NS Poly GP, 9th January 2024

A new year, but a familiar chill in the air as 200-odd runners assembled for the fifth round of this season’s Grand Prix. Rewarded for her assistance at previous races, Aoífe Monaghan made her debut, drafted in as a replacement runner for ‘Johnny & The Hurricanes’. Unfortunately, as Aoífe has inherited the points from her largely M.I.A. predecessor, she’s unlikely to be troubling the individual standings now we’re halfway through the season.

Despite the 4 degree temperature and some on/off rain, the conditions weren’t all that bad for running, with the worst of the wind saved for a blast in the face as we rounded Spanish City on the way out.

The headline on the night was, of course, victory for Lena! Topping Dave’s 3^rd place from December, and extending her streak of recording at least one 1^st place to a third season. After struggling by her own admission last month, Lena made the most of her lowered handicap, following the lead bike over the finish line a good 20 seconds ahead of 2nd place. Another prize in the bag come the end of season awards!

Paul Robinson also capitalised on a favourable handicap, after a couple of ‘rocky’ months which saw him DNF in November, to finish in an impressive 18^th. Further down the field, competition was fierce. There were several instances of Claremonters practically falling over each other on the line, finishing seconds apart, and even in consecutive places.

With Jack Shawcross absent (one of 4), Mark Anderson reclaimed the familiar mantle of ‘fastest Claremonter on the night’, equalling his season’s best. He also pipped his namesake Jimmy on the line, as the latter broke his own course record in 17:28, more than 30 seconds in front of the 2^nd fastest runner.

As last month, it was around 50/50 for our runners either climbing or falling in the individual table. For the first time this season, no-one is currently sitting in the top 10, with Holly Porter still highest in 12^th. Mark and Kat Truong were the biggest improvers, 66 and 53 places gained respectively, with Kat’s huge leap taking her into the top 20 in 17^th.

Consistent standards are being maintained by the teams, with The 3rd Wheelers still sitting proudly top of the table! Rock’s Stars maintain 3^rd, while The Full Claremonty have clawed their way up another 2 spots into 5^th. With 36 teams total, it’s impressive work from everyone to be riding so high this far into the competition.

Position	Runner	Team	Race Time	Actual Time
1	Lena Lou	The Full Claremonty	37:37	35:27
18	Paul Robinson	Rock’s Stars	40:51	21:41
21	Kat Truong	The 3rd Wheelers	40:56	28:26
39	Tara Hipwood	The Full Claremonty	41:18	28:08
63	Mark Anderson	Rock’s Stars	41:38	20:08
81	Alexia O’Rourke	The 3rd Wheelers	41:45	32:35
82	Tom Tinsley	The Full Claremonty	41:46	22:36
86	Janet Palmer	The 3rd Wheelers	41:47	31:57
90	Anneliza Andreadi	The Full Claremonty	41:49	29:39
99	Aaron Mansell	The 3rd Wheelers	41:52	24:22
102	Luke Woodend	Rock’s Stars	41:53	29:43
103	Izzy Neatrour	The 3rd Wheelers	41:54	22:24
105	David Roberts	The Full Claremonty	41:54	23:44
106	Rachel Hurdman	Rock’s Stars	41:55	28:05
111	Nicki O’Brien	The Full Claremonty	41:57	24:27
123	Laurie Johnson	Rock’s Stars	42:05	21:15
124	Holly Porter	The 3rd Wheelers	42:07	24:37
138	Kimberley Metson	Rock’s Stars	42:17	23:27
191	Alex Harding	The 3rd Wheelers	43:06	26:36
192	Aoífe Monaghan	Johnny & The Hurricanes	43:08	26:38
196	Rose Hawkswood	The Full Claremonty	43:44	35:14