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Riverland Cycling Club
Monash, South Australia, January 31, 2006
Stevens too good for Mackirdy
Perfect conditions greeted Riverland Cycling Club members on Tuesday at Monash
for the summer criterium series. Twenty-one riders made this one of the largest
race meets held by the club in recent history.
In A-grade, Lee Stevens and Hamish MacKirdy staged a great sprint battle, to
the delight of members and spectators, with current club champion Stevens coming
over the line first. MacKirdy desperately tried to ride past with metres to
go but couldn't due to the dogged determination and strength of Stevens. Nigel
Willoughby and