The National Trophy Cyclo-Cross series reached its sixth and final round on the first full weekend of January 2023. After a brief interlude over the Christmas period the season-long competition arrived at the popular Cyclopark venue in Kent for two days of unpredictable cyclo-cross racing in what would turn out to be some of the most difficult riding conditions of the series.
With cold temperatures and plenty of rain, frigid mud dominated the weekend of racing.
Our crack team of Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli Cyclo-Cross racers came together once again to represent us across multiple race categories over the two days. Our team is mainly based in the North West of England and the long trip down to Kent for both our riders and team staff was not to be underestimated; following almost a full month of continuous rain over the majority of the UK they knew they were in for a hard weekend, racing in the muddiest conditions possible. What they didn’t necessarily bargain for was a big drop in temperature, particularly on the Sunday, this would prove to be one of the most significant factors influencing how our racers performed at Round 6 of the National Trophy.
Conditions were a real test of both rider AND bike with pit crews kept busy cleaning bikes on every lap.
Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli’s Dave Haygarth deserves a special round of applause from everyone here at Wheelbase HQ. As you may know, we’re about to host the final big cyclo-cross race of the year – the National Cyclo-Cross Championships at the Westmorland County Showground in Cumbria. Just down the road from our flagship store in the South Lakes the preparation of the race venue and all of the complex planning of the event behind the scenes has been overseen by Dave and his team of volunteers; with just a week to go until the big event Dave and his daughter Elsie Haygarth still found the energy to load up the van full of bikes and make the long trip down south to race the final round of the Trophy.
Dave Haygarth and his daughter Elsie made the long trip south to Kent for another fun-filled weekend of ‘cross racing.
Dave and Elsie committed to racing every round of the National Trophy Cyclo-Cross series; Saturday would see Dave and Elsie racing in the Vet 50 and Under 16 Girls category respectively, here’s Dave’s account of their races…
Elsie in action at the Gravesend Cyclopark, racing in the U16 Girls category.
Looking back on the six rounds of the National Trophy series, we have probably had the best six courses imaginable; they all varied so much but each and every one tested rider’s skills in different ways. The final round at the Cyclopark in Gravesend, Kent didn’t disappoint and rounded out the series perfectly.
Dave Haygarth alongside UK cycling legend Nick Craig.
A superb course design meant that there were very few moments where you could take your eye off the ball; the use of this course as a training area for local riders over the last few weeks also meant that several parts of the course were well ridden-in beforehand. Well-established ruts and polished corners made for a really demanding parcours and when the dry and windy conditions turned to rain only 20 minutes before my Vet 50 race things got even more interesting.
The technical nature of the course was much to Dave’s liking.
With an ongoing knee injury that I’m still trying to work around by reducing my training as well as getting plenty of physiotherapy, I wasn’t too confident about the course in the run-up to my race. This slight apprehension wasn’t eased when I began to see the new and imposing flight of stairs consisting of 47 steps appearing all over my social media feed! To be honest, I’d seriously considered not even making the 250 mile journey, but the love of the sport always takes grip and we went there planning to make the most of it.
47 Steps! Made Dave’s day a little harder, but the knee held out.
This was the first race of the National Trophy series that I managed to qualify for the front row of the grid, but with a screaming headwind at the start straight a fumbled attempt to clip cleanly into my pedals proved quite fortuitous as I immediately slipped back to 15th position behind the charging riders and out of the wind. Then, just before the course turned onto the rough and rutted mud I was able to come out of the wind and push straight up to 2nd place, which was fantastic for the ego.
Relying on years of ‘cross riding experience Dave Haygarth rode intelligently throughout the race.
My race from there was incredibly clean, given the unpredictable nature of the course. Riders around me, slipped, slid, and generally struggled, pushing the course tapes, and often falling, so I feel like I got away with a trouble-free start and as the faster riders gradually came around me, I managed to settle into sixth or seventh place to fight with Army CC rider Simon Hale.
This is the way it remained for the last part of the race until the final lap when my legs started to fade on some of the bigger banks, forcing me to let a couple of other riders pass me. I eventually crossed the line in 9th place and was really chuffed with another top-10 finish on a course that I was super-enjoyable during every second of racing.
A fine 9th place made the long journey even more worthwhile.
Elsie’s U16 girls race took place in the early afternoon of Saturday and by then the wind had dried the wet mud enough to make it nastily sticky. Just clipping back in the pedals was taxing; shoes clogged with flint, sand and mud became ‘clods of inconvenience’ making he race even more challenging. Also recovering well from knee problems, Elsie was just happy to make the start of this final round. Technical courses are always her favourite and she went into the Gravesend race with the aim of having fun, testing her bike-handling skills and just seeing where that left her at the end of the race.
Elsie slips and slides her way around the Gravesend Cyclopark.
Despite the taped up knees Elsie was able to make short work of the massive flight of 47 steps.
With a fairly decent start, Elsie immediately encountered traffic chaos as the youth girls race had been booted up the steps on the first lap. She dealt with it well and with a position in the early 20s she slowly improved on the steps each lap, eventually managing to consolidate a top 20 position. Elsie was really happy with 19th place with virtually no knee pain, particularly as there was now just a week to go until the National Cyclo-Cross Championship on home turf.
Another top 20 result gave Elsie Haygarth the confidence she needed going into next weekend’s National Championships.
Lewis Craven made a long trip from the North to race the final round of the series in the Vet 40 category. After another successful race season Lewis was back at the sharp end of the race going up against his usual (friendly) adversaries including series leader Tony Fawcett, Hope Factory Racing’s Paul Oldham and current Vet 40 World Champion Adrian Lansley. With both the technical course and the muddy conditions suiting Lewis he was able to take advantage of conditions to sign off this demanding series of ‘cross races with a fine 2nd place.
