Every one of them is a long distance legend, and they’re getting ready to tackle the big one – it’s the National 24-Hour Championship this weekend!

More than 50 riders are due to tackle the event in Cheshire, with the headquarters at Farndon and riders using various section of a course taking in Prees Heath and Ternhill for the first438 miles before they turn onto the eight-mile finishing circuit for the final section

With many opportunities for unfortunate events the National 24-Hour Championships is hard to predict, but national ranking system Spindata has predicted that John Mulvey (UpShift Nutrition RT) will take victory in a distance of 541.32 miles, just three miles short of setting a new competition record.

After failing to finish last year’s event Jonathan Shubert (Fulfil the Potential Race Team) will be hoping for better luck and a podium place this time, while last year’s defending champion Robbie Mitchell (Auchencrow Thistle CC) will be aiming to take another win.

Toby Williams (Velotik Racing Team) and Tim McEvoy (Fulfil the Potential Race Team) also have high hopes of good performances.

With last year’s women’s champion Christina Murray not riding this time runner-up Steph Mottram (Vive le Velo) could step up to the gold medal position, while other females include Michelle Lee (Royal Dean Forest CC) and Joanna Cebrat (Bury Clarion CC).

Among the veterans is one rider who will be worth keeping an eye on – five-time national hill-climb champion Jim Henderson, whose preparations this season have included the Anfield BC 100 and a couple of 50-mile efforts.

Elsewhere, it’s the Welsh 30-Mile Championship near Raglan on Sunday, where last man off Chris Gibbard (Bynea CC) will be hoping for better luck than he had in the Welsh 100-Mile Championships where he was a non-finisher.

He was second last year, and this time his rivals include Owen Burgess (UF Rowe and King) while Philip Tucker (Bynea CC) will be aiming to improve on his third spot in 2021.

The women’s championship looks set to be a two-way race according to national rankings provider Spindata, with Joanne Jago (Performance Cycles) and Emma Wyatt (Hereford & Dist Wh) predicted to be just two seconds apart.

The Essex Roads CC 25-miler sees trainSharp rider Tim Torrie down as predicted fastest rider ahead of Paul Turton (Team Vision Racing) – but Jennifer George (The Independent Pedaler) is predicted by Spindata to be third fastest overall and easily the pick of the female entrants.

In Devon the Plymouth Corinthian CC 50-mile event near Buckfastleigh has Primera TeamJobs rider Conrad Moss down as pre-race favourite by a long margin, and he will be hoping for better luck than the previous week’s Mid-Devon CC 25 where mechanical problems meant he didn’t make it to the start line.

Saturday’s events include the Chorley CC 10 on the Garstang course in Lancashire which doubles up as the North Lancashire TTA Championship, while heading down the c ountry we also have the Sherwood CC 10 in Nottinghamshire, the King’s Lynn CC 25 in Norfolk, the Worcester St John’s CC 15 near Welland and the Islington CC 10 in Bedfordshire, to name just a few.

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