Report/Result: Beeley Moor Hill Climb

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Tejvan Pettinger in great form as he wins the Chesterfield Coureurs ‘Harry Cook Memorial’ Hill Climb on Beeley Moor

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After 20 years, and 19 editions, the Chesterfield Coureurs ‘Harry Cook Memorial’ Hill Climb finally hit the big time with a record entry of 70 riders. The fact that the Beeley Moor course is within a whisker of being the exact length of The Stang – the venue for next weekends national championship – may have had a part to play in this, however the organisers would like to think that the word is spreading about this friendly event with a generous prize list. Once again prizes totalled in excess of £700 with plenty to battle for in all categories.

Unfortunately the weather did not see fit to play its part in the proceedings and decided to present itself in the form of a stiff cross wind and occasional showers. This presented the organisers with a challenge in terms of erecting the HQ tent and lighting the camping stoves, but once this situation had been addressed the event, went off without a hitch.

The severity of the day was evident, however, once riders began to cross the finish line and it was Chris Baines (Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles) who, just like last year, was the first to slip under 10 minutes. Baines is now based in Oxford and he travelled to Derbyshire just for the race – dedication indeed!

Baines was the only rider under the 10 minute mark in the first half of the field and it was finally number 41, Jack O’Neill (Mike Vaughan Cycles), who removed Baines from the top spot with a time of 9 44.7. O’Neill is clearly a young man worth keeping an eye on. Still only a junior; not only was Jack’s time worth an eventual 3rd place overall, but he was only 4 seconds off Ashley Proctors junior record which was set in far more benevolent conditions.

One minute in the start order behind O’Neill, was Simon ‘200 hills’ Warren (Norwood Paragon). Warren has turned veteran this year and he put all of his hill climbing experience to good use with a time of 10 16.0 to secure the fastest veteran category and 9th overall.

With the ‘big hitters’ all in the last 20 riders, it seemed that it would only be a matter of time before O’Neills time would be bettered, but with the wind swinging from a cross to a cross/head direction fast times were to be at a premium. The first to come close was the aforementioned Ashley Proctor (Sheffrec CC) with a time of 9 50.1, and five minutes later Dave Archer (Bolsover and Distict CC) challenged with 9 56.5 having already warmed up by racing up Riber earlier in the day.

All eyes were now down the road looking to see what Tejvan Pettinger (Sri Chinmoy CT) would produce on his Beeley debut and he didn’t disappoint with an astonishing time of 8.34.0. Pettinger was just 11 seconds outside of Gunnar Gronlunds 2011 course record but, like the junior record, Gronlunds time had been set on a good day and clearly it is a mark that Pettinger would trouble with the aid of a helpful tail wind.

With Pettinger raising the winning bar by over a minute, the question was whether last man, Matt Clinton (Mike Vaughan Cycles), would be able to get anywhere near Pettinger’s time. Just over 10 minutes after Pettinger had crossed the line the answer was provided and Clinton came remarkably close with 8 51.8 – the only other time under 9 minutes and almost a minute faster than his young team mate.

Whilst the battle for the men’s award had been going on, the 10 ladies entered had been battling to see if Alex Deck could be challenged for the top honours. Deck has reigned supreme on Beeley for the past 5 years and she is also, unsurprisingly, the holder of the ladies record. With the first few ladies recording times some way off the record of 11 16.3, Deck looked to be set for another victory.

However Lou Collins (Beeston RC), a former GB rower and Iron Man triathlon age group world champion, clearly hadn’t read the script when she come over the line in 11 34.8 – a time that is only bettered by Deck’s record. Twenty five minutes after Collins, Nicola Soden (Champion System – Max Gear RT) dipped under 12 minutes with 11 59.3.

With Soden and Deck only being separated by a matter of seconds in events over the previous weeks, Deck was clearly going to have her work cut out to retain her title, and so it proved when Deck (RST Racing Team) finished a disappointed 3rd with 12 08.9. Deck admitted after the event that she switched off halfway up the climb and that her season had been one weekend too long, but she did confess that even had she been in top form Collin’s time would more than likely have been too much for her in the conditions.

With all of the times in, the only prize to be calculated was that of the winning team and after being demoted by RST Racing Team last year, Buxton Cycling Club assumed their place at the top of the pile for a third time in four years with a near 4 minute winning margin over the second placed team from Sheffield Sports CC.

