HSBC Road series - Lampier let down (in more ways than one)

 HSBC Road Series Leader Steve Lampier was let down in the cruellest fashion in the fourth round of the 10 race competition in Bristol last weekend. The Saint Piran leader was forced to abandon when he failed to receive a wheel from the neutral service car after a puncture half way through the race. 

Lampier went into the Circuit of the Mendips race two points ahead of the Madison Genesis rider Ian Bibby. But Lampier punctured 75km into the 155km race while in a breakaway group of around 30 riders. With more than a minute between the break and the peloton, a neutral service car should have been in the gap to supply a wheel.

But that didn’t happen and the Saint Piran team leader was left a frustrated figure at the roadside for more than two minutes as a second group and then the main peloton passed by before he was able to get underway again. Aided by the rest of his team, Lampier chased hard but was unable rejoin the leading group, abandoning at the feed station.

Will Harper took the baton and rode a strong race, coming back from illness to finish 31 seconds down and clinch 17th place for Saint Piran in a race won by Canyon DHB’s Rory Townsend. There were also encouraging performances from development riders Ollie Blagden and Ross Holland who were among the 78 finishers from a starting field of 134.

Commenting on the lack of service car support for Steve Lampier, Saint Piran Team Principal Richard Pascoe said, “You expect mishaps when you’re racing but it’s frustrating when a rider doesn’t get the chance to race. We’ll look at the circumstances and see if we can get any support from the organisers but to be honest, it’s unlikely that there will be a review.”

Lampier, who has dropped from first to fifth in the series points standing said, “I didn’t get a chance to try and defend the lead in the premier calendar. Having lost the chance to score any points on Sunday, it makes chasing the overall title very, very tough. But with six rounds left, we can still fight for a win. I’ll just compete in each round to win as an individual race.”