Cyclist Philip aims for track success

Philip Bremner has traditionally been known for his exploits in road racing but he intends to foucs on the track discipline after continuing his progress in the recent National Track Championships at Sundrive Outdoor Velodrome.

“This was my first time ever racing a National Track event and alot of the events I competed in, was also a first for me,” explained Philip, who gave a rundown of the two-day event.

“The first event of the day kicked off with the 4Km Time Trail (TT). I placed 9th with a time of 5 mins 31 secs .68.

“Next event was Flying 200m- here I placed 13th with my time being - 12.81. This put me through to the Sprint Heats.

“In my First sprint heat I had to race against Paul Kennedy. I beat Paul to be put through to the next round, where I got beaten by a ex-sprint champ.

“This now put me in the heat to decide who got 5th-8th position. Here I had to race with 3 other guys who was ex sprint champions and have more experience than mysell. The odds were against me but in the end I managed to beat them which got me a 5th place in the sprints.

“With day one over, I had to take in good nutrition to help me recover for the next day’s racing, which started with the Kilo TT- here I finished in 8th position with a time of 1min 15sec .59. I was pleased with this result as I managed to stay in the lead for quite a while.

“Even though I rode a basic alloy bike with no aero gear on, against others that rode carbon bikes, tri-bars, skinsuits and disc wheels, I only managed to be 2 seconds off a podium placing.

“After this event it was time for another short break where I was on the rollers getting warmed up for the last event of the day, which was the 20Km Scratch race, held

over 45 laps of the Sundrive Velodrome. Here the race was cut 10 laps shorter due to rain that made the track slippery and dangerous. I managed to finish 6th in this event and 1st Under 23 rider.

“I was really pleased the way this weekend went as it has only been my third track race, only starting track racing earlier this year with the Ireland Development squad.

“I found it hard earlier in the year to train especially for the track as I was always busy preparing for the road racing.

“Now I know for next year I will still be racing on the road but will also compete in more track events.

“With competing in every event in the Track Natioanal Champs last weekend, it gives me an idea of the events to compete in next year,as its all a learning curve for me at the moment, then aim for a medal in the 2012 National Track Champs.

“As they say, go big or go home!” added Philip, who has thanked his family and friends for all their help and support throughout the year.