We’re being spoilt with new venues in the 2021-22 Wessex league season – this week we took a tour of the vineyards at Cobbs Farm (complete with double decker bus café) near Hungerford for round 8 hosted by Newbury Velo.
The energy sapping course scurried up, down and across the chalky North Downs slopes in a return to dry conditions after last week’s heavy mud. Climbing from the start, riders even tackled a hole in the hedgerow as they wound their way to the top of a Strava art thumb before the four “fingers” of the switchback descent and a tricky set of barriers hiding round a corner at the bottom of a downhill section. With no Central league race scheduled, the location attracted plenty of that league’s “hitters” too as both v40 and v50 men’s races saw fields of nearly 100 riders each.
Sotonia kids got off to a flying start with a U8 win for Luke, 1st and 3rd for Matilda and Eva in the U10 girls, Billy 2nd place U10 boy. Tom and Sophie 2nd place U12 boy and girl. In the U14s, Izzy won the girls race with Tom and Niclas 2nd and 3rd in theirs. Miles was our top u16 finisher.
For the adults – husband, wife and series leaders, Gemma and Phil Wilks finished 6th and 8th in the senior races. Tom Budden took third place in the v40s and Jon Hall 9th in the v50 men.
This week also saw the first sight of the team league tables and it makes good reading for team Sotonia…
- 1st Senior Women’s team (awesome to go from no Sotonia women’s teams to three this season!)
- 1st v50 Men’s team
- 1st U14 Youth team
- 2nd place v40 Men’s team
- 2nd place Senior Men’s team
Great riding everyone!
