Record-breaking form from Clinton ahead of Nationals

Matt Clinton on his way to the course record at Hinckley. Picture: Jonathan Cottingham

A warm Saturday afternoon greeted riders for the Wolvey K41/10 near Hinckley, the location of the 1995 National 10.

Conditions made for a good day despite the tough road surface and, after setting a time of 20:13 last year, the in-form Clinton knew he could get close to Richard Prebble’s 19-year record of 19:55.

A tailwind on the faster outward leg helped Clinton shave 15 seconds off Prebble’s record at five miles, but with the tough return leg to come, the Kenilworth rider knew he still had it all to do.

Fading at the start of the return, Clinton pressed on in the last couple of miles to finish in 19:43, 12 seconds faster than Prebble’s 1995 time.

It was also enough to secure him the win by over a minute from Scott Walker (MG Décor).

Not content with just the one course record, Clinton was back again the following day for the K41/25, 25-mile TT.

Having broken the 2005 course record of 53:08 in a club event a couple of weeks previously, the new benchmark of 52:02 would prove a tough ask.

A warm morning and very little wind made for near-perfect conditions and at the close of the first of two laps, Clinton was already 30 seconds up on his previous time.

Driving hard through the last lap, he obliterated his record to finish in 50:54 (29.6mph), putting him 2min 47sec clear of Walker who again took second place.

With form and confidence at an all-time high, Clinton was aiming for a top-ten finish at the British TT Championships, which took place in Newport, Wales, yesterday (Thursday).

 Leamington’s Team Jewson-MI Racing rider Laura Fuller finished ninth in her age category and 24th female overall at the National Olympic Distance Triathlon at Rutland Water on Sunday, qualifying her to represent Great Britain at the 2015 European Championships in Greece.

The event comprised a 1500m swim, 26-mile cycle and 10k run, with Fuller crossing the line in 2:32:43.

Balsall Common’s Richard Shimmell was part of Team Jewson-MI Racing’s winning veterans’ team at the Port Talbot Four-up Team Time Trial.

Kenilworth’s Darren Atkins made a rare road race appearance at the Mallory Park British Cycling event where he finished fourth.

Tim Stowe ( Wellesbourne) had his best ride for some time, finishing third at the Friday Evening Summer Series event at Kilsby, Northamptonshire.

 Entries are now open for British Cycling’s new women-only sportive, the Breeze Challenge Event.

The Breeze Challenge Event will take place in Coventry and Warwickshire on October 5 and offer a 50k ride and a longer 100k ride for women seeking an accessible introduction to riding more challenging distances.

For further information and to enter, visit wwwbreezebikerides.com