April 22-24 2000
Round 7 of the Premier Calendar Road Race Series

Two In A Row For Clay

Recording his second Premier Calendar win in as many weeks, Jon Clay also
took over as series leader in the season-long battle to find Britain’s top
road racer. In a tough race over four stages, Clay showed excellent tactical
awareness, ensuring that he was in all the important breaks. In contrast,
two other leading contenders, Mark Lovatt and Rod Ellingworth, both missed
opportunities and lost out as a result.

STAGE 1
The first stage featured a significant break after only 15 miles. A leading
group of three eventually swelled to ten, including Mark Lovatt. Despite the
best efforts of the main bunch, they managed to stay away and a late attack
saw Lovatt go clear to take a well-deserved stage win, Rod Ellingworth
holding on for second. Significantly, the remainder of the leading group
were swallowed up by the main field – headed by series leaders Chris Newton
and Jon Clay – as the came into the finish just under a minute and a half
down.

Stage 1 Results:
1. Mark Lovatt Pro Vision/Planet X
2. Rod Ellingworth Team McCell
3. Steve Stoneham www.realcostcars.net
4. Jon Clay BCF Private Member
5. Chris Newton Middridge Engineering

Stage 2
A fifteen-lap second stage again saw a significant break, with seven riders
going away, including Roddy Riddle, Julian Winn, Phil West and Chris Walker.
By the final lap their advantage was a healthy 49 seconds. Roddy Riddle
eventually took the sprint from Anthony Malarczyk and Bill Nickson. Race
leader Mark Lovatt retained his yellow jersey, finishing comfortably in the
chasing group.

Stage 2 Results:
1. Roddy Riddle Deeside Thistle
2. Antony MALARCZYK (Real Cost Cars)
3. Bill Nickson (Under 23 Scotland)

Stage 3
An early break of four riders was soon joined by eight more including Chris
Walker, Jonny Clay, Chris Newton, Rod Ellingworth and Julian Winn. With
riders of this calibre working hard together, the main field was always
going to struggle to catch them and they soon opened up a lead of over two
minutes. Despite his best efforts, race leader Mark Lovatt was caught in the
chasing pack and could not bridge the gap. Clay, Ellingworth and Walker then
attacked from the front of the leading group in the last five miles. Walker
took the stage narrowly from Clay and the chasing group, including Newton,
came in 39 seconds down. However, the biggest loser was Mark Lovatt who came
in 2 mins 28 secs back. The race lead transferred to a delighted
Ellingworth.

Stage 3 Results
1st Chris Walker
2nd Johnny Clay
3rd Rod Ellingworth

Stage 4:
A particularly hilly final stage, including the well-known Nick O’ Balloch,
produced some dramatic racing. The field repeatedly split and reformed,
before a leading group including Clay, Walker, Roddy Riddle, Phil West and
Mark Lovatt, managed to get away from a second group of seventeen, including
race leader Rod Ellingworth.

Not surprisingly Ellingworth led a determined chase of the leaders, but once
again the class of the riders in the leading group counted. Although the gap
was reduced to half a minute at one stage, Clay in particular worked very
hard at the front of the race to protect their lead, which eventually opened
out to over a minute and a half.

The stage victory went to Chris Walker, his second of the race, a feat he
also managed in the 1999 race. However, the overall victory went to Jon
Clay, a repeat of his 1998 success. Clay now leads the Premier Calendar
standings from Chris Newton, who finished in seventh place.

4th Stage results
1st Chris Walker (On the Edge)
2nd Steve Stoneman (Real Cost Car Imports)
3rd Jonny Clay (SLBM)
4th Roddy Riddle (Deeside Thistle/Union Transport)
5th Phil West (Middridge Engineering)
6th Mark Lovatt (Pro Vision)

Final Overall Classification:
1. Jonny Clay SLBM 9 hrs 18min 2secs
2. Julian Winn (Composite F) @ 32 secs
3. Rod Ellingworth (Team McEll) @ 48 secs
4. Mark Lovatt (Pro Vision/Planet X) @ 1.19
5. A Malarczyk (Real Cost Cars) @ 2.11
6. Roddy Riddle (Desside Thistle) @ 2.33
7. Chris Newton (Middridge Engineering) @ 2.38
8. Huw Pritchard (Linda McCartney/WCU) @ 2.38
9. Mike Harrision (CMB) @ 2.48
10. Steve Stoneman (Real Cost Cars.net) @ 4.49
11. Peter Murdoch (Soctland Under 23) @ 5.02
12. Phil West (Middridge Engineering) @ 5.32
13. Duncan Urquart (Scotland) @ 7.56
14. Neil Brown (Deeside) @ 8.03
15. Danny Axford (Real Cost Cars) @ 8.03

King of the Mountains
1. Chris Newton Middridge Engineering 23
2 .Chris Walker
3. Julian Winn

Team Overall
1. Composite Team (Walker,Winn & Clay)
2. Real Cost Car Imports (Axford,,Malarczyk, Stoneman adMartinn)
3. Scotland U23 (Murdoch, Ross, Nickson & Muir)

Premier Calendar Overall after seven rounds (provisional)
1 Clay Jon BCF Private Member 130points
2 Newton, Chris Middridge CRT 124
3 Pritchard, Huw Linda McCartney-WCU 102
4 Winn Julian WCU-Private Member 89
5 Lyons, Andy BCF Private Member 85
6 Tanner, John Provision Powerbar 78
7 Lovatt Mark Provision Powerbar 74
8 Randle, Wayne Provision Powerbar 71
9 Ellingworth, Rod Team Mcell 70
10 McCauley, Gordon Equilibrium Oleum RT 69

Premier Calendar – Next Race
Lincoln International Grand Prix RR 7th May – a brilliant race to watch as
it finishes in the centre of Lincoln with several laps of the city centre’s
cobbled streets – always produces a dramatic incident or two. Tel: Ian
Emmerson 01522 500 505.