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Professional road and gravel rider Lachlan Morton took victory at his third time of trying in the 3-Peaks Cyclo-cross race this weekend, beating Giles Drake from Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli by the slenderest of margins in the most exciting finish to the infamously tough event seen for over 60 years. Isla Short, meanwhile, won the women’s race on her debut.
Last year the Australian was beaten into second place by Jenson Young, who missed this year’s event because he’s heading Down Under to compete in the Gravel World Championships.
On Sunday, it looked as though the EF Education-EasyPost rider might miss out again, with two-time previous winner Drake maintaining a lead for the majority of the race, which takes place on extremely technical terrain in the Yorkshire Dales, with at least 6km of the course being deemed completely unrideable, so participants have to master the art of running while carrying their bikes. In the end, after 67km (38-miles) of brutal racing, it all came down to a sprint for the line.
“We were together for the entire race, just with little gaps opening up here and there,” Drake told Cycling Weekly. “I was running a bit stronger than Lachlan, but I think he very much paced his running, rather than going into the red. On every summit I had a 10-, 20- or 30-second gap, but he was never out of sight. It was always super close. We were together on both road sections, and all the way up Pen-y-ghent, until the steps at the top, where I just put a little burst in.
“We traded turns on the road, but the only time he was ahead of me was when he caught me off Pen-y-ghent. He went in the lead a little bit down there, but other than that, he was, he was pretty much glued to my wheel on the ascents and descents.
“As we headed into the bridge, he came past me. He overshot the corner a little bit, which allowed me to nip in inside and then it was just a drag race for 10 metres to the finish line, and he just pipped me. I’m obviously a bit gutted about it, but I gave it everything, and so did Lachlan. And the chips fell where they did.”
According to historians of the legendary race, 1961 was the last time it went down to a sprint finish, so while he might have missed out on a fourth victory, Drake was a key player in something that will be long remembered at the weekend. “To be part of that, it’s worth it,” he concedes, magnanimous in defeat.
“Lachlan is a super nice guy. The thing I like about him is that he doesn’t need to come and do this race, but it’s clearly under his skin. He wanted to come back and he wanted to give it his all and win it. And I think that’s a great thing for the race.”
Jack Lucas from Spectrum racing finished third, two minutes after the lead pair, and 3-Peaks legend Rob Jebb was fourth, on his 27th time of racing.
Competing in the event for the eighth time, Drake said it never gets any easier, but the year would feel “empty” if he didn’t do it, and he’ll likely be back next year for another attempt at getting his third victory.
Every year I say, ‘I don’t know if I can do this again, I don’t know if I can put myself through this again,’” he told CW. But until I think I can’t be competitive, or life takes a whole different turn, I think I’ll be there and come last weekend in September.
“I think people underestimate this race. Because they’re a good bike rider or a good fell runner, they think ‘I can do that’. And It’s not until you ride it that you really realise how hard it is, and how unique the skill set is. And how amazing it is as a race, because honestly, if somebody came up with this idea in 2026, the health and safety people would say: ‘No, you’re not doing that!’”
