Well you were in the wrong place at Rossendale on Saturday. Pure blue skies, blistering temperatures, and two ripping courses set along 200 metres of rumbling dendix were all that separated the nation’s best young skiers from realising their hopes, dreams and aspirations in the 5th and concluding Inghams sponsored Grand Prix of Summer 2008.
Indeed, with course setters Craig Ruddick and Lee Bennett setting 18 & 20 gate headaches respectively, it was fairly obvious that any exposed skin wasn’t just in danger from the sun gods. Get your inspection wrong, under-estimate the difficulty and technicality or simply fail to respect the challenge set and a trip to the matting loomed large. Like a walk through the lions den, one loss of concentration was sure to end in a bite on the backside.
Not that these were bad courses, quite the opposite in fact. Inspect properly, prepare thoroughly and apply all those little things that your coach keeps saying to you and there was a route home. Add a bit of nous and experience into the equation and the racers who could find the right blend and were able to balance the equation were going to be fast and clean.
In the female race, previous winners Rachel Adcock and Emily Evans slugged out two runs of genuine heavyweight proportions for the victory spoils. Marginally behind Adcock after run 1 Evans produced a sublime 2nd run of courage and skill, three times looking in real danger of being spat out the young racer utilised every ounce of her flexibility and balance to attack and increase speed where others may have looked to defend and scrub pace. A tactic the proved decisive as Evans overturned a 0.12s deficit to storm to victory and leave Adcock with the runners up spot.
In third place finished Alessia Thomas-Jackson who, with the whole series in her hands, produced one of the gutsiest runs of 2008, risking everything in search of the few tenths of a second she needed to turn the screw on Evans & Adcock. Completing the top five overall positions finished Charlotte Davies and Georgia Luck with 4th and 5th respectively.
In the categories, overall 6th placed Stacey Luck claimed the Jun 2 runners up spot behind Davies with Melanie Wilcockson placed in 3rd. In junior 1 Frances Bryon placed 3rd behind Thomas-Jackson & and Georgia Luck respectively. Charlotte Shrimpton posted her best career result taking 7th overall and 2nd in chi 1 followed home by Caroline Powell in 3rd. Shrimpton’s Telford team mate Kelly Greenbank claimed top spot in chi 1 ahead of 2nd placed Klara Hommel and Georgia Hallet in 3rd.
In the males race blown wide apart by the failure of a number of the pre-race favourites to negotiate both courses Andrew Crawford again proved master of testing conditions placing himself in a position to strike with a faultless 1st run and then producing arguably the best single run of the season on run 2, magnificently slicing his way through Bennett’s minefield with sniper like precision and leave the rocket launchers and mortar bombers behind him to fight for the minor placings.
In runners up spot Gerard Flahive ensured that his recent excellent form continued, again producing a wonderfully clean 2nd run to finish 0.30s behind Crawford with clear daylight between himself and 3rd placed Bromley racer Benjamin Clark. In 4th place overall (& 3rd placed senior racer) Colin Armstrong proved the old adage of there being no substitute for experience whilst chi 1 racer James Grant simultaneously proved a young man can bring also an experienced head to the battle with a super 5th place overall.
In the categories Sam Goodlass’s 6th place overall was good enough to claim top spot in Jun 2 in front of Tom Hales in 2nd and home slope racer Niall Misell in 3rd. In Jun 1 8th & 11th overall finishes were enough for Andrew Davies and James Milstead to claim 2nd and 3rd respectively behind Flahive whilst in chi 2 9th & 10th overall were good enough for Samual Fairbarn and Richard Leeson to claim category 2nd & 3rd places. In Chi 1 Ashley Breese produced a superb 7th place overall to claim top spot with team mate Jordan Fellows claiming 2nd and Nicholas Phelps in 3rd.
And so the final Grand Prix of the season had produced yet another stunning race for 2008. Amid the heat haze of a wonderfully sunny Lancashire hillside spectators and racers alike drew breath, wiped perspiration from their brows, quenched their thirst and reached for the calculators.
