The first of the RTTC individual National Championships takes place on Sunday when the Royal Navy & Royal Marines CA promotes the 50-mile title races on the A38 S3/50 course near Plymouth, Devon.

The event has attracted 36 women and 114 men including 2015's Women's Champion Julia Shaw (drag2zero) and third placed Angela Hibbs, now with Fusion RT-Fierlan) plus the Men's Silver Medal winner, Matt Clinton (Mike Vaughan Cycles), and Bronze Medallist Brett Harwood (Terry Wright Cycles).

The main challenge to Shaw could be Mel Wasley (SSLL RT) who burst on the scene last year when she was second in both the National 10-mile Championship and the Closed Circuit  Championship after taking third in the 25-mile title race. Alice Lethbridge (Starley Racing), Crystal Spearman (Nopinz), Lunne Biddulph (Born to Bike) and Becky Lewis (Wrexhan RC) are also among the contenders.

IMPRESSIVE FIELD

The Men's Championship has an impressive field, apart from Clinton and Harwood we have  2016 RTTC Classic Series winner Philip Graves (Clifton CC York), 2015 national 25-mile Champion Ryan Perry (Langdale Leightweights), Richard Bussell (AeroCoaching), the National 10-mile and Hill Climb Champion, SSLL RT's big guns Andy Jackson, Joel Wainman  and Jonathan Wears, John Dewey (Team Bottrill), Kevin Tye (VeloRefined Aerosmiths),Kieran Davies (drag2zero) and Steve Irwin (North Lancs RC) to highlight some of the potential medal winners.

The event harkens back to the `old days` with a 5-30am start for the Women followed at 6-07am for the first of the Men. Clinton is last off at 8.00am while Shaw is last of the women away at 6-06am.

Event headquarters are at Plympton Sports Centre, Moorland Road. Plymouth PL7 2RS. Prize presentation is due at 11am when the guest of honour Brigadier David Evans of the Royal Marines does the presentations,