A few photos from today’s Olympic test event, photos taken at Box Hill in Surrey.
This trial event seemed to go well, with a win for Mark Cavendish which hopefully he can repeat next summer. Speaking personally, we found somewhere to park, rode straight in and out on the closed roads and found all the marshals to be helpful and welcoming whilst directing everyone through the woods.
There was a good, family atmosphere in the spectator enclosure with a pa system giving (basic) info on what was happening in the race as it approached. It did seem that there were plenty of other areas that could be opened up in a similar way for the real thing next year so that a lot more people could get to watch. The view from the spectator area was pretty limited unless you were at the front so if you’re planning to get there in July, get there early! However, there were some good spots for spectating on the other roads on the circuit if you aren’t one of the lucky wristband-wearers.
As for the racing, the bunch breezed through about 4 minutes behind the break on the first lap but were travelling much faster about 15 minutes later for the second time past, with lots of riders stretched out struggling to hold the pace. The plane for the Olympic race is for nine laps, quite what will happen when riders and team cars start lapping each other on these narrow roads remains to be seen!
