Elliott breaks 30-mile record

Rachael Elliott ready to break 30mph barrier

achael Elliott sliced almost three minutes off her own competition record for 30 miles in the Leo RC time trial on Saturday — and vowed to go under the hour mark in 2018.

The 39-year-old from Newbury has improved since joining Drag2zero for the 2017 season, and is already planning to become the first woman to go under one hour for the distance.

“I was holding over 30mph all the way round on Saturday,” she said. “It wasn’t until 100 metres to go that my average speed dropped to 29.9mph.

“I hadn’t been targeting the hour at all on Saturday, but I think with similar conditions to when I last broke the record it would be very possible. I’ll definitely try and keep the 30mph average all the way to the finish line next year!”

Her new record time of 1:00.34 came despite heavy rain and winds on the Cambridgeshire course, with 56 riders deciding not to ride because of the challenging conditions.

“When I entered the event, the record was definitely a target,” she added. “But nearer to the event the record wasn’t on my mind because I thought it would be very slow, wet and windy.

“I did get rained on pretty heavily at Newmarket both ways, but the wind wasn’t nearly as bad as forecast. Having said that, I’ve been faster in both directions in the past!

“I wasn’t sure about the record until the last 10 miles. I knew I had 24 minutes to do that last 10 miles, so only then did I feel that I was on for the record.”

Elliott’s times have improved with greater aero knowledge gained from Drag2zero, and she has also benefited from being team-mates with top-level riders such as national 12-hour champion Alice Lethbridge and Kate Allan.

With the competition record in the bag, Elliott has just one more ride this season — the National Circuit Championships at Thruxton this weekend — where she will be targeting the team prize with Lethbridge and Vicky Gill as well as the individual win.