To say the last month and a bit has been hectic, would be an understatement. On Tuesday, I did (hopefully!) my last ever exam of medical school. Barring any hiccups, come results day on 22nd June, I’ll be able to call myself Dr. Thomas Key. Mad. I haven’t quite had the time to reflect on actually making it to the end of the road with university yet, but its been a trial of perseverance and resilience and at this time 18 months ago I didn’t think I’d be here for sure. But the most important thing is that I am, and I’ve proved to myself I have a bit more metal than I give myself credit for.
On the cycling front, its been utterly enjoyable. And when you’re enjoying the bike, you inevitably get results. I’ve been racing more than ever before and consistently getting results. Over the past month and a bit, I’ve achieved 4 top 5’s in races, despite being on limited training and having the extra stress of finals. So here’s a quick race report of those, now that I’ve got the time! It’s a bit of a boring read probably so I’ll try and liven it up with some pictures.
1. Goodwood circuits – 4th.
My first ever race at Goodwood somehow, despite having lived in either Eastbourne or Southampton for the last however many years of my life! And boy do I regret that! I really enjoy the circuit, its wide, not too technical and actually somehow seems to reward hard work unlike some other motor circuits. It’s not a hard course at all, but the guys that turn up week in week out are determined to split the race up, meaning the racing is on from the gun, rarely averaging less than about 46 km/hr. Its my kind of fun.
Going in to the last couple of laps, a break of 4 was out front. With me not wanting to necessarily sprint for 5th place, I set about trying to bridge across. Luckily, Stanley Kennet of Spirit-Tifosi was already half way across, so I went all in to get across to the 4 in the break. We then set about driving hard all the way to the line. I attacked again on the last lap and took Stanley with me but a hard chase from the 4 others brought it back for a 6 man sprint. Tired from the effort, I rolled over 4th, but happy with my nights work!
2. Thruxton circuits – 5th
My first and probably last 2/3 category race at Thruxton. Having won the first round, which was an E/1/2 category round, I had confidence that I could rip apart a 2/3 race. Especially with Matt Downie and Jules Lockwood also riding for Primera that night. However I had forgot one thing… 2/3 racing can be the most negative and boring racing in the world. There were loads of teams there determined to end the race in a sprint. Its boring, it doesn’t reward hard work and ultimately, those that win these races never feature in the E/1/2 races where they can’t sit safely in the middle of the pack waiting for the sprint.
On the flip side however, its racing and if thats the tactics, its up to me to rock the boat or beat them at their own game. As a team we worked well together all evening, attacking and counter-attacking. At one point we had me and Matt in a 5 man break that looked promising, but with the mindset of the bunch, it chased hard and brought it all back together. Thinking with my head, I had to sit in for the last couple of laps, and despite not having the raw power required to win sprints, the hard run up to the final straight at Thruxton rewards strength and I came home 5th, not too far off a top 3. More points, more results, but I was definitely hoping for more!
3. Sandie Radford memorial road race – 2nd
What a race. All I will ever remember is Matt bridging across to me and giggling as he got across. A team 1-2 and not just any 1-2, we finished a minute ahead of third. It was a domination.
Yes, it’s not the most prestigious or ‘elite’ race, but its a good marker for those who are local to the new forest, a relatively flat race with a steep sharp climb to the finish after just 41 miles. Our team had 5 riding, and having won the previous 2 years and being the local ‘hitter’ team had all the pressure on us. The only problem was despite being billed as the obvious winners, there were a few pretty good riders there for us to get rid of first. Sotonia had a strong outfit and have been going from strength to strength recently, and ex-Primera rider Oscar Hutchings was racing for VC-Equipe Flix.
I jokingly said to Matt the day before that we’d rip it to pieces in the crosswind section. I’ve always found crosswind racing absolutely awesome to watch. Watching Bob Jungels rip the Giro to pieces was epic and I’ve always wanted to do the same. Well here was my opportunity. Just 10km into the race, me and Matt hit the front and did some DAMAGE. Well… mainly he did. Within a KM the race was down to 10 riders with no one able to follow Matt’s wheel. He was off solo with me comfortably sitting on the chase group. Inevitably, he was brought back, but it tired the chasers. Coming through the same section again, Matt with his herculean strength went again. He took a few with him and I was stupidly out of position and having to jump across wheels. Riders were popping all over the place. Making up the last 10 meters to Matt was excruciating, but once I was there, we were gone. Me, Matt, Oscar, Rowan Horner and James Peckham. We were pulling hard and pulling out a lead.
With 20km to go, Matt jumped. He was chased back. This was my chance. The classic 1-2. I dug deep and pulled out a gap on a slight rise. I was leading the race, now what!! I just had to put my head down and dig deep. I held the 3 chasers plus Matt at around 20s for 10km, thinking if nothing else Matt was in a perfect position to counter. I didn’t look back for a while but when I did, Matt was only 20m off my wheel. I thought they’d brought me back, but when I looked again… It was just Matt. I couldn’t see the other 3! He’d jumped them and they’d basically given up. I was happy to have Matt with me to share the work and in all honesty I was pretty spent. Still worried about the chasers, I gave my all to riding with Matt as a 2-up, and had nothing left for the last climb. Being mega strong, he rode off to take the solo win and I crawled up the climb to still comfortably take 2nd. Mega race-mega tactics and what an awesome feeling.
4. Surrey league Kirdford road race – 5th.
The very next day, I had the opposite. The worlds most boring race. Perhaps even more boring than Thruxton! I rolled round the flatlands of Surrey, trying to blank out the stupid posters with Jeremy Hunt’s smug mug on for 110km, and sprinted for 5th. The less said about the race the better to be honest, but it was another top 5 and I was happy with that on tired legs!
Also over the last month, I’ve had a few other decent rides. I rode a season PB of 20.09 for 10 miles at the a3crg… 10 mile TT, a good sign of things to come, got 10th at the Tour of the Milbury’s prologue before having the second stage ruined by an untimely puncture and took 8th at the one race at Mountbatten I did. It’s all about the consistency!
More than anything though, the team have been an absolute joy to race with. Matt is SUPER strong, and hopefully will land himself a contract with a pro team in the near future. Jason also won at the TLI Moreton races and Jules.. well he’s an absolute animal. I hope I’m still as strong as him when I can claim a bus pass. I can only thank Primera Sports, Teamjobs recruitment, Ellis Jones solicitors and VW breeze for their continued sponsorship, giving me these opportunities to follow my passion. Thanks guys. I’m continuing to work with BikestrongUK as well and the coaching has been second to none. It really does make a difference!
Next up is the Beachy Head classic this Sunday, followed by a few TT’s to get stuck in to. Oh and doing this doctoring thing….
Thanks for reading!
Mediccyclist 