Have they done enough? Did they achieve their aspirations and ambitions for 2008? Personally I hope that each and every one of them did. Amid the blood, sweat and cheers of Norfolk, Pendle, Sunderland, Suffolk and Rossendale we have all been privileged to witness the youth (and occasionally not so youth) of today doing what they do best. Making the very most of their talents.
If you can stand the heat…………..then you’re almost certainly a ski racer.
Monday 28 July 2008
Monday 14 July 2008
Lil Nath and the Norfolk Express
Saturday 14th July
Celtic Cup Round 5
Gloucester
I never came here before the landslide wiped out the top 100 metres or so but, by ‘eck, what a slope it must have been in those days. The now first 15 metres of flat nothingness would have been an entirely different kettle of fish as you thundered over the ridge at full throttle. What would have certainly been a leap of Dendix based faith is now little more than a signal that the early pushes are over and it’s time to settle into some kind of rhythm.
Not that Gloucester now isn’t a fine facility - because it most certainly is, I just wish I’d been able to witness what must have been an awesome challenge from the very top.
However, whilst bemoaning the reduction in length it is worth noting the quality of what is left. This is a slope that clearly looks after its surface, no worn patches to demolish you brand new pair of Fischers or Volkls, a lift system better than almost everywhere and the menace of tubing parties and snowboarding cast onto the snowflex slope that runs alongside without ever interfering.
As always, with Gloucester being relatively local, Team Telford were again out in fairly substantial numbers. In the minis Nathan Breese led the charge recovering from a first run dropped pole with a stunning second run that placed the pocket rocket overall 2nd position. William Lucas and Joshua Ainsworth also both produced improved second run times to place 8th & 10th respectively.
In the girls race Claire Brown stole the Telford honours, claiming 5th in Jun 1 category with an excellent time of 12.89 in her second run, a time the assisted her to leapfrog 6th placed (in category) Charlotte Gould. Alex Bullock produced an excellent 2nd run of 13.30 to place 4th in category and qualify her for the afternoon dual slalom, whilst Charlotte Shrimpton & George Gould posted 5th & 6th in the same category respectively. In Children 1 Kelly Greenbank again found herself on the podium, this time in runners up spot, Claire Ainsworth finished in 6th place in the same category and the ever smiling and always cheerful Kirsty Thomas delighted everyone by shattering her seed point ranking (134 + penalty) with an excellent 5th in Jun 2 category.
In the boys, with Ashley still on the injury roster, Jordan Fellows claimed Telford honours with a brace of solid runs that claimed 1st place in chi 1. Chris Yates produced 2 equally solid runs to complete a Telford 1-2 in chi 1 with Joe Humfress being the meat in a chi1 sandwich consolidating an excellent 1st run with a solid 2nd to score sub 120 points. Marco Furio’s brace of clean runs was enough to see him finish 8th in chi 2 with Josh Mills just behind in 14th.
As usual the afternoon dual slaloms produced the expected thrills and spills and not for the first time the minis proved that they have the hearts of lions (and lionesses) in this most exacting of environments. At the semi final stage Nathan Breese and home slope heavyweight Matthew Davis slugged out two fantastic head to heads. With Matthew taking the first Nathan reacted brilliantly to burst out of the start and produce a victory margin large enough to claim a place in the final.
A final that was real David and Goliath stuff as ‘lil Nath (all three stone nothing of him) faced up to the powerful and ever impressive Megan Jenkins, Queen of the minis. Again the first run was a real slugfest as Megan reacted to an absolutely blistering start from the boy Breese to claw back almost all of the half gate deficit she’d conceded and they crossed a line with no more than a cigarette paper between them.
With a 0.028 second lead you could hardly claim it was advantage Nathan but the Norfolk Express knew she couldn’t afford the Telford racer another start like the first one. Sure enough, Jenkins bulleted out of the start gate on run two, gained a lead that Nathan never really looked like closing and in skiing a clean run crossed the line as victor.
Yet again however the true winner was mini racing. The young lions British ski racing again proved that they have the technique, temperament and desire to race hard and true. Believe me, the more you knock them back the more often they will come back for more. The Celtic Cup offers them the platform to display their full range of talents first hand and credit has to go to the organisers for having the courage and foresight to allow them the opportunity.
