The 2015 RCC TT series involved two significant 'firsts'... and after the final TT of the season, also two significant winners. Matt Peel retained his Scratch trophy after a superb season breaking PBs and recording the fastest RCC rider time each time he turned up. However, there was an outside chance to add excitement to the Finale. While Billy Weir won the handicap trophy by a good margin. Read on to find out more...
To start with the two 'firsts'.
1) It was our first year for decades when the series was not run by our President, Jon Eglinton.
We started the year offering our thanks to him for taking care of pretty much everything, every week of the season for 30 years. In the end, thanks to an excellent rota of helpers including Mssrs Brennan, Bunt, Bryant, Bradbourne (lots of Bs!), Henton, Kitson, Chamberlain, Peel, Gregory, Webb, Weir and Mdme Arthurs-Brennan, things went smoothly. a HUGE thank you to all those who lent a hand.
2) It was our first year with the series ridden entirely at Horne
Various issues with safety, signage and roundabouts down at the Horsham course we've used in previous years saw us opt to run the whole series at Horne with the addition of the two-lap 10 mile course for the lightest period of the year. Overall, it felt successful with riders able to pursue PBs on fast courses at other open meetings if they so wished.
In all, 27 RCC riders turned up for at least one TT but the Scratch and Handicap competitions came down to some key names.
The Scratch
Matt Peel started the year determined to hold onto the Scratch trophy. His exceptional riding saw that achieved on the final night but his pursuit of PBs elsewhere did allow one of the most consistent riders of the season - Roly Kitson - a tiny chink of hope. Roly was unable to make the Finale but he got within a handful of scratch points of Matt with consistency of attendance and performance. On the night, had Matt sustained a mechanical and Roly scorched to a win, history could have been different!
A number of other RCC riders put in excellent performances. Neil Candler's return to excellent form means that he gives Matt a reason to look over his shoulder. Simon Baldwin was another super consistent rider and there were flashes of brilliance too from Will Henton and Jonny Bradbourne. Jonny was timekeeper on a number of occasions but showed his class with a scratch win in week three.
The Handicap
With a relatively small number of riders being 'holiday and commitment free' enough to get out for a big enough proportion of Wednesdays, the handicap came down to four main contenders: Matt Peel (again), Will Henton (last year's handicap winner), Roly Kitson (again) and Billy Weir.
In the end, Billy's attendance at nine week's of the series and his achievement in recording top three handicap slots in seven of those made his lead unassailable.
The Finale
The finale was dampened by a low turn-out most likely due to the suspicion that after three days of horrendous weather, flooding and high winds that this form would continue through Wednesday evening. For the four who turned out, thankfully it didn't! The evening was warm, sunny and relatively still. Fastest time on the night was Paceline RT's Keith Lea using all his class and wiles to secure a 19:52 while Matt was achingly close to breaking 19 minutes with a 20:01 - 10 seconds up on his season's best and PB on this course - with plenty of time lost to the need for caution on slick corners and avoiding other road users! Billy put in a creditable 23:07 and Simon Baldwin a strong 21:40.
Bubbles were handed out to Matt and Billy and we also offered to make a donation to a charity of Horne Park Golf Club's choice for accommodating us so graciously.
Sad though it is to say, that's now it for the RCC TT series until next May. See you then and well done to everyone who made this year's series a memorable one.