The Track Championships comprise of a number of specialist events contested
using special bikes with a single fixed gear and no brakes on a banked oval
velodrome.
The first result of the day came when Rowe took the bronze medal in the 200m
Sprint event having qualified fastest into a blustery headwind in a time of
12.48 seconds. This event is a one-on-one race for the line. Rowe used his
fast sprint and quick mind to outwit his opponents, his trackstand outpysching
friend and foe Mike Cubison
(Corpus 97 - UMIST) to 4th place.
Cambridge, having been utterly destroyed and demoralised in every event this
year, failed to turn up for fear of yet another drubbing at the hands of Oxford.
This was duly dealt out to the other competing universities (including UMIST/Manchester
who have exclusive use of the World Class Velodrome in Manchester) in the 3-man
Team Sprint.
Miles Waring (Catz) set a scorching pace, swinging off after the requisite
half lap and handing ver the lead to John Tuckett (Worc) and Rowe. Tuckett
showed a great turn of speed over the next half lap, setting Rowe up perfectly
to power home for the Gold medal, 1.5 seconds clear of the competition.
As if that wasn't enough, Rowe also medalled in the 40 lap Points Race, in
which 5,3,2 and 1 points are awarded to the first four riders to cross the
line every 5 laps. The race was won by Birmingham rider Jack Hill, who earlier
in the year won the 83 mile BUSA Road Race ahead of Axford (St Cross) 4th,Wallis
(Lincoln) 5th and Tuckett (Worc) 11th. Hill broke away from the pack in this
race to gain a lap on the pack and secure victory leaving only the minor places
to be fought over. Here Oxford used its strength in depth with Tuckett and
Waring setting Rowe up to win almost every intermediate sprint, giving Rowe
the Silver medal and Tuckett 4th place.
The last medal came in the final event of the day, the Keirin, a race where
the riders are paced by a specially adapted moped to reach speeds of over 40mph
before unleashing an all out sprint for the line. Rowe won gold after positioning
himself perfectly in the pack to make full use of the slipstream available
at those speeds. His acceleration and line through the final bend made it impossible
for riders behind to come past him without going high around the banking into
the wind. An excellent win given the presence of a Russian International Sprinter
in the pack.
Special mention must go to Kat Smart (St Anne's) who entered
the women's events but due to BUSA rules regarding lack of
entries was denied medals in each event
she entered. Kat Smart, in her first season as a cyclist, showed excellent
determination and courage racing against seasoned track cyclists inlcuding
a Welsh International, a Loughborough Sports Acadamy cyclist and a 4th year
track specialist from Manchester Uni.
All in all this represents a superb year for Oxford University
Cycling Club who have not only dominated in the University
based BUSA competition but have
also had success in National and Regional level cycle races. Special mention
should again go to Daniel Axford who rode to 12th place in the recent National
25 mile Time Trial Championships.
The Track Championships comprise of a number of specialist events contested
using special bikes with a single fixed gear and no brakes on a banked oval
velodrome.
Miles Waring (Catz) set a scorching pace, swinging off after the requisite
half lap and handing ver the lead to John Tuckett (Worc) and Rowe. Tuckett
showed a great turn of speed over the next half lap, setting Rowe up perfectly
to power home for the Gold medal, 1.5 seconds clear of the competition.
The last medal came in the final event of the day, the Keirin, a race where
the riders are paced by a specially adapted moped to reach speeds of over 40mph
before unleashing an all out sprint for the line. Rowe won gold after positioning
himself perfectly in the pack to make full use of the slipstream available
at those speeds. His acceleration and line through the final bend made it impossible
for riders behind to come past him without going high around the banking into
the wind. An excellent win given the presence of a Russian International Sprinter
in the pack.
Special mention must go to Kat Smart (St Anne's) who entered
the women's events but due to BUSA rules regarding lack of
entries was denied medals in each event
she entered. Kat Smart, in her first season as a cyclist, showed excellent
determination and courage racing against seasoned track cyclists inlcuding
a Welsh International, a Loughborough Sports Acadamy cyclist and a 4th year
track specialist from Manchester Uni.
All in all this represents a superb year for Oxford University
Cycling Club who have not only dominated in the University
based BUSA competition but have
also had success in National and Regional level cycle races. Special mention
should again go to Daniel Axford who rode to 12th place in the recent National
25 mile Time Trial Championships.