National titles won in Fairfield grass track races

This is a sports meeting that has over the years changed from being an athletics meeting to a cycle grass track meeting.

This year’s event saw the inclusion in the programme of two National Championships, both for ladies, one over 800metres and a new endurance event run over 5Km.

This year’s event was organised by CC Ashwell and saw some spirited racing on a track that had not seen rain for over six weeks.

Grass track racing is carried out on single speed velodrome bicycles without either brakes or gears, but with knobbly tyres.

In a high class sprint speeds of 30mph are regularly reached, particularly on a track as fast and smooth as Fairfield was on Saturday.

Both Ladies national titles were won by Joanne Smith from the Thanet CC, with Matilda Gurney from Spalding second and Jenny Andrews from CC Ashwell third in each event.

The Mens Endurance League event was won Laurence Lisher from Welwyn with John McClelland from London second and Martin Smith from Chesterfield third.

Unfortunately a crash in the under 14 youth group resulted in two riders falling quite heavily, one needing hospital attention for a suspected broken ankle and some rather nasty grass burns.

This crash meant an hour’s break in the proceedings for an ambulance.

In the rest of the meeting the men’s omnium (an event over multi disciplines) resulted in a win for Laurence Lisher with Ashwell resident and rider for Contour Cycle Racing Team Dave Mitchinson securing second and Martin Smith third.

In the youth categories the winners were as follows: U8s Logan Ayres, CC Ashwell; U10s Gethin Hill, CC Ashwell ; U12s Mr Harley Gregory CC Ashwell; U14s Isaac Small Grampian Tigers CC; U16s Miss Harley Pell riding for LIV AWOL.