THE second UK Grand Prix event took place last Saturday when the Welsh Indoor Championships (Cardiff Grand Prix) were staged at the Welsh Insti-tute of Sport in Cardiff.
The Old Wrecks club was out in force again, along with a few other county competitors. Despite a variety of minor injuries and the usual seasonal round of viruses, the day brought in a good haul of medals for the locals.
World champion Anna Bai-ley (Old Wrecks) from Hanley Swan took gold in the women's 50-59 class in 7.13.2.
Michelle Parsons (OW) from Evesham also took gold in the women's 30-39 lightweight in 7.24.4 - an almost identical time to her British Championship time and even closer to her personal best.
Maria Scotland, competing as a lightweight again, took silver in the 40-49 lightweight with 8.08.8.
Worcester's Sylvia Spee-chley came first in the 50-59 lightweight class in a time of 7.55.8, with Janet Parker (OW) taking silver in 8.11.1.
The women's 30-39 event proved an exciting race with the original leader fading fast at halfway.
This left a nail-biting battle between Evesham's Helen Barnett (OW) and Megan Brown (OW) for the silver and bronze medals.
With the positions changing during the last 500 metres, it was Barnett who came through to take silver in 7.26.1, with her clubmate just behind in 7.28.4, only her second sub-7.30 race.
The oldest member of the team, Malcolm Fawcett (OW), now out of plaster, took silver in the men's 60-69 lightweight, in yet another new personal best time of 7.06.3.
Duncan Paterson (OW), achieved silver in the men's 30-39 lightweight class, in a time of 6.35.4, while Phil Parsons finished sixth in the same race (6.39.5).
Tim Hartland (OW) put in a terrific performance in the men's Open against two of the top names in this category, including the fastest non-water rower in the country.
While these two fought it out for gold, Hartland quietly got on with the job on the back row. While just out of the medals, he moved his way up the field into fourth place in 6.19.1, knocking half a second off his pb in the process.
He could definitely be one to watch over the next season!
Ted Taylor (OW) came sixth in the men's 50-59 lightweight in 7:08.7.
The next major race is the Manchester Grand Prix (North of England Champion-ships) at Manchester Velo-drome on Sunday, February 2.
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