EXPERIENCED rider Mick Ives rolled back the years and showed he remains competitive after setting a new age related British 25-mile tandem record on Sunday.
The 76-year-old is now in the twilight of his career but the eight-time World Masters Champion set a new course record in the VTTA Midland section Open event in South Warwickshire along with 75-year-old Murrary Kirton.
The duo knocked three minutes and 58 seconds off the original record in Alcester, a record that had stood since 2007.
Ives, who is head of Coventry-based M.I.Racing, is no stranger to tandem racing having won the VTTA National Championships twice before and the pair are set to compete again at the 25-mile Championship next month.
There were many other highlights for the M.I.Racing team, with several riders competing across the UK.
Kirby Bennett produced a hugely impressive ride in Scotland to retain his National Championship title despite having to stop and sort out mechanical problems half-way through the race.
The 55-year-old was able to bounce back and regained the lead to finish as the clear winner in Caithness to claim his third British title in just 16 months.
Not to be out done, Kirby’s brother-in-law, Phil Stokes, won the British Championship for riders aged 60 and over. Both riders will now concentrate on the forthcoming World Championships in Italy, where they are expected to perform very well.
Long time team member Derrick Woodings added another British Championship to his long list after winning the LVRC National Circuit Championships on the tight purpose built race circuit at Stourport on Severn
Team mate Carl Sturgeon finished second in the 40+ Championship and Rugby-based Rob O’Connor was runner-up in the 55+ Championship, while in the race for riders aged 45 and over, Phil Blacker came fourth.
Peter Medhurst is still searching for his first road race victory of the season and came very close on Sunday in the Equipe Velo race near Towcester.
A group of 11 riders were clear of the main field for most of the event, including Medhurst, and after a tough 60 miles it came down to a sprint finish where the M.I.Racing member finished second.
In the Percy Stallard National Road Race series, Rob O’Connor finished third in the latest round held at Limber in Lincolnshire and with two more races to go he is currently sitting second overall in the series.
Despite still recovering from a horrific accident back in February after being hit by a car, John Stevenson managed to finish second at the 51-mile Newbury Road race in Berkshire.
Another team rider recovering from an accident having also been hit by a car is Pete Smith, who still has pain in his ribs but also managed to finish runner-up overall and first in the over 55 category at the Scott Mountain Bike Marathon in Oxfordshire.
Further afield, Michael McCann travelled up to Port Eirias in North Wales to contest in the Durathlon. He came up against very windy and wet conditions for the event which consisted of 5km run, followed by a 53km bike ride and finishing with a 10km run.
McCann performed brilliantly to finish third fastest overall and he also won the over 55 age group.