Sunday 15th July
Celtic Cup Round 6
And so to the final race of the series. With a number of Telford racers in overall contention the pressure was on to bring you’re a game to the top of the hill. In particular the battle between good friends and, almost certainly, future partners in crime Chris Yates and Jordan Fellows produced a fascinating backdrop to the morning’s proceedings. Awaiting their first runs five yards apart with backs facing one another two dads chuckled in the expectation of guns that looked soon to be drawn in a winner takes all shoot out. With the sun shining brightly and temperature already high all we needed was Clint Eastwood to appear from under the start ramp and the bullets could have flown in from all directions.
In the end Chris claimed the honours, deservedly doing enough on the day, as his excellent 1st run left Jordan’s no show run dead and buried and offered Chris the knowledge that a safe no risk 2nd run strategy was always going to be enough. From a personal point of view the sight of them playing at lunch time amid the pressures of what had and was going to occur told you more about these boys than 13 ½ seconds of plastic racing ever will. Ten out of ten in the sportsmanship stakes to both lads.
Elsewhere William Lucas produced a season best finish of 4th, capitalising on course inspection error from Nathan Breese which left the previous afternoon’s hero in DNF country.
In the ladies, Charlotte Gould (5th, Jun 1) turned the tables on Claire Brown (7th) with the point gleaned from 5th position gave our favourite Brummie 3rd place overall in the series, whilst 4th in Chi 2 was enough also ensure that Alex Bullock claimed an excellent 3rd overall in her category. 5th in category was also enough to ensure a top 15 overall finish for Charlotte Shrimpton whilst George Gould was just squeezed out in 17th (6th overall). In chi 1 Kelly Greenbank’s 2nd in category gave her 2nd overall and Claire Ainsworth’s 5th place ensured and overall series finish of 4th.
In the boys, Marco Furio took Telford honours with 5th in chi 2, Joe Humfress perished on the technical mid section of run 2 whilst Josh Mills climbed off the floor like a pole-axed super middleweight to cross the line and finish 13th in category.
All that was left was to witness an absolutely spectacular and utterly sickening crash from first run leader Andrew Watson. Fortunately, after a minute or so of real concern, he appeared to be OK but at the end of another excellent Celtic Cup series the sight of Watson double flipping himself backwards(ish) down the hill at racing speed highlighted the dangers that these kids face every time they snap their bindings closed. Where ever they finished, they are all winners.
Celtic Cup Round 5
Gloucester
I never came here before the landslide wiped out the top 100 metres or so but, by ‘eck, what a slope it must have been in those days. The now first 15 metres of flat nothingness would have been an entirely different kettle of fish as you thundered over the ridge at full throttle. What would have certainly been a leap of Dendix based faith is now little more than a signal that the early pushes are over and it’s time to settle into some kind of rhythm.
Not that Gloucester now isn’t a fine facility - because it most certainly is, I just wish I’d been able to witness what must have been an awesome challenge from the very top.
However, whilst bemoaning the reduction in length it is worth noting the quality of what is left. This is a slope that clearly looks after its surface, no worn patches to demolish you brand new pair of Fischers or Volkls, a lift system better than almost everywhere and the menace of tubing parties and snowboarding cast onto the snowflex slope that runs alongside without ever interfering.
As always, with Gloucester being relatively local, Team Telford were again out in fairly substantial numbers. In the minis Nathan Breese led the charge recovering from a first run dropped pole with a stunning second run that placed the pocket rocket overall 2nd position. William Lucas and Joshua Ainsworth also both produced improved second run times to place 8th & 10th respectively.
In the girls race Claire Brown stole the Telford honours, claiming 5th in Jun 1 category with an excellent time of 12.89 in her second run, a time the assisted her to leapfrog 6th placed (in category) Charlotte Gould. Alex Bullock produced an excellent 2nd run of 13.30 to place 4th in category and qualify her for the afternoon dual slalom, whilst Charlotte Shrimpton & George Gould posted 5th & 6th in the same category respectively. In Children 1 Kelly Greenbank again found herself on the podium, this time in runners up spot, Claire Ainsworth finished in 6th place in the same category and the ever smiling and always cheerful Kirsty Thomas delighted everyone by shattering her seed point ranking (134 + penalty) with an excellent 5th in Jun 2 category.
