The third round of cycling’s Proper Manx Spring Series took place recently at Jurby Airfield on a pleasant but notably windy evening, where riders faced challenging conditions across a 13-lap race.

The Mezzo-sponsored event introduced a new format, featuring four distinct categories: ‘Premier’, ‘Elite’, ‘Veteran’, and ‘Club’.

Each group set off at different times, racing within their own categories, with the Premier group starting last and tasked with chasing down the earlier groups.

From the outset, the Premier race was animated, with Cameron Hounsell, Zach Jones, Alec Sorby, Mark Horsthuis, and Daniel Minay setting a strong early pace as they began to reel in the groups ahead lap by lap.

There were several attempts to break the race apart.

Early moves came from Hounsell, Sorby and Horsthuis, but these were quickly neutralised as Jones and Minay bridged back across.

A further effort from Sorby, Horsthuis, and Minay was later chased down by Hounsell and Jones, highlighting how difficult it was to establish a decisive gap in the windy conditions.

With six laps remaining, Jones launched a strong solo attack, holding clear for around a lap and a half before Minay managed to bridge across.

The pair worked together in an effort to distance the rest of the group, but their move was ultimately brought back by the chasing trio of Sorby, Hounsell and Horsthuis.

Despite the repeated attacks, the persistent wind made it extremely difficult for any breakaway to stick, and the race gradually came back together heading into the closing stages.

The final laps set up an exciting sprint finish between five riders.

In a tightly contested dash to the line, Hounsell took the win, followed by Sorby in second, Jones in third, Horsthuis in fourth, with Minay rounding out the top five.

Elsewhere in the race, youth rider Tommy Bass delivered a strong and determined performance, while veteran rider Richard Fletcher and senior rider Bradley Woodruffe also put in solid rides on the night.

In the women’s category, Nicola Quaye and Ruby Oakes produced an entertaining battle throughout the race.

In the category results, Simon Harding was the first veteran rider across the line, finishing an impressive sixth overall, while Minay was the leading youth rider, crossing the line in fifth.

Overall, it was an exciting evening of racing, with aggressive riding, multiple attacks and a challenging wind ensuring a hard-fought contest across all categories.

The series continued with round four on April 29, before further rounds on May 6, May 13 and May 20, the latter of which is taking place at the Sir Mark Cavendish Raceway in Douglas.

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