Okay, so we’re getting towards the end of the 2015 season now, so without further ado, here’s our pick of women’s cycling events for August 2015:
8 August 2015
Annual Gerry Thurlow Prize Cup – organised by VC Lincoln, this 40 mile road race is open to W2/W3/W4 and is only £15 to enter. Plus it starts at 1pm so gives people a chance to travel. It’s also on the Saturday. so you can have a rest day on the Sunday!
9 August 2015
Tyne Tees RR League Round 4 – This event is an E/1/2/3 women’s race over 50 miles in Northallerton, starting at 11:03 am, running in conjunction with two men’s events. Although online entry is only open to members of the league, if you send a postal entry in (download the entry form here), it will cost you £19 and you don’t need to enter the league. These races are really well organised, and is likely to be worth the travel time.
Bath CC Cotswold Race – Based around a circuit in Chippenham, Wiltshire, with the women doing 3 laps (44 miles) and the men’s race 4 laps (57 miles), this race is open to W2/W3/W4 and is £25 to enter. Closing date is 26 July 2015, so make sure you get your entry in if you are planning on racing!
16 August 2015
VCUK PH-MAS Charity Air Ambulance Stage Race – a one day, two stage event, is being held in Selby by Neil Hendry of PH-MAS. The first stage is a 48 mile road race, starting at 10:15 am followed by a 1 lap 12 mile time trial at 2pm. All profits are being donated to Yorkshire Air Ambulance, but there’ll still be plenty of prizes to be won. Entry fee is £25. No TT bikes are allowed (or clip on bars or aero wheels) for the time trial, so don’t let the time trial stage put you off. Perfect if you want to have a go at a stage race but don’t want to feel put off because you don’t have two bikes. This event has been rescheduled from the end of June.
23 August 2015
Beeston CC Road Race – The women’s race, the Ronde van de Vlinders is open to 2/3/4 category riders and starts at 12pm. The race is based around East Midlands (Loughborough) and is 37 miles long. The East Midlands Road Race League are working hard to try and support women’s racing, so if you are in the Midlands/a bit further North, please support the event if you can.
CC Sudbury Women’s Road Race – This is open to E/1/2/3/4 category riders and is a 50 mile race on the Bulmer Course (details of the circuit are here). It is being run in conjunction with a men’s race and is part of the Women’s Eastern Racing League. It starts at 10am and is £20 in advance. Please note that the event details state that the event will be cancelled if they don’t get enough entries.
Onit Cycles Women’s Road Race – I don’t ordinarily post up details of the Women’s Team Series however this race is a new addition to the series and it has a female organiser. It’s in South Wales, which means that the entry fee is slightly higher than elsewhere (£25) but it looks like a decent circuit (22 miles long) and it is great to see women’s racing in Wales. As it’s the Team Series, I’m sure it will be well supported, and I think a virtual “high five” should go to Onit Cycles Women’s Race Team for stepping up and promoting an event.
29 August 2015
Manchester Wheelers Women’s 2 Day Stage Race – open to 2/3/4 category women, this event was originally going to be held in Tameside on the Saturday and then Great Budworth in Cheshire, on the Sunday, however, due to circumstances completely outside of the organiser’s control, she has been forced to swap the road stage to the Oakenclough circuit in the Trough of Bowland. This means that the rolling circuit is now much more challenging hillier circuit, so if you are a 2/3/4 category rider who likes hills, this may be for you. It must be said that the women’s race held on the Oakenclough circuit last year saw two sprinters in the top four as the finish is after a descent, so it isn’t an out and out climber’s circuit, but it is good that this circuit is at least being used for the women this season. £40 to enter, a female organiser and the Oakenclough circuit is right next to the M6 motorway, so will be easy to get back. Plus it’s Bank Holiday Monday the day after.