In the boys, with Ashley still on the injury roster, Jordan Fellows claimed Telford honours with a brace of solid runs that claimed 1st place in chi 1. Chris Yates produced 2 equally solid runs to complete a Telford 1-2 in chi 1 with Joe Humfress being the meat in a chi1 sandwich consolidating an excellent 1st run with a solid 2nd to score sub 120 points. Marco Furio’s brace of clean runs was enough to see him finish 8th in chi 2 with Josh Mills just behind in 14th.
As usual the afternoon dual slaloms produced the expected thrills and spills and not for the first time the minis proved that they have the hearts of lions (and lionesses) in this most exacting of environments. At the semi final stage Nathan Breese and home slope heavyweight Matthew Davis slugged out two fantastic head to heads. With Matthew taking the first Nathan reacted brilliantly to burst out of the start and produce a victory margin large enough to claim a place in the final.
A final that was real David and Goliath stuff as ‘lil Nath (all three stone nothing of him) faced up to the powerful and ever impressive Megan Jenkins, Queen of the minis. Again the first run was a real slugfest as Megan reacted to an absolutely blistering start from the boy Breese to claw back almost all of the half gate deficit she’d conceded and they crossed a line with no more than a cigarette paper between them.
With a 0.028 second lead you could hardly claim it was advantage Nathan but the Norfolk Express knew she couldn’t afford the Telford racer another start like the first one. Sure enough, Jenkins bulleted out of the start gate on run two, gained a lead that Nathan never really looked like closing and in skiing a clean run crossed the line as victor.
Yet again however the true winner was mini racing. The young lions British ski racing again proved that they have the technique, temperament and desire to race hard and true. Believe me, the more you knock them back the more often they will come back for more. The Celtic Cup offers them the platform to display their full range of talents first hand and credit has to go to the organisers for having the courage and foresight to allow them the opportunity.
Sunday 15th July
Celtic Cup Round 6
And so to the final race of the series. With a number of Telford racers in overall contention the pressure was on to bring you’re a game to the top of the hill. In particular the battle between good friends and, almost certainly, future partners in crime Chris Yates and Jordan Fellows produced a fascinating backdrop to the morning’s proceedings. Awaiting their first runs five yards apart with backs facing one another two dads chuckled in the expectation of guns that looked soon to be drawn in a winner takes all shoot out. With the sun shining brightly and temperature already high all we needed was Clint Eastwood to appear from under the start ramp and the bullets could have flown in from all directions.
In the end Chris claimed the honours, deservedly doing enough on the day, as his excellent 1st run left Jordan’s no show run dead and buried and offered Chris the knowledge that a safe no risk 2nd run strategy was always going to be enough. From a personal point of view the sight of them playing at lunch time amid the pressures of what had and was going to occur told you more about these boys than 13 ½ seconds of plastic racing ever will. Ten out of ten in the sportsmanship stakes to both lads.
Elsewhere William Lucas produced a season best finish of 4th, capitalising on course inspection error from Nathan Breese which left the previous afternoon’s hero in DNF country.
In the ladies, Charlotte Gould (5th, Jun 1) turned the tables on Claire Brown (7th) with the point gleaned from 5th position gave our favourite Brummie 3rd place overall in the series, whilst 4th in Chi 2 was enough also ensure that Alex Bullock claimed an excellent 3rd overall in her category. 5th in category was also enough to ensure a top 15 overall finish for Charlotte Shrimpton whilst George Gould was just squeezed out in 17th (6th overall). In chi 1 Kelly Greenbank’s 2nd in category gave her 2nd overall and Claire Ainsworth’s 5th place ensured and overall series finish of 4th.
In the boys, Marco Furio took Telford honours with 5th in chi 2, Joe Humfress perished on the technical mid section of run 2 whilst Josh Mills climbed off the floor like a pole-axed super middleweight to cross the line and finish 13th in category.
All that was left was to witness an absolutely spectacular and utterly sickening crash from first run leader Andrew Watson. Fortunately, after a minute or so of real concern, he appeared to be OK but at the end of another excellent Celtic Cup series the sight of Watson double flipping himself backwards(ish) down the hill at racing speed highlighted the dangers that these kids face every time they snap their bindings closed. Where ever they finished, they are all winners.
