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Round 2 of the British Cycling National Series was hosted by the National Cycling Centre in Manchester and what a weekend it was. At this round both Ryan & Alex decided to ride Cruiser(24″) and 20″ as they where run on different days. Saturday was cruiser day and the age group they where riding in was 9 – 12. This meant they would have to ride really well to get into the final. As they were both in the same race class it was expected they would meet each other in the moto`s but when the moto sheets went up they had managed to avoid each other. Ryan had some superb moto`s and won one and came 2nd and 3rd in the other 2 to qualify for the A final. Alex got a brilliant 2nd and 2 x 3rd`s in his moto`s and joined Ryan in the final. When the final came round they where draw next to each other so it was heart in mouth stuff from the drop of the gate. When the gate dropped Ryan went over the first jump in touch with the leaders and Alex just behind. Coming out of the 1st berm Ryan made a fantastic moved and swooped underneath the rider in front to go into 3rd. Alex had a good 1st straight and came out in 5th place. Going down the 3rd straight there wasnt much between the top 4 and going into the final berm Ryan took a good line to stay consistant and got a fantastic 3rd. Alex was always in tuch with the top 5 and when a rider infront had an unfotunate fall Alex was there to capitalise and took a brilliant 5th

Half term both Ryan and Alex will be steeping up their winter training by attending the Preston Pirates/Goldcoast half term coaching camp. The lytham track gives the boys an opportunity to practice some precision on jumps and with the low starthill it also gets them pedalling out of the gate. The second half of the camp is being held at Preston and with the bigger jumps they will be working on boosting the jumps and more pedalling inbetween jumps.

Birmingham was the venue of the Midlands Championships and with a large entry it was going to be a tough day. With wins in all the motos Ryan had first pick in the semi. He went for gate two and got a good snap and stayed consistant to the end to qualify for the final. With first pick in the final Ryan went for gate two  again and from the drop of the gate was in front. After jumping the first step up table he got a good line in the first corner and he managed to stay there until the line and finished first.

The Cheddar Championships saw Ryan competeing in a triple age group – 9,10 &11. With two wins and a third in his motos he went into the semi final full of confidence. As the gate dropped in the semi Ryan was back in 5th place and out of a qualifying place in the second berm he made a move which put him side by side with another rider going into the final berm. As he exited the final berm Ryan got a good drive and went past into 4th where he stayed and qualified for the final. In the final Ryan was the only 9 year old and with some 11 year old national riders in the mix it was always going to be hard but he did himself proud finishing in 8th with a really gutsy ride

In preparation for the British Championships Alex competed at the Cheddar Championships the week before. The event was classed as an open event so Alex took advantage of being allowed to wear clip shoes. The event was really well run and the format suited Alex and he didnt lose a race all day and was crowned Cheddar Champion with throne and crown all thrown in

After 12 rounds of action and all sorts of different emotions both Ryan and Alex have finished in 3rd place in the British Cycling National Series.

Rounds 5 & 6 of the British Cycling National Series where held at Braintree on 2nd & 3rd July. With Ryan only coming out of hospital on the Tuesday before there were no expectations on him. Alex had a few bike changes done during the week which he was still getting used to. Saturday turned into a fantastic day with quarters for both of them and they both managed to come through it, then onto the semi`s where the pressure was on. Both boys had brilliant semi`s and got through to the final. The finals came round and up first was Alex, unfortunately he slipped on the gate and was in last place going over the first jump, by the first corner he had worked his way into 4th place were he stayed until the line. Ryan`s final also saw he slow out of the gate but a good line through the 1st corner saw him move into 3rd place where he battled for 2nd place right upto the line and just missed out and took 3rd. Sunday was the same with quarters again. Both boys rode well to get through the quarters and semi final`s to go again in the “A” Final. Alex`s final again saw him slow out of the gate but this time he got a good line into the 1st corner and got into second place. Alex was pushing for 1st but just run out of track and finished in 2nd. Ryan`s final saw a good start from him and with bars banging going over the first jump and into the first corner it was the strongest that would come out on top. After keeping strong Ryan came out of the first corner in front and kept a fantastic race line all the way round and came over the line for his first national win of 2011

Unfortunately after a big accident on the track at Redditch Ryan had to be admitted to hospital with suspected internal injuries. The first jump out of the gate saw Ryan go to manual but the front wheel come down on the step up and sent him over the bars. He landed on his head and knocked himself out. Winded, not knowing where he was and blood running from his mouth Ryan was taken to hospital. After x-rays it was confirmed nothing was broken but Ryan was still complaining of pains in his stomach so he was booked in for an ultra scan on Monday. Luckily the ultra scan was clear showing no major damage. Ryan was kept in again on Monday for more observations and he came home on Tuesday evening where he rested for the rest of the week.

With the national only weeks away at Redditch the inter regional was an ideal time for some practice for the national. With the sun shining it was into race 1 and Alex managed come come across the line in 3rd. The next two races went better with Alex winning. The final was a good race and Alex got a good start and stayed smooth all the way round and finished in a good 2nd place. Hopefully the practice will help him get another good result come national time