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Warragul Cycling Club Handicap

Cloverlea – Parkers Road Circuit, April 3, 2004

Ballistics Breaks B grade Handicap Hoodoo

By Monique Hanley

Some considerate calculations from race director Staf Duncan held off the chasing scratch riders and enabled Steve ‘Ballistics’ Twining to lead B grade to their first ever handicap victory in the Warragul Cycling Club race on Saturday afternoon. Forty-one cyclists rolled out amongst the dairy pastures at Cloverlea in overcast conditions to race four laps of the Parkers Road circuit.

First-time racer Damien Brown from Warragul joined outmarkers Glenda Pridmore, Brenton Jones and Sean Coffey with a sixteen-minute buffer on the scratch riders. Together they completed their first lap in 21.36. Enjoying the flatter course Damien found himself too strong for the others and embarked on a solo effort, followed later by Sean Coffey. This forced Brenton Jones into an early retirement and Glenda Pridmore to battle alone.

Following the outmarkers three minutes later, the remaining D grade group consisted of Kim Spunner, Helmut Korab, Bill Frew, Allan Hauxwell, Dave Axford and a late starting Brendan Pridmore. Despite being confident of regrouping, Brendan lost touch from the group who powered around their first lap in a time of 20.18. A minute off the pace, he retired at the end of the first lap.

After a long wait, C grade departed with an eight minute start on the scratch markers. The slightly smaller field compared to traditional handicap bunches, the C grade group wasted little time powering up the slight, yet leg-sapping incline of the Darnum-Mt Worth Road stretch which put immediate strain on Vic Spunner. Turning the corner they powered up the two small rises and immediately lost Monique Hanley, wishing she’d warmed up properly. They completed their first lap in 18.36.

B grade welcomed Matt Hose to their ranks and followed C grade two minutes later. The tight six-man unit worked together well on their first lap as they formed a consistent unit with work shared amongst all riders. Joined by Monique for the second half of their first lap before she retired, they crossed the start-finish in 17.31.

The scratch squad departed six minutes behind B grade, and with a significant amount of work required of them. Eager to bridge the time gap, John McKenzie, Scott Keeble and Thomas Sandner displayed a generous amount of determination to lead the field around their first lap in 16.14. However, the pace would need to improve if they were to catch sight of the remaining fields. Gerrard Donnelly’s first lap puncture and request to sit a lap out before rejoining the A grade field was to no avail – unfortunately for Gerrard such rules in racing usually only apply to short-circuit criterium races.

By the end of lap two the first outmarker groups crossed only ten seconds apart. They still had a two minute buffer on C grade behind them, and over five and a half minutes on the scratch field. B grade swallowed up Terry Kelly before claiming the rest of the C grade field mid-way through the third lap. Combining forces they caught the remaining outmarker bunches before beginning their final lap. Unable to keep the pace, Bill Frew, Kim Spunner and Dave Axford were left staring at the fading dust bowl of the combined bunches ahead and vulnerable to the scratch pack behind them.

Although the pace was constant from the scratch riders, the work ethic from Keeble, McKenzie and Sandner did little to inspire Matt Malacarne, Pete Finlayson and Shane Stiles. As they crossed for their final lap, a two minute and five second gap needed to be bridged to catch the combined bunch ahead. Without the full input from every rider, this would be difficult to bridge over the final eleven kilometres.

By the end of Parkers Road it was clear that the scratch riders would be unable to bridge the last gap. With only a kilometre to go, the lead bunch began to tussle for position, with an eager Vic Spunner almost reckless in his approach to road safety on the final corner. With little room to pass other riders, front positioning was vital. So too was spotting an emerging gap within the field. Steve Twining found his opportunity by using part of the gravel shoulder, while Terry Kelly utilised part of the wrong side of the road. Although enabling a clear run home, the manoeuvre was illegal and he was disqualified. Without missing a beat, Steve Twining used his stealth to power home on the inside and claim the win for B grade. He was joined on the podium by fellow B grader Tim Lee and C grader Glenn Fisher.

Warragul’s newest grade, affectionately dubbed ‘the F Troop’, began with a field of nine riders, including newcomers Coralie Tyrell fresh from the Murray to Moyne, and Josh Cuddy fresh from some equally enduring efforts on his stunt bike. Josh powered away from the field to claim the first king of the mountain points ahead of Loretta Mackay and Wendy McLean, but on the second lap it was Loretta who was too strong on the hill for Ted Dunn and Jarryd Jones. The final sprint, resulting from an extraordinary two-kilometre lead out, left Ted Dunn just ahead of momentum charged Wayne Robinson and Loretta Mackay.

Next week the Warragul Cycling Club will be hosting a scratch race on Saturday at Picnic Point from 2pm. Further details available at www.warragulcyclingclub.org.au

Results

1 Steve Twining (+ 6 mins)
2 Tim Lee (+ 6 mins)
3 Glenn Fisher (+ 8 mins)
4 Luke Hanley (+ 8 mins)
5 Rob Monk (+ 8 mins)
6 James Henry (+ 6 mins)
7 Mike Brown (+ 8 mins)
8 Vic Spunner (+ 8 mins)
 
Fastest course completion: Shane Stiles (scratch)
 
The F Troop
 
1 Ted Dunn
2 Wayne Robinson
3 Loretta Mackay
4 Lisa Keeble
5 Josh Cuddy

Local results 2004

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