Wednesday 9 July 2008
Forget SW19 & Silverstone. All eyes point to Suffolk.
So what exactly do the organisers of this race know that those a little further up the British sporting ladder don’t? As Lewis Hamilton sailed to victory at a monsoon swept Silverstone and Federer & Nadal attempted to produce another SW19 classic between the rain showers the 4th race of the Inghams sponsored Snowsport England Grand Prix series to place amid a windswept but sunny and, more importantly, dry Ipswich.
Sat on the edge of the River Orwell, overlooked by the spectacular Orwell Bridge and surrounded by pretty rural setting of Bourne Hill, Suffolk Ski Centre provides a wonderfully picturesque backdrop amid the flurry and bustle as the nation’s very best ski racers locked horns for the penultimate battle of this summer’s series.
With course setting duties shared by Sally Bartlett and Marc Telling the racers were provided with a brace of challenging runs that whilst asking many questions also offered those who learned from their inspection time the opportunity to expose their talents to the full.
In the female race, blown wide open by the first run demise of pre-race series leader Rachel Adcock, Charlotte Evans mirrored her early summer Grand Prix success by producing a solid first run that found her well placed for an afternoon challenge and then demolished the hopes of those around her with a blistering second run that none of her piers could either emulate or improve upon.
Closest of the chasing pack finished runner up and new series leader Alessia Thomas-Jackson. The junior 1 racer finishing 0.01 seconds in front of third placed Gloucester racer Rowan Vernon.
In the categories 4th placed overall athlete Alice Thelwell claimed 2nd place in the seniors with Emily Goddard following home in 3rd. Katherine Barber place 2nd in Jun 2 (behind Evans) with Danielle Freeze posting 3rd. Behind Thomas-Jackson in the Jun 1 category and in 4th placed overall finished Jeni Thomas with Claire Brown (6th overall) completing the podium positions. In the children’s categories Stephanie Davies took the Chi 2 honours, followed home by Nia Jenkins (2nd) and Sarah Lambden in 3rd whilst in the Children 1 category saw Polly Shailes demolish her seed point ranking to claim victory in front of 2nd placed Georgia Hallett and Jenny Davies in 3rd.
With the male race enhanced by the entry of British Senior team member David Ryding those chasing his tail were in no doubt that if they had any serious pretensions of going home as overall victor they needed not only to bring their ‘A Game’ but be able to execute it from the first gate to very last.
Whenever Ryding snaps his binding in the start gate a notable hush falls around the slope as each and every spectator looks up the hill to witness what might be one of the final times we get to see the ever popular Pendle racer compete on the plastic circuit. Long since his piers and rivals have abandoned dendix Ryding commendably continues to support the surface and series that those who aspire to his achievements depend upon.
The fact that he also continues to put himself through the pressures of potential defeat should not be underestimated. Not that that was ever likely to happen here as Ryding dominated the male race, posting fastest times in both runs whilst making the whole thing look almost breathtakingly easy.
Only overall runner up Andrew Watson looked capable of mounting any sort of credible challenge and even then you got the feeling that, if required, Ryding still had an extra gear or two to go through. Series leader Nicholas Robinson confirmed his place at the top of the standings with a fine 3rd place overall with Craig Ruddick and Alex Jeal claiming 4th & 5th respectively.
In the categories Sunderland victor Andrew Crawford claimed 3rd place behind Ryding and Ruddick whilst Watson, Robinson & Jeal filled the podium in Jun 2 category. In Jun 1 Gerard Flahive produced his best display of 2008 to claim the honours in front of a consistent Michael Molloy and Ian Williams. In the children’s categories Shaun Blyth claimed a deserved 1st place closely followed by James Grant (2nd) and Samual Fairbairn (3rd) whilst Max Moss proved too good for the rest of the field in children 1 category, taking 1st place with James Sieber in 2nd and Daniel Poth 3rd.