When racing conditions are at their most difficult Lewis Craven shines! His Jedi-like bike-handling skills really coming into play.
Lewis’ seeks out the most available traction as he rides up one of the steep banks.
Foot out, flat out. Lewis drifts his way though the slick course.
As the rain continues to fall and the ground gets more and more sodden, circumstances are looking very promising for Lewis, our mud specialist, as we fast approach the National Cyclo-Cross Championships on the 14th & 15th of January. With his form just where is needs to be at this point in the season we’re excited to see what he can do at our ‘home race’.
Rubbin’ is racing. Lewis and World Vet 40 Champ Adrian Lansley both seek out the same line.
More podium time for Lewis Craven as he takes 2nd place in the Vet 40 category.
A quick scroll through Man Down Media’s excellent photos will tell you everything you need to know about the conditions that our team were up against when racing re-commenced on the Sunday. It’s probably fair to say that the weather was the fiercest competitor of the day, shaping the outcome of many rider’s races. Warm and wet conditions had dominated the previous week’s weather, but now riders were now suddenly faced with a dramatic drop in temperature as the rain intensified just as our Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli lined up for the final race of the weekend, the men’s senior elite race.
Conditions only got worse on Sunday as temperatures dropped and rain turned to hail.
Representing the team at Round 6 were of four our racers. Giles Drake was back in action looking for another good result after a string of consistent National-level races this year, having only missed one round this season due to commitments on the road as he took on the National Hillclimb Championships where he finished in a fantastic 10th place.
Giles was back in action for what turned out to be one of the hardest races of the season.
Joining Giles was our young U23 rider Flynn Gregory who has had another stellar year mixing it with the seniors and placing highly in all rounds and on a wide mix of course and different racing conditions. For most of 2022 Adam Bent was focused on road racing on the continent where he again tasted success; back in the UK for a shorter ‘cross season than he’s been used to Adam quickly adapted to this more unpredictable racing discipline and has shown himself at the sharp end of the race.
Flynn Gregory has had an impressive season with consistent results and a high placing overall in the U23 sub-category.
Adam has had a shorter season after a long road season on the continent but has slotted straight back into the sharp end of ‘cross racing.
It was good to see Tyla Loftus back on the other side of the tape; after a long season of tirelessly working in the pits, helping to keep our racers riding in some of the most difficult conditions of the year it was his chance to compete against a packed field of racing talent. Tyla works hard behind the scenes at Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli, helping to recruit some of our best riders over recent years and he continues play an important role in the running of the team right throughout the year.
It was time for Tyla to be on the other side of the tape, leaving pitting duties behind to race instead.
When the starter’s gun went off the large field of racers were immediately into the action with mud, spray and slop instantly rendering almost everyone unrecognizable thanks to a thick coating of freezing cold mud. Despite a good start, Giles would quickly begin to suffer in the difficult conditions as the rain turned to hail; from his description after the race it sounds as if he was on the verge of hypothermia…
It quickly became clear that I was underdressed and when the rain and hail came, I got so cold I couldn’t steer the bike, brake or shift gears. Eventually, as my body began to shut down I crashed hard and ultimately DNFd (did not finish). It was really irritating but I have to put it down to just one of those days where conditions changed drastically and rapidly.
A very rare off day for Giles as he succumbed to the incredibly cold temperatures and difficult racing conditions.
Giles quickly realised he was under-dressed once the unwelcome hail had arrived.
We’re sure Giles will bounce back ready for next weekend’s National Cyclo-Cross Championship at the Westmorland County Showground in Cumbria where he’ll be keen to impress at what can be described as his ‘local National Champs’.
It was time to consolidate and recover in time for the ‘BIG one’ next weekend – the National Cyclo-Cross Championships in Cumbria!
Flynn Gregory continued his consistent race, taking an excellent 16th place at the end of this attritional race. This brilliant top 20 finish also saw him take 14th place in the season-long Under-23 sub-category. Adam, still making the best of his shortened ‘cross season was just behind Flynn taking a brilliant 18th place while Tyla rounded our Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli representation with a fine 50th place, picking just about the worst race of the year to stage a comeback to competition!
Flynn was on form again, taking a fine 16th place which positioned him in 14th overall in the season-long U23 competition.
Adam remained composed in the incredibly difficult racing conditions to cross the line in an excellent 18th place.
Tyla chose the most difficult race of the year to stage a racing comeback but handled the mud really well.
As I’ve mentioned numerous times throughout this report, the team now have their eyes firmly focused on the National Cyclo-Cross Championships taking place on the 14th & 15th of January at the Westmorland County Showground in Cumbria. We may never get the chance again to host our very own National Championships! With Dave Haygarth at the helm we’re looking forward to a brilliantly run event and fantastic weekend of Cyclo-Cross action; it promises to be super-fun for competitors and spectators alike – see you there!
There’s just enough time to get cleaned up and prepared for the National Cyclo-Cross Championships sponsored by WHEELBASE next weekend!
Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli Results:
Day 1 Saturday
Vet 40
2nd Lewis Craven
Vet 50 Men
9th Dave Haygarth
U16 Youth Girls
19th Elsie Haygarth
Day 2 Sunday
Elite Men
16th Flynn Gregory
18th Adam Bent
50th Tyla Loftus
DNF Giles Drake
Written by Johnny Dodgin
Photos by Man Down Media
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