PAST British Best All-Rounder champion Michael Hutchinson (Team MDT Giant), now the holder of four national titles, made a successful third racing visit to Hampshire this month, completing a weekend double.

Everyone expected the London-based Ulster man to win his first event, the Chalky White Memorial ten-mile time trial organised by Sotonia CC near Andover on Saturday, and he did so by a convincing 55-second margin.

But his second success, in Fareham Wheelers' Peter Doyle Memorial Race at Meonstoke, was a surprise and answered the critics who have often dismissed his aims to compete at elite level in this branch of the sport.

Hutchinson was one of over 160 drawn to the speed potential of the ten-mile course on the A3, and was the only one to beat 20 minutes as a consistent breeze slowed everyone on the outward half of the route.

But the tandem pair of Ray Hughes and Ian Neville (Clarence Wheelers) were the only two to approach his time, taking 20 seconds more to win their event in 20m.14s.

Hughes returned to the course a little over an hour later to take 21-12 competing in the solo event to finish fastest of the 93 veteran entrants and Aran Stanton (VC St Raphael Waite Contracts) also excelled, beating his better known clubmates, Steve Walkling and Simon Berogna, for the first time to lead the winning team.

Changing his low profile time trial cycle for a more conventional looking machine and his club to RTTC - the name he is registered with when racing under BCF rules - Hutchinson played no part in a number of abortive attempts by rivals to break clear in the 58-mile road race.

The 1998 race winner, Danny Axford (Parrot Print Stilton RT) from Winchester, threatened to repeat that performance when he shared the lead with Grant Bayton (Anglia Sport Condor) for a few miles at halfway but Southampton-based Luke Myers (Dean Axiom) was the only one to react as Hutchinson made his winning move.

It came as others eased on reaching the top of Wheely Down with one lap of the 11-mile circuit to go.

"I saw it as a golden opportunity to attack" explained Hutchinson as he recalled his tactics at the prize presentation afterwards.

Although these two kept together for all but the final mile, it soon became clear that Hutchinson was the stronger man and it came as no surprise when Myers slipped back on the climb to the finish.

Tim Dunford (Hargroves Cycles RT) justified his preference for this race instead of the supporting event for third category riders by winning the drawn-out sprint for second place ahead of four other Hampshire- based men in the top ten who included Axford and another Winchester rider, Robert Hurd. He won the race last year but withdrew from the sport in the summer following a contractural dispute with his sponsors, due to be settled by legal action in a few weeks.

"I took out a day licence to race today and am going back to Belgium this week to discuss a possible return to racing full-time," said Hurd.

"That's not too bad for someone who hasn't been training this winter."

Sotonia CC Chalky White Memorial 10, Thruxton: 1 M Hutchinson (Team MDT) 19-54, 2 Sullivan (Vegan CC) 20-49, 3 C Ball (53/12 Multi-sports) 20-55, 4 R Hughes (Clarence Wheelers) 21-12, 5 L Wright (Sigma Sport RT) 21-14. Women: L A Allen (VC St R) 23-52. Best Sotonia CC rider: D Powell 24-11.

Fareham Wheelers Peter Doyle Memorial Race, Meonstoke: 1 M Hutchinson (RTTC) 58 miles in 2h.24m.45s, 2 T Dunford (Hargroves Cycles RT) @ 18s, 3 R Hurd (unattached), 4 M Perry (Maestro Fircroft), 5 P Pickup (Liphook Cycles RT), 6 D Axford (Parrot Print RT), 7 J Norfolk (Giant RT), 8 R Enslin (Prestige VC), 9 R Tilley (Ride Cycleworks), 10 S Gardner (Evans Cycles RT). Supporting Race: 1 A Gough (Portswood Cycles RT) 36 miles in 1h.39m.18s, 2 I Legg (Principia RT), 3 R Clewes (Swindon Wheelers), 4 S Barrett (Bournemouth Arrow CC), 5 R Burch (Sotonia CC), 6 P Marshall (Fareham Wheelers).

Sotonia CC Club 10, Horsebridge: 1 G Harman 24-19, 2 J Legg 25-10, 3 R Tutt (GS Europa) 25-30, 4 St Martingale 25-47, 5 A Sharpen 26-18. Tandem: N Harvey & M Corbett 24-40.

East Dorset CA 27km tt Gallows Hill: 1 I Ayliffe (Salisbury RC) 38-9, 2 T Icke (Poole Wheelers) 38-21, 3 C Absolom (Yeovil CC) 38-53, 4 S Clark (Bournemouth Jubilee Wheelers) 39-2, 5 N Stroud (Antelope RT) 39-49.