The first Grand Prix to be held at this wonderful facility had not disappointed. Location, both geographically and aesthetically, will surely make this a key race in future years and the organisers truly deserve great credit for both ensuring the Grand Prix series benefits from what will hopefully be an annual visit and for providing another very smoothly run race.
The final stage of the series sees us heading back up the M6 to Rossendale in three weeks time. Even at this late stage nothing is settled, titles are still begging to be won. Expect it fast and expect it furious. Just don’t expect the organisers to be quite as good when it comes to sorting out the weather.
Sat on the edge of the River Orwell, overlooked by the spectacular Orwell Bridge and surrounded by pretty rural setting of Bourne Hill, Suffolk Ski Centre provides a wonderfully picturesque backdrop amid the flurry and bustle as the nation’s very best ski racers locked horns for the penultimate battle of this summer’s series.
With course setting duties shared by Sally Bartlett and Marc Telling the racers were provided with a brace of challenging runs that whilst asking many questions also offered those who learned from their inspection time the opportunity to expose their talents to the full.
In the female race, blown wide open by the first run demise of pre-race series leader Rachel Adcock, Charlotte Evans mirrored her early summer Grand Prix success by producing a solid first run that found her well placed for an afternoon challenge and then demolished the hopes of those around her with a blistering second run that none of her piers could either emulate or improve upon.
Closest of the chasing pack finished runner up and new series leader Alessia Thomas-Jackson. The junior 1 racer finishing 0.01 seconds in front of third placed Gloucester racer Rowan Vernon.
In the categories 4th placed overall athlete Alice Thelwell claimed 2nd place in the seniors with Emily Goddard following home in 3rd. Katherine Barber place 2nd in Jun 2 (behind Evans) with Danielle Freeze posting 3rd. Behind Thomas-Jackson in the Jun 1 category and in 4th placed overall finished Jeni Thomas with Claire Brown (6th overall) completing the podium positions. In the children’s categories Stephanie Davies took the Chi 2 honours, followed home by Nia Jenkins (2nd) and Sarah Lambden in 3rd whilst in the Children 1 category saw Polly Shailes demolish her seed point ranking to claim victory in front of 2nd placed Georgia Hallett and Jenny Davies in 3rd.
With the male race enhanced by the entry of British Senior team member David Ryding those chasing his tail were in no doubt that if they had any serious pretensions of going home as overall victor they needed not only to bring their ‘A Game’ but be able to execute it from the first gate to very last.
Whenever Ryding snaps his binding in the start gate a notable hush falls around the slope as each and every spectator looks up the hill to witness what might be one of the final times we get to see the ever popular Pendle racer compete on the plastic circuit. Long since his piers and rivals have abandoned dendix Ryding commendably continues to support the surface and series that those who aspire to his achievements depend upon.
The fact that he also continues to put himself through the pressures of potential defeat should not be underestimated. Not that that was ever likely to happen here as Ryding dominated the male race, posting fastest times in both runs whilst making the whole thing look almost breathtakingly easy.
Only overall runner up Andrew Watson looked capable of mounting any sort of credible challenge and even then you got the feeling that, if required, Ryding still had an extra gear or two to go through. Series leader Nicholas Robinson confirmed his place at the top of the standings with a fine 3rd place overall with Craig Ruddick and Alex Jeal claiming 4th & 5th respectively.
In the categories Sunderland victor Andrew Crawford claimed 3rd place behind Ryding and Ruddick whilst Watson, Robinson & Jeal filled the podium in Jun 2 category. In Jun 1 Gerard Flahive produced his best display of 2008 to claim the honours in front of a consistent Michael Molloy and Ian Williams. In the children’s categories Shaun Blyth claimed a deserved 1st place closely followed by James Grant (2nd) and Samual Fairbairn (3rd) whilst Max Moss proved too good for the rest of the field in children 1 category, taking 1st place with James Sieber in 2nd and Daniel Poth 3rd.
The first Grand Prix to be held at this wonderful facility had not disappointed. Location, both geographically and aesthetically, will surely make this a key race in future years and the organisers truly deserve great credit for both ensuring the Grand Prix series benefits from what will hopefully be an annual visit and for providing another very smoothly run race.
