A total of 22 youth riders made the trip to the remote but beautiful Droxford venue. The dry weather over the last week combined with the exposed and windy position of the course meant there was no mud insight. This might mean less excitement for the parents but it also means there is no need to spend a long time cleaning bikes afterwards!
In the U8 Girls race it took the daughter of a former British Cyclocross Champion (Eva Hammond) to stop Tess getting a gold medal and she had to settle for silver this time. Tilly missed out on the podium by a few seconds and Jaya finished a solid 5th. Dad Phil Banks started racing as well this year and his excellent results (24th in “Seniors”) must be an inspiration as Harry came home in front of the son of Roger Hammond!
Skye and Ella had their usual battle for best U10 Sotonia girl. This week Ella had the upper hand coming home in 9th place with Skye just behind her. Marit choose to ride her new dropped handle bar bike but she found the brakes hard and carefully rode her way to 15th place.
Stanley had a great race to finish 3rd in the U10 boys. Jo was still suffering from the effects of a bad cold and saw Tom be faster than him this week. Both had a solid top 10 finish and together with Finlay, Sam and Lucas they pushed the non-Sotonia riders hard for their positions!
In the U12 race there were no mechanical problems for George C. this time and he finished a well deserved 2nd. Olivia, Emma, Samuel, Charlie, Jonathan and George W all had good races and in their own way contribute huge amounts to making the U12 race an exciting one to watch.
Lucy and Max were our two representatives in the U16 race which is a huge step up from the U12 race. Once again they were a great example to our younger riders finishing 4th and 7th in their categories.
U10 race – 53 in race
U8 girls
Tes Bignell 2nd (43), Tilly Wilks 4th (47), Jaya Martingale 5th (50)
U8 boys
Harry Banks 9th (49)
U10 girls
Ella Ridgment 9th (30), Skye Martingale 10th (32), Marit Davidse 15th (42)
U10 boys
Stanley Philips 3rd (3), Thomas wilks 6th (6), Joseph Bignell 7th (9), Finlay Banks 12h (18), Samuel White 17th (29), Lucas Mills 21st (44)
U12 race – 42 in race
U12 girls
Olivia Allman 6th (24), Emma Harrison 7th (34)
U12 boys
George Connell 2nd (2), Samuel Ridgment 8th (9), Charlie Shepherd 14th (17), Jonathan Lowe 17th (22), George White 33rd (40)
U16 race – 51 in race
U14 girls
Lucy Phillips 4th (34)
U14 boys
Max Darnton 7th (19)