New-boy Griffiths is off to a flying start

Griffiths marked his first county appearance in style by claiming victory in the first round of the The Friction Hydraulic Series – Wrekinsport’s Chris Edwards Hilly 18.

With the A442 closed at Bridgnorth due to the recent floods, more rain, a potential shortcut out of action and a standby version of the course called into use due to traffic lights at Stableford bridge, organisers were sweating on everything falling into place for the kick off of the Shropshire time trialling season at Worfield.

Fortunately, everything ran smoothly despite competitors having a few additional potholes, some leftover mud and a strong wind to contend with.

The wind made things particularly difficult for the first 3.7 mile leg to Sutton Maddock and put the ball in the court of the strongest riders, with Griffiths taking full advantage.

Riding for Bioracer Moriarty Bikes, Griffiths has a good pedigree being a four-time Scottish Team Time Trial and three-time Hill Climb champion.

And he put those skills to good effect on the tough start and the fearsome climb of The Hermitage, to steam around the Sutton Maddock-Bridgnorth- Rudge Heath course in 39 minutes five seconds.

Griffiths hadn’t joined the SCCA in time to gain points in this event, but has since signed up and is likely to be a serious challenger on the county scene.

“I’ve recently moved to the area from Scotland as part of my GP training so I was unfamiliar with the course beforehand,” he said.

“The course was an undulating, winding one with road surfaces that at times reminded me of the neglected tarmac of Glasgow!”

“I enjoyed the varied terrain and tried to power up the hills and grab some respite in the downhill sections. The strong wind made it challenging to hold an efficient aero-tuck at times. Thanks very much to Wrekinsport CC and all the volunteers - I found the event to be well organised and was very pleasantly surprised with the option of gluten free homemade cake at the HQ! I hope to be able to compete in the majority of the Shropshire Series and get to know the local competitors.”

Taking the maximum 60 county points on offer was former professional Liam Holohan (Holohan Coaching) in 39:59.

Holohan’s race did not go to plan, however, with vital time lost due to a mechanical incident that could have seen him take the overall win.

He explained: “I had a dropped chain on the final run in that cost me around a minute looking at the data. The positives were that the sensations were good in what was my first competitive outing of the year.”

Nova Raiders’ Tim Beardmore took the county runner-up spot in 40:54, as well as the Veterans’ win in +7:29, enjoying a terrific tussle with Holohan’s team-mate Chris Pook along the way.

“It’s good to be racing again,” said Beardmore. “You’re never too sure how the first race is going to go and exactly where your fitness is, but I’ve had a good couple of months of training and was hopeful of posting a descent time.

“My power felt good all the way round, and I was very pleased to get under 41 minutes.”

Pook, meanwhile, had started a minute ahead of Beardmore but was caught on the flatter sections of the course. He took third county spot in 41:48.

In the women’s Series, defending champion Deb Hutson-Lumb took the win, stopping the watch on 48:21, after a close battle with Hafren CC’s Emma Serjeant, who finished 28 seconds off the pace.

Last year’s Friction Junior Series silver medallist, Revolutions Racing’s 16-year-old Henri Bedford, has his eyes set on a bigger prize after finishing fifth overall in 42:06.

Wrekinsport ran their own championship within the event in memory of Chris Edwards, with Tomos Hales putting in a successful defence of the trophy in 43:27.