The past month has seen Ythanites out in force representing the club in both cyclocross and mountain bike races.
Scottish North CX series – rounds 2 and 3
Mike Giles was the only Ythan rider in action at both rounds 2 and 3 of Scottish North CX series. He finished in 19th place at CrossNess, Merkinch on the 13th October and in 14th place at Burnside Loch, Avoch on the 3rd November.
SCX Round 3: MoCross, Montrose – Sunday 20th Oct
Sunday 20th October saw a number of Ythanites descend on Montrose Links for round 3 of the Scottish Cyclocross Series. The results from each very muddy race were:
Eilidh Gronkowski – 7th in the U10 race
Euan Murphy – 16th in the U12 race
Gavin Gronkowski – 11th in the U14 race
Carol Middleton – 2nd place in her category
Mike Giles – 26th in the Vet 50 race
Big Tree Campervans Tayside & Fife Regional Youth MTB Series 2019 – Round 3: Kinnoull Hill, Perthshire. Sunday 27th Oct
Riders donned full-face helmets for Round 3 of the Big Tree Campervans series downhill mountain bike race. The results from the youngsters were:
Eilidh Gronkowski – 4th in the U10 race
Andrew Ingram – 21st in the U12 race
Euan Murphy – 27th in the U12 race
Gavin Gronkowski – 9th in the U14 race
Round 4: Crombie Country park, Arbroath. Sunday 10th Nov
Round 4 of the Big Tree Campervans series saw the riders back on mountain bikes and cyclocross bikes for a tight technical course in the grounds of Crombie Country park. In what proved to be hard-fought races, the Ythan youngsters went on to claim three podium places:
Eilidh Gronkowski – 3rd in the U10 race
Matthew Smith – 3rd in the U12 race
Euan Murphy – TBC in the U12 race
Gavin Gronkowski – 2nd in the U14 race
Euan Murphy was in a podium place position for most of the U12 race but lost out with only 2 laps to go. However at the end of round 4 the youngster was in third place overall in the U12 series.
Round 5: Lochore Meadows Country park, Fife. Sunday 17th Nov
Riders assembled on a chilly, but sunny morning for the exciting series finale, which took place at Lochore Meadows.
First up was Eilidh Gronkowski in the U10 race. She finished in 4th place in both the race and the series, having lost out by the width of a tyre for 3rd in a photo finish.
Matthew Smith and Andrew Ingram were the only Ythanites lining up in the U12 race, with series contender Euan Murphy unable to attend. Both riders displayed excellent skills with Smith going on to take 3rd place on the podium and gain enough points to claim the silver medal for the U12 series.
Gavin Gronkowski finished in third place in the U14 race, which gained him enough points to take the Bronze medal in the U14 series.
Some sterling performances by all the QL riders across the whole series – well done all!
SCX Round 4: The Mount Stuart Trust Bute CX, Sunday 17th Nov
Round 4 of the Scottish Cyclocross Series was held in the grounds of Mount Stuart House, Isle of Bute. Mike Giles and U14 youth rider Robert Smart made the journey to tackle the 3.25km technical course comprising switchbacks and adverse cambers and some wooded areas.
Mike finished in 22nd place in the men’s V50 race, while Robert finished in 12th place in the U14 race.
Photos courtesy of Winny Lidewy