Jack Pullar is on the hunt for British premier road race glory.
And the 27-year-old, from Bolton-le-Sands, will renew his challenge at the Ryedale Grand Prix on Sunday (2pm).
Pullar enjoyed a stunning campaign for Pedal Heaven in 2016, which included 15 top-10 finishes in National A contests.
Among those results were a hat-trick of podiums, including a stand-out second place behind Ian Bibby at the Ryedale Grand Prix.
This term he clinched a maiden Tour Series triumph as BIKE Channel Canyon bossed the eighth round of the competition in Aberdeen.
But he would love to add a road race crown to the trophy cabinet, with the penultimate round of the Grand Prix Series next in his sights. Pullar said:
“You obviously don’t want to turn second places down but I’d swap them all for one win. It has to come!
“Maybe I was a little complacent last year. Maybe I was just happy with being there in the final 10km and I possibly wasn’t willing to gamble for the win.
“Whereas this year, I can afford to take those risks because I have all those other results on my CV. I’m not scrapping for results. The win is everything now.”
With a separate squad heading to Belgium for two UCI contests, Tim Elverson has named only seven riders for Sunday’s 151km battle, which is based at Ampleforth Abbey in North Yorkshire.
But the sports director will not be short of options on the grid, as Pullar is joined by George Atkins, Joe Fry, Dexter Gardias, James Lowsley-Williams and Max Stedman.
The line-up is completed by Rob Partridge, who won the race in 2010. Riding for a star-studded Endura outfit that day, the Welshman’s team-mates included Ian Wilkinson, Jack Bauer, Scott Thwaites and Rob Hayles.
The Grand Prix Series began with the Tour of the Reservoir and Stockton Grand Prix. It climaxes on Sunday, August 13 with the Leicester Castle Classic.
Gardias, who was fourth in the opening round, sits fifth in the overall standings. He is 17 points behind leader Johnny McEvoy, of Madison Genesis. Elverson’s squad are fourth in the team classification, with JLT Condor leading the way.
