Juniper of Team Echelon by a single second with a time of 15.34.   Juniper is a prolific winner on the British Road racing Circuit making this a very satisfying win for Rebecca

It was also close in the Youth Boys where 15 year old Sam Holwill claimed the title by 11 seconds over Cyan Smith of Energy Cycling with a time of 14.48.  The young Hafren CC rider was delighted to win his first national title having paced the tricky climb almost to perfection.

The closest race of all was in the Men’s competition where defending champion and National Hill Climb Champion Dan Evans missed out by just four tenths of a second to JLT Condor rider Ed Laverack

Full results can be seen at https://www.velouk.net/2018/10/14/result-welsh-ca-hill-climb-champs-2/