TEAM MI Racing rider Darren Atkins won silver competing at the British National Cyclo-cross Championships.
Atkins made the perfect start to the New Year by taking silver to earn a place on the podium in South Shields.
The Kenilworth-based rider made a quick start in the men’s 55 to 59 age category race and led the field for the first few minutes.
Icy ground conditions proved a challenge for the riders with the technical and hilly course full of twists and turns.
Racing in new team colours, Atkins eventually crossed the line in seventh place overall and second in his age category.
Elsewhere, the team’s riders took part in a number of regional cyclo-cross league races with many now concluded or in the final stages.
In the Eastern Cyclo-cross League, Team MI Racing’s Richard Perham and Ray Cochrane both produced their best rides of the season.
Racing on a wet and technical course at the Redbridge Cycling Centre, Perham, despite crashing into some trees on a fast descent, battled back to finish in sixth place in the veteran 50 race.
Teammate Cochrane went two places better to finish in fourth place in the veteran 60 race.
The Eastern League reaches its conclusion in Hitchin on February 1.
Further North, just two rounds remain in the North West Cyclo-cross Association League.
Team MI Racing’s under-23 rider Layla Bradbrook enjoyed a fine end to 2025 after taking the overall win in the women’s race in round six in Cheshire.
She backed up her victory with a strong under-23 third place finish in round eight held in Macclesfield.
Bradbrook is the current Elite Women’s Welsh Cross Country Mountain Bike champion.
In the West Midlands, Team MI Racing riders produced a series of strong results in the Leicestershire and Nottingham and Derby cyclo-cross leagues.
The pick of the performances came in round 11 of the West Midlands League as Nick Whitley, Atkins and Nick Popham produced the first Team MI Racing one-two-three finish of the season in the veteran 50 race.
At the same event, recent signing Ruben Stringfellow won the junior race and then closed off his West Midlands League campaign by also taking victory in the final round held in Redditch in the New Year.
The completion of the 2025/26 West Midlands League season saw a number of Team MI Racing riders feature at the top of their respective age group categories.
A strong end to the season saw Lynsey Whitley finish third in the women’s 45 to 49 league.
In the junior category, Stringfellow finished second overall in his first season with MI Racing with Jefferson Tear-Verweij 11th in the same category.
And in the men’s senior category, Jack O’Neill finished fifth with James Garrett in 21st place.
In the men’s veteran 40-44 category, Warwick’s Tom Bradley finished in fifth place.
And in the men’s 45-49 veteran category, Colin Miller also finished fifth.
In the men’s 50-54 veteran category, Popham took second place with Andrew Owen third and Chirstian Morgan 30th.
And in the men’s 55-59 veteran category, Atkins was crowned the 2025/26 league champion while N Whitley placed ninth, Andy Jackson 10th and Alan Buxcey 14th.
In the men’s veteran 60-64 age category Pete Busby finished in fourth place with Mark Garrett ninth and David Garrett 28th.
In the men’s veteran 65-69 category Ian Wright finished 17th after his season was cut short due to injury.
And Team MI Racing also took the overall league win in the team competition.
