Ferguson on Worldtour form in Yorkshire
Movistar signing proves her worth at East Cleveland Classic
Junior star Cat Ferguson took her next steps towards the Women’s Worldtour after powering away from the best domestic riders at the East Cleveland Classic. The 17-year-old charged clear of a reduced peloton on the finishing climb to clinch her first elite women’s National Road Series victory, months before she will join Movistar, when she turns 18.
But the win was far from certain as the Shibden Apex RT rider crashed before the penultimate time up the Saltburn Bank climb and was forced to ride a teammate’s bike to victory.
“There’s a tight corner coming into the bank, I got too confident with a lap to go and slid out at the bottom,” said Ferguson.
“I set off at the back of the group before realising something had gone wrong with my wheel so had to do a bike change onto a bike that I’ve never ridden before.
“I then had to chase back onto the leading group. When I got back on I was tired. I saved everything for the final climb and went for it.”
Under-23 rider Eilidh Shaw (Alba Development Road Team) chased Ferguson home to finish runner-up, matching her result in last month’s CICLE Classic to take the overall National Series lead.
Fellow junior Imogen Wolff has also been making an impact on the international scene and finished third after the Shibden Apex RT teammates dominated proceedings on their home Yorkshire roads.
After showcasing her form Ferguson will compete in the international Nations Cup junior three-day stage race Omloop Borsele next weekend in the Netherlands.
Ferguson moves into the elite category in August and already has end-of-season races penned in with the Movistar Worldtour team.
While a tough headwind on the coastal roads prevented any substantial breakaways in the women’s event the men’s was a different story.
After dominating the National Road Series last season Saint Piran again proved strongest in the tough conditions.
With around 30 miles remaining Rowan Baker bridged across to an existing breakaway before riding away on the finishing Saltburn Bank climb and soloing the last 17 miles for victory.
The gruelling course took its toll on many before Tim Shoreman (Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli) won a three-way tussle for second, beating fellow Saint Piran riders James Mckay and Dylan Hicks into third and fourth respectively.
“I knew I wasn’t going to win from a group sprint, I had to go solo,” said Baker.
“I saved everything for the final climb and went for it”