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Central Australian Bike Challenge - NE
Alice Springs, NT, Australia, May 13-19, 2006
Main Page Results Overall standings Next Race
Prologue - May 13: Alice Springs Prologue, 6km
In glorious conditions the Central Australian Bike Challenge kicked off with a short, fast but energy-sapping prologue at the old Telegraph station. The Telegraph is the reason for Alice Springs existence as it is the halfway point between Darwin and Adelaide.
Today's stage was somewhat shorter at 8km, just 3 laps of a course that followed the banks of Todd River, crossing it twice per lap. The Todd river is famously dry and today was no exception, the dry river sand was very difficult to ride with most riders running the crossing at the far end of the course but crucially the crossing just 25 meters from the finish line was ride-able by most but would be the decider for a number of contests throughout today.
Women
The women's field this year is wide open with Katrin van der Speigel looking to defend her crown from last year but she has stiff competition from Imogen Smith, Kimberly Fleming and Nicole James.
Over the first two laps it was very tight at the front end of the field with Imogen Smith leading by a few seconds, she worked hard on the windward leg of the hotdog course and held it to the end over Katrin van der Speigel and Meg Chalker.
Mens
With 90 riders and a Le Mans style start, the start was bound to be chaos. The chaps didn't disappoint with a few going down in the Todd River sand well before reaching their bikes. Then at the bikes, confusion reined as upturned bikes tend to look pretty much the same and even the various techniques to upright the bikes varied from slick to farcical.
Once on track the Scott/Flight Centre team took control at the front with their line up of five riders. Going into the wind they swapped off efficiently looking to put the hurts on the favorites Matt Fleming and Aiden Lefman. At the first riverbed crossing these pair cleaned the majority of the deep sand to put a gap into the Scott team and worked together to stay away for the rest of the 3 laps.
Aiden Lefman held the lead going into the final crossing and was confident of a win only to find Fleming shoulder to shoulder 20 meters from the line, "I had the holeshot and though Matty was going to give me the honours but in the last 10 meters I saw his wheel to my left and then it was in front!" With punctures an ever-present danger in the desert, the time bonus is a valuable buffer going into the first stage.
Vets
In the Vet women it was NSW's Janine Ridsdale in a tight battle with Kiwi Sharon Prutton and the consistently fast Kim Kelleher. The veteran men's field is full of talent with names like Wilyman, Taverner-Smith and Kloeden but it was Hans Dielacher, multiple winner of his class in Tassie's Wildside race who exploded of the line. He kept building his lead to the end leaving local Kim Hanson and NSW's Gordon Garradd to fight for the minor places.
Fleming and Smith get a 1 minute time bonus for their 20 minutes of effort today and the leaders jersey to wear for tomorrow's first stage which takes in trails to the north of Alice Springs, 37km starting at the velodrome and finishing at Flynn's grave.
Photography
For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here
Images by movingpictures.com.au
- A Le Mans start is a good way to get the carnage out of the way early. Today's Prologue start was no exception.
- Shaun Lewis's numberplate buckles under the immense pressure of his supersonic speed.
- "Hot and dusty work this" thinks the event's token singlespeeder Rob Parbury, "I think I'll need a beer" the left side of his brain added.
- "Cool, this bike matches my shorts, I hope it's the right size." Ian Robertson grabs a random bike at the Le Mans start.
- Bikes, when flipped upside down, all look remarkably similar as the 85 men's open riders would find out.
