Despres still the brute on the hills

Not, though, for the racing cars, karts and motorbikes this time.

It’s that time of the year for the racing bikes and one competitor bristling with enthusiasm for its return is record-holder Nick Despres, a man who has held the course record on the classic local climb for a good three decades now.

His excellence on-board his fixed-gear bike culminated in a 1min. 42.6sec. right back in 1991, which remains unbeaten despite assaults from new technology and Guernsey Velo Club’s ever-promising depth.

So why has his 27-year-old record proven so timeless?

For starters, closed-road hill climbs are a rare thing nowadays and the event generally unfolds on a slightly longer open-road course – small margins definitely matter when comparing the 849-yard open to the 830-yard closed. But Despres also holds the open-road record and is quite clearly a hill-climbing powerhouse.

Now 55, he is still at home at ‘the Terres’ and showed his aptitude by sweeping the veteran records in the most recent closed-road climb in 2014.

‘I think certainly, at the time, I did feel particularly young, strong and fit,’ said Despres, who also set the current Jerbourg Steps running record aged 40.

‘The climb seemed to suit my abilities – I’ve never been a greyhound, whether running or cycling... But I’d do better if you’d given me something like a muddy cross country, a steep hill or a bunch of steps.

‘[When I did it it] I was already a little bit past my physical peak but I certainly had developed a better style – initially when I was riding, it was just for the brute force and ignorance.

‘Some people have got more interest in it than others and some wanted a fast 25-mile TT for that year, for example, but I personally enjoyed the hill climb.’

However, Despres is quick to state that his record won’t last forever and is not the only one who backs eminent junior Sam Culverwell for a stab once he returns to full shape following his unfortunate crash in the Junior Tour of Wales.

Culverwell came close to Despres’ open-road mark two years ago at just 15 and has excelled on the national scene since as a strong rider who knows how to tackle a climb.

Climbing used to be a specialist pursuit and Despres would vie among the stars at Guernsey’s Easter Festival, then a prestigious event on the national radar.

Among Despres’ big scalps then was Phil Sheard, a rider who clinched silver in the 1988 national hill climb behind none other than Chris Boardman.

Even now, Despres plays true to his focus and will compete abroad in two weeks’ time as he chases qualification for next month’s nationals at Shelsley Walsh.

The current Guernsey crop features few specialists and ‘Valdees’ is a single blast to end a season devoted to fast, flat time-trials or tactical road racing.

It’s a game of odds too, explained Gary Wallbridge, who claimed the V55/V60 records four years ago.

‘We try to resurrect it and hit some performances on

it, but the weather conditions can put people off,’ he said.

‘If you get there on Sunday morning and there’s a south-westerly wind, you just won’t set a new record – it’s a bit hit and miss in that respect, and it’s a bit hit and miss if someone’s going to take up hill climbing and go for the record in that particular year.’

n Sunday’s closed-road hill climb starts at 7.30am.