With the main business of racing out of the way it was time to gather around the tea tent for the prize presentation. Once again the event boosted a generous prize list compiled by co-organiser Guy Cook, and featuring generous donations from local businesses Polaris, JE James Cycles, Décor Improvements, Columbian Caravans and Igloo Cycles.

The £100 on offer for breaking the course record, donated by Martin Smith Opticians of Lincoln, went unclaimed on this occasion – although Martin did admit to having a few nervous moments when news of Pettinger’s ride started to filter through. Despite this close call he has promised that it will again feature in next year’s prize list!

The winner’s trophy was presented by Harry Cook’s son and as the trophy is retained at the club Pettinger was awarded a fine winners medal as a memento of his victory.
Despite the date clash on the calendar with the Matlock events a short distance away, the 2013 promotion was a big success thanks to the many riders that turned up and Chesterfield Coureurs hopes to see them all – plus a few more – on Sunday October 18th 2014 for the 20th running of the event.

Finally the success of the event was assured due to the help and assistance freely given by the many helpers plus event time keepers Phil Minto and John Clarke; something for which the promoters are extremely thankful

RESULT
1 Tejvan Pettinger Sri Chinmoy Cycling Team 08:34.0
2 Matt Clinton Mike Vaughan Cycles 08:51.8
3 Jack O’Neill Mike Vaughan Cycles 09:44.7
4 Ashley Proctor Sheffrec CC 09:50.1
5 Patrick Smart Matlock CC 09:52.0
6 Chris Baines Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 09:55.9
7 Dave Archer Bolsover & District CC 09:56.5
8 Sam Clark Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 10:15.8
9 Simon Warren Norwood Paragon CC 10:16.0
10 Stephen Price Derby Mercury RC 10:21.9
11 Andy Nichols Neon Velo 10:24.0
12 Stewart Gregory Nottingham Clarion CC 10:28.3
13 Stephen Heading Matlock CC 10:41.3
14 Alain Gordon-Seymar Rutland CC 10:46.4
15 Neil Bentley Sheffrec CC 10:57.8
16 Rupert Pearson Rutland CC 10:59.0
17 Danny Featherstone Bolsover & District CC 11:01.5
18 Martin Smith Chesterfield Coureurs CC 11:05.4
19 Daniel Kubon Birdwell Whs 11:06.7
20 Stuart Baker Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 11:09.3
21 Sam Mansfield Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 11:34.7
22 Dominic Watts Sheffield Sports CC 11:34.7
23 Lou Collins Beeston RC 11:34.8
24 Matt Williams Fusion CC Dronfield 11:36.6
25 Stewart Bates TFN Triathlon Club 11:40.8
26 Eamonn Cox Sheffield Sports CC 11:42.1
27 Martin Rigby Mansfield Road Club 11:50.5
28 Mark Plowright Beeston RC 11:51.0
29 Daniel Gee Ashfield RC 11:51.1
30 Sam Smith Sheffield Sports CC 11:52.1
31 Aiden Brown Mapperley CC 11:55.8
32 Nicola Soden Champion System -Maxgear RT 11:59.3
33 Shue Fan Clay Cross RT 11:59.6
34 Jonathan Baines Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 12:01.1
35 Andrew Cutts Birdwell Wheelers 12:03.4
36 Alex Deck RST Racing Team 12:08.9
37 Sidney Wilson Derby Mercury 12:10.1
38 Richard Bramhall Fusion CC Dronfield 12:16.5
39 Kevin Smith Mapperley CC 12:21.3
40 Simon Baines Buxton CC/Sett Valley Cycles 12:58.1
41 Simon Foster Chesterfield Coureurs CC 13:02.9
42 Nicholas Burton Newark Castle C C 13:03.8
43 Barry Parker RVO Racing 13:25.1
44 Paul Heggie Birdwell Whs 13:31.2
45 Nicola Holloway Whirlow Whs 13:32.9
46 David Percival Team Swift 13:43.1
47 Verity Butler Sherwood CC 13:54.8
48 Ken Roberts Garstang CC 14:08.2
49 Karen Brooks Lincoln Wheelers CC 14:08.8
50 Josh Eaton Matlock CC 16:06.1
51 Megan Cook Chesterfield Coureurs CC 21:44.8

 

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