Claire Yearby reports on Rd 10 and the final standings of the of the FNSS

Round 10 of the Friday Night Summer Series was hosted by Rugby Velo at Cosford.  The 2 mile course was a joy to ride, with singletrack that flowed beautifully between berms that made cornering at speed a delight.  Interspersed were short sections of farm track where riders could pass each other comfortably – as long as they had the legs.

The lap began with a steep climb which sorted the field before riders headed into singletrack via an interesting duck under a very low bush.  Just about fine for me at 5’ 4” but I did wonder how the taller riders coped with this!

In the ladies race Fizz Crammond (Cyclone MTB) immediately pulled ahead, and held 1^st place until the end.  Lynne Coldray (Team MK) determinedly vied for 2^nd position with Maxine Fliby (unattached), Lynne eventually winning out and leaving Maxine in 3^rd. 

Back in 4^th and 5^th were Noelle James (VC Nottingham) and myself, with Noelle pulling ahead in the singletrack and me shortening the gap again on the hill each lap.   In lap three I made an error, careering sideways as I tried to take a drink as we approached a track surfaced with deep gravel.  This allowed Noelle to open a large enough gap to be out of sight. 

For the rest of the lap I chased hard and with 1/2 a mile of the race to go was back on her wheel.  Fuelled by indignation at a senior rider who was trying to squeeze both of us off the track as we all headed for the same tight corner, I managed to just get ahead.  Now it was all out to the finish and I rode for all I was worth only to be pipped at the post by a wheel length as Noelle found a sprint at the end. 

A great race on a great course, with the following results for Team MK:

Carl Stokenbrok 4^th (Veterans)

Andy Sharman 15^th (Seniors)

Lynne Coldray 2^nd (Ladies)

Claire Yearby 5^th (Ladies)

Overall Placings at the end of the series

FNSS is a series of MTB events on Friday nights over the summer, with each round being hosted by a different local club in the Midlands. Races can be entered in isolation with prizes on the night, or (if 6 rounds are completed) riders can accumalate points to try and win prizes over the whole series, presented at the final (non counting) handicap round with sociable barbecue.

Round 10 at Cosford was the final counting round for 2008, resulting in the following series results for team MK.

Seniors (out of 38 qualifiers)

Lee Goodman 6^th place

Steve Torley 19^th place

Vets ( out of 33 qualifiers)

Carl Stokenbrok – 4^th place

Ladies (out of 5 qualifiers)

Claire Yearby – 4^th place