The final stage of the series sees us heading back up the M6 to Rossendale in three weeks time. Even at this late stage nothing is settled, titles are still begging to be won. Expect it fast and expect it furious. Just don’t expect the organisers to be quite as good when it comes to sorting out the weather.
Thursday 3 July 2008
Field blown away by Adcock & Crawford
So, on the longest weekend of the year, the 2008 summer ski circus descended upon a windswept North Eastern Coastline as Sunderland ’s Silksworth complex played host to Round 3 of the Inghams sponsored Snowsport England Grand Prix series.
With course setters Pierre Mahon & Lee Bennett doing an excellent job of providing contrasting courses that tested all aspects of the racers abilities and a wind sharper than the edges on the racers skis it was clear that those who were to eventually prevail would need to utilise both the talent in their legs and the nous in their brains in equal measures. Play it too safe and you’d find yourself marooned down the field, go gung-ho and an early finish or slide along the matting awaited.
Experience was going to be key.And so it proved in both categories as senior stalwarts Rachael Adcock and Andrew Crawford prevailed over their younger competitors whilst simultaneously confirming the old adage that there is still no substitute for experience. Adcock, in particular, impressed with her complete domination of the female race. In posting a first run time that none of her competitors could get anywhere close to she provided herself with the relative comfort of knowing she could afford a mistake on her afternoon run and still hang on to the win. A mistake that never actually arrived as the Arrows racer clinically dissected a brute of a second course with surgeon-like precision to leave the chasing pack scrambling for the remaining podium places.
In second place, and a shade faster than Adcock on run 2, finished Emily Evans. The Chatham racer’s welcome return from injury providing the only genuine competition for the top podium position and at the same time issued a warning to her rivals that not only was she back but, if anything, she’s now even faster. In third place Jeni Thomas prevailed from a second run three way scrap denying Rowan Vernon and Georgia Hood respectively.
In the categories Alice Thelwell completed the senior podium behind Adcock and Vernon , Heidi Parker claimed the honours in Jun 2 with Lauren Elliot and Melanie Wilcockson just behind and Alessia Thomas-Jackson (3rd) joined Thomas and Hood on the Jun 1 podium. In the Children’s categories Nia Jenkins claimed 2nd in chi 2 behind Emily Evans with Louise Bain claiming 3rd whilst Kelly Greenbank produced the two fastest times to claim the honours in chi 1 followed home by Katie Allan in 2nd and Klara Hommel 3rd.
In the male race decimated by dnf & dsq’s Andrew Crawford’s blistering second run proved that there was indeed a racing line amongst slalom poles that often leaned in the wind like isolated trees on a links golf course. With seven racers ahead of him after run 1 Crawford was left to watch as one by one their challenges faded amid a battery of errors on a course that punished the smallest mistake to maximum effect.
In second place 0.07s behind Crawford finished Pendle racer Brad Morgan. Morgan’s 2nd run time eclipsed all but the breath taking Crawford and whilst he will be disappointed to have come out on the wrong side of the photo finish he can be delighted to have leapfrogged co Jun 2 athlete Andrew Watson onto the middle tier of the podium. Watson’s combined time of 26.94 proving 0.06s slower than Morgan and 0.13s outside the efforts of Crawford. Senior category runner up Colin Armstrong placed 4th overall and Michael Molloy continued this seasons excellent form with a well deserved 5th place overall.In the categories Andrew Richardson completed the triumberate of seniors in 3rd place, whilst 6th placed overall racer Marcus Orrell closed out the podium in Jun 2.
Following closely behind Norfolk ’s Molloy in Jun 1 finished Benjamin Potter (2nd) and Dan Evans signalled his return from injury in taking 3rd place. Children 2 saw a Pendle 1-2 with Richard Leeson (1st) and Jake Morgan (2nd) being joined on the podium by Samual Fairbairn (3rd) and in Chi 1 category Chris Yates, an impressive 15th overall claimed victory ahead of Telford’s Jordan Fellows (2nd) with Daniel Poth (3rd).
By the end of the race it was clear that we’d witnessed another superb race in 2008 and the race officials deserve immense credit for somehow keeping control amongst the very worst that Mother Nature could hurl at them.
