The first night of the 2023 Banbridge CC Club League attracted a healthy participation from club riders and visitors, with a total of 36 riders signing on for the 10 mile TT om the Castlewellan Rd. The Wills Cup was the prize being competed for and as an early season handicapped competition rewards those who have put in the training effort over the winter months to improve their targets times.
Clearly there has been significant effort put in across the board, as no fewer than 9 riders had beaten their target times by 2 minutes! More impressive still the top 4 riders on handicap were all 3 minutes lower than their target times and the top 2 were 4 minutes + lower. Impressive.
On the night it was Malcolm Jenkins who came out top on handicap and claims the Wills Cup. Missing out by only 1 second in 2nd place was JP Rice who has already enjoyed the top step of the podium this year at the Travers Eng Annaclone GP. James MacMahon was 3rd in handicap, clearly benefiting the weeks warm weather training in Majorca.
Fast rider on the night was Luke Osborne with a time of 20:40 over the 10 miles, 10 seconds clear of fellow TT specialist Erwin McKee. Many have predicted a close year this year between these two towering fast men, and tonight’s performances indicate we could well be in for a spicy year! John Buller was 3rd fastest with 21:05, while newcomers Jonathan Denvir (21:26) and Philip Castles (21:32) completed the top 5.
Notice for new members: the handicapping systems calculates target times from previous performances. As a result you require a minimum of 2 individual club TT events completed before eligible for handicap competitions.
Many thanks as always to all those volunteering to host the event, also to Banbridge PSNI who were present onsite for the duration of the event.