Results
Open Women 1 Imogen Smith (QLD) 2 Katrin Van Der Spiegel (NSW) 3 Meg Chalker (ACT) 4 Belinda Allison (NSW) 5 Lyndall Smythe (NT) 6 Kimberley Fleming (NSW) 7 Nicole James (NT) 8 Gayle Connell (NT) 9 Tania Churchill (ACT) 10 Dior Loveridge (NSW) 11 Nicole Burton (NT) 12 Stacey Bitz (NT) 13 Merridy Pearce (SA) 14 Rosanne Kwan (NSW) 15 Justine Gerdsen (NT) Veteran Women 1 Janine Ridsdale (NSW) 2 Sharon Prutton (NZ) 3 Kim Kelleher (QLD) 4 Carolyn Jackson (VIC) 5 Jane Ollerenshaw (VIC) 6 Katrina Roper (NT) 7 Kathy Hays (NT) 8 Jenny Anderson (NT) 9 Debra Eason (VIC) Open Men 1 Matthew Fleming (NSW) 2 Aiden Lefmann (NSW) 3 Shaun Lewis (ACT) 4 Mark Frendo (QLD) 5 Alex Randall (VIC) 6 Jason Chalker (ACT) 7 Nick Both (NSW) 8 Adrian Jackson (VIC) 9 Liam O'Dea (NSW) 10 Straun Lamont (QLD) 11 Andrew Crawley (NSW) 12 Vince O'Brien (NT) 13 David Clark (SA) 14 Ashley Wass (SA) 15 Craig Cross (NT) 16 James Gardner (ACT) 17 Graham Rankin (NT) 18 Chris Lander (NSW) 19 Mick Café (NT) 20 Corey Gerdsen (NT) 21 Jason Mansbridge (HongK) 22 Matt Jones (NT) 23 Sam Latz (NT) 24 Aaron Caden (NT) 25 Tim Hay (QLD) 26 Stuart Grimm (HongK) 27 Neville Bailey (HongK) 28 Paul Darvodelsky (NSW) 29 Todd Stafford (NSW) 30 Jaime Burton (NT) 31 Mark Hardy (NSW) 32 Jason Sprague (QLD) 33 John Waddell (WA) 34 Peter Nott (HongK) 35 Jimmy Goode (NSW) 36 Cosmo Richards (HongK) 37 Ron Schroeder (NSW) 38 Anthony Darr (NSW) 39 Kristian Bitz (NT) 40 Peter Svara (NT) 41 Jonathan Cowan (VIC) 42 Philip Blum (NT) 43 Tavis Johannsen (NT) 44 Kane Chandler (VIC) 45 Ben Scott (NSW) 46 Mike Heyburn (NT) 47 Bert Heathwood (SA) 48 Paul Guerin (NT) 49 Rick Swanwick-Howarth (NT) 50 Steve Munyard (VIC) 51 Joe Ward (NSW) 52 Ramon Gregory (NT) 53 Bryan Connell (NT) 54 Neil Prosser (NSW) 55 Peter McGann (NT) 56 Martin Pritchard (NT) 57 Steve Sauerwald (NT) 58 Jack Dermody (WA) 59 Vladimir Todorovski (VIC) 60 Ray Giddins (NSW) 61 Malcolm Neville (NT) 62 Kyle Bawden (NT) 63 Craig Wilzen (NT) 64 Helge Suhr (NT) 65 Justin Dabner (QLD) 66 Tony McLellan (NT) 67 Tony Hawke (NSW) 68 Bruce McEllister (NT) 69 Euan Buchanan (VIC) 70 Dan Harris (NT) 71 Craig Armour (NSW) 72 Greg Lander (QLD) 73 Matthew Barr (NSW) 74 Rob Parbery (NSW) 75 Iain Blair (VIC) 76 Andrew Pettitt (NT) 77 Malcolm Barrett (QLD) 78 Russell Goodwin (QLD) 79 Chris Jackson (QLD) 80 Paul Witzerman (QLD) 81 Dean Chandler (QLD) Veteran Men 1 Hans Dielacher (NSW) 2 Kym Hansen (NT) 3 Gordon Garradd (NSW) 4 Craig Peacock (VIC) 5 Gwyn Tavener-Smith (NSW) 6 Chris Waring (NSW) 7 Ken Wilyman (NSW) 8 Laurie Berryman (NT) 9 Graant Benett (NSW) 10 Finlay Luff (VIC) 11 David Wells (NT) 12 Leon Fisher (SA) 13 Trevor Kloeden (NSW) 14 Robert Watson (NSW) 15 Paul Verheijden (VIC) 16 John Nutter (NT) 17 Alan Brockman (NT) 18 Mark Mannering (NT) 19 Mark Meyers (QLD) 20 Lew Marshall (QLD) 21 Pat Black (NT) 22 Steve Bryan (NT) 23 Andrew Koop (NT) 24 Adam Korab (NT) 25 Jungle Bateman (NT) 26 Col Smith (NT) 27 Jeff Hays (NT) 28 Leon Malzinskas (VIC) 29 Ian Johnson (NT) 30 Andre Gavlik (TAS) Teams 1 Drew Robertson (NSW)/Ian Robinson (NSW) 2 Damian McGrath (NT)/Michael Vroom (NT) 3 Malcolm Johnston (NT)/Mathew Pirani (NT) 4 Craig Trevallion (NSW)/Matt Ogilvie (ACT) 5 Nigel Blake (NSW)/Ben Goscombe (NT) 6 Matthew Guggisberg (NT)/Simon Murphy (NT) Mixed Teams 1 Alison Whitehead (QLD)/Ron Whitehead (QLD) 2 Virginia Ffitch (NSW)/Andrew Lloyd (NSW) 3 Hamish Fitzhardinge (NSW)/Kylie Henry (NSW )