The penultimate race of the series takes us down to the incredibly picturesque setting of Suffolk Ski Centre in Ipswich . The competition is still wide open and all is still to battle for. As usual, the action on the hill is sure to be red hot but, after 4 hours of trying to avoid being blown off my feet, I’d settle for just being warm.
With course setters Pierre Mahon & Lee Bennett doing an excellent job of providing contrasting courses that tested all aspects of the racers abilities and a wind sharper than the edges on the racers skis it was clear that those who were to eventually prevail would need to utilise both the talent in their legs and the nous in their brains in equal measures. Play it too safe and you’d find yourself marooned down the field, go gung-ho and an early finish or slide along the matting awaited.
Experience was going to be key.And so it proved in both categories as senior stalwarts Rachael Adcock and Andrew Crawford prevailed over their younger competitors whilst simultaneously confirming the old adage that there is still no substitute for experience. Adcock, in particular, impressed with her complete domination of the female race. In posting a first run time that none of her competitors could get anywhere close to she provided herself with the relative comfort of knowing she could afford a mistake on her afternoon run and still hang on to the win. A mistake that never actually arrived as the Arrows racer clinically dissected a brute of a second course with surgeon-like precision to leave the chasing pack scrambling for the remaining podium places.
In second place, and a shade faster than Adcock on run 2, finished Emily Evans. The Chatham racer’s welcome return from injury providing the only genuine competition for the top podium position and at the same time issued a warning to her rivals that not only was she back but, if anything, she’s now even faster. In third place Jeni Thomas prevailed from a second run three way scrap denying Rowan Vernon and Georgia Hood respectively.
In the categories Alice Thelwell completed the senior podium behind Adcock and Vernon , Heidi Parker claimed the honours in Jun 2 with Lauren Elliot and Melanie Wilcockson just behind and Alessia Thomas-Jackson (3rd) joined Thomas and Hood on the Jun 1 podium. In the Children’s categories Nia Jenkins claimed 2nd in chi 2 behind Emily Evans with Louise Bain claiming 3rd whilst Kelly Greenbank produced the two fastest times to claim the honours in chi 1 followed home by Katie Allan in 2nd and Klara Hommel 3rd.
In the male race decimated by dnf & dsq’s Andrew Crawford’s blistering second run proved that there was indeed a racing line amongst slalom poles that often leaned in the wind like isolated trees on a links golf course. With seven racers ahead of him after run 1 Crawford was left to watch as one by one their challenges faded amid a battery of errors on a course that punished the smallest mistake to maximum effect.
In second place 0.07s behind Crawford finished Pendle racer Brad Morgan. Morgan’s 2nd run time eclipsed all but the breath taking Crawford and whilst he will be disappointed to have come out on the wrong side of the photo finish he can be delighted to have leapfrogged co Jun 2 athlete Andrew Watson onto the middle tier of the podium. Watson’s combined time of 26.94 proving 0.06s slower than Morgan and 0.13s outside the efforts of Crawford. Senior category runner up Colin Armstrong placed 4th overall and Michael Molloy continued this seasons excellent form with a well deserved 5th place overall.In the categories Andrew Richardson completed the triumberate of seniors in 3rd place, whilst 6th placed overall racer Marcus Orrell closed out the podium in Jun 2.
Following closely behind Norfolk ’s Molloy in Jun 1 finished Benjamin Potter (2nd) and Dan Evans signalled his return from injury in taking 3rd place. Children 2 saw a Pendle 1-2 with Richard Leeson (1st) and Jake Morgan (2nd) being joined on the podium by Samual Fairbairn (3rd) and in Chi 1 category Chris Yates, an impressive 15th overall claimed victory ahead of Telford’s Jordan Fellows (2nd) with Daniel Poth (3rd).
By the end of the race it was clear that we’d witnessed another superb race in 2008 and the race officials deserve immense credit for somehow keeping control amongst the very worst that Mother Nature could hurl at them.
The penultimate race of the series takes us down to the incredibly picturesque setting of Suffolk Ski Centre in Ipswich . The competition is still wide open and all is still to battle for. As usual, the action on the hill is sure to be red hot but, after 4 hours of trying to avoid being blown off my feet, I’d settle for just being warm.
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