NEWS: East Park propose move away from TLI

East Park Wolves chairman, Al Bentley has written to the Midland League committee outlining his club’s desire to pursue racing under British Cycling for 2016.

The Midland League ran their racing under the TLI umbrella in 2015 after a unanimous decision to take their regional racing commitments away from British Cycling. Now, Bentley wants to see the Wolves back under the British Cycling umbrella for all of their racing, even moving to another region if needsbe.

East Park are currently working towards Go-Ride Clubmark status with British Cycling, which brings a host of benefits and is generally deemed to be best practice for all cycling clubs. In his letter Bentley outlines how British Cycling are assisting with funding for two new coaches, as well as a new funding application.

East Park recently had floodlights added to their world class circuit.

The Wolves chairman goes on to say that he believes East Park’s affiliation to British Cycling aided the Wolverhampton sides’s vast improvements to their track in recent years, and does not believe Wolverhampton City Council would have been as supportive under TLI governance.

It will be interesting to see which direction the Midland League will take. East Park’s only real viable option, if the Midland League stick with TLI and they stick to their guns, would be to join forces with the Northern League. This could prove difficult with hundreds of miles being added to their away matches. With 280 miles between Wolverhampton and Edinburgh, it certainly wouldn’t be regional racing and is a far cry from the short distances the Midland League teams currently travel.