After 1,821kms it came down to 1mm

So after 20 events, 23 races and 1,821kms it came down to this.

(pic1, Graham’s finish line photo – Roland Tilley – left, Andy Rivett – right)

After gathering all the evidence I could hardly split them. I’ve replayed the video, slowed it down frame by frame and seen Graham’s High Res photo’s, imported them into Photoshop messed around and tried to measure distances and it was so still to close to call, virtually impossible.

As the bunch hurtled towards the line it looked like Roland Tilley (Team Ride) was going to take it but Andy Rivett (VC St Rapheal) was clawing his way back from the opposite side of the road. Andy needed to beat Roly into 5th place to take the overall 2010 WXCRL championship, before the race only 2 points had separated them. This was the tightest of finales.

As this picture shows, taken a moment before they hit the line, the two top riders of the year could hardy be separated.

(pic2, This is how close it was, can you split them? I zoomed right down so I could see the pixels and measured the shortest distances to the line. I’m not kidding but it was something ridiculously close like .3 of a pixel. The two wheels were virtually identically level at this point in time)

The video (normally good enough to split the riders) wasn’t any clearer…

(pic3, This clip is a still frame from the video)

(pic4, This pic shows Andy was travelling slightly faster the Roly, so if he was identically level in pic1, about 30cm before the line then he must have been a fraction further on when the wheel actually hit the line)

On this evidence I have given Andy the verdict. It’s as close as it could ever be and has prompted us to update our rules because both riders ended up finishing level on points in this year’s final WXCRL table (Note: These new rules and removal of non-members have yet to be applied to the entire table).

1st New Rule; If two riders are equal on points the winner will be the rider with the most wins.
2nd New Rule; If both riders have same number of wins, the winner will be the highest number of second places, and so on.

So there you have it. Andy Rivett with 154 points is our new 2010 champion thanks to his wins on stage 2 of the Dorset Tour and the Autumn Road Race last week. Andy’s late season form has seen him pick up 76 WXCRL points in the 3 events an excellent effort brought about from his super ride in the Dorset Tour in late August.

Mr. consistent, Roland Tilley, has to settle for 2nd after his 4th place last year. Roly having not ridden the Dorset Tour this year has amassed even more points than his 2009 tally (124), an impressive achievement, especially after not competing in our flagship 3 day.

So there you have it, Andy wins the Ray Price Memorial Cup for one year – well done Andy!

Races For September

‘Oh **** is that this week?’ Said our Mark the other day, in reference to the Cove Road Race. Yes indeed, The Cove Road Race on Sunday 5th September. The Dorset Tour was so good we thought we’d let all the elites and first cats have a go, using the same hill as stage 3 of the DT but in the other direction. That is to say downhill. Top riders were hitting 50 mph last year… There’s another downhill plummet into Lulworth Village, plus too short, sharp climbs. If ya go down, ya gotta go back up again, its not like there’s a chairlift or anything. Course map here. Riders do this seven times, over 122km and on the 7th time up the hill to Durdle Door, who ever’s first across the line wins. But if you haven’t worked that out by the time you get to elite level then there’s no hope for you.

So yeah, the race is open to Elite, first, second and third cat riders. Last year we had a couple of guys from Rapha Condor, limbering up for the Tour of Britain but don’t be scared, its a great course and it’ll be a great race. And if you are scared, why not help us out by marshalling? You get five – count ’em – Wessex League points for basically sitting by a road junction for a few hours and sticking a flag out every 20 minutes. Do this often enough and you could get yourself a decent position in the overall standings without barely having to turn a wheel in anger.

Entry closes the day before (Saturday 4th Sept) with the race starting at 10.30. EOL is probably going to be available at the HQ in D’Urberville Hall in Wool but will be a load more expensive.

Then, a week later, on Sunday 12th September we have The Autumn Road Race. Which is much the same as the Summer Road race, except later in the year. That’s the one with the hills and the cattle grids – and now cows roaming free on the Heath. Its a Regional A race open to riders up to 2nd cat and is run over 90km or 4 laps of the course, starting at 10.30 and based out of Holt Football Club. Yes, Holt has a football club.

No surprises but we’re after marshals for this one too. We’re ALWAYS after marshals. Tell you what, have a look here, find yourself and check how many people are 5 points above you. You can beat ALL of them, merely by helping out. Incredible, really. Well, unless they’re going to be getting top placing in the race, in which case you’re better advised try and beat them the old fashioned way.

There’s more at the end of the month that we’ll get to that in another post.

WXCRL 2010 Points Table Now Online

Our 2010 WXCRL Points Table is now online!

Check back to see where you’re ranked after every event (well, give me a day or so to update it). Our table will automatically update when it’s edited. The rows in yellow represent the people who have yet to join the league, and may, unless they join get removed from the list.

Click here for the WXCRL Points Tables

WXCRL points are awarded based on these rules.