Last season Alan Trolove dominated the Youth races at the Welwyn Track League on Friday evenings and this season, at the age of just 15 was promoted to the Senior B division, to race against adult track riders from all over the region. In his first week competing at this level he quickly learned of the sustained effort needed and the track craft to hold his own in a bunch of 30 or more riders. In his second week he showed enough confidence to get a third place in the ten lap scratch race, with fellow West Suffolk Wheeler Adrian Grimwood fifth. But his third race of the night was a handicap event, in which he was ceded with the quicker riders on ‘scratch’, with three other groups having an initial advantage of as much as three quarters of a 500m lap head start in a ten lap race. Each group worked together to the best of their ability, but after 6 laps all 30 riders were in a single group. Alan gradually moved up the bunch, and with 400 metres to go launched an all-out effort and gained a three bike-length advantage. He was chased hard by the pack, but tenaciously held his advantage all the way to the line for a superb and well deserved first win at senior level ~ the first of many perhaps!

Wednesday May 12 was the first full evening event held at the Lotus Circuit at Hethel, Norfolk and three new West Suffolk Wheelers joined regulars Adrian Grimwood and Steve Newman in the action. Trisha Dennison and Peter Stevenson-Wall debuted in the Novice event, both achieving promising results, as did Jonathan Sjolin in the Juvenile event. Good results are expected from all these riders as they feel their feet in this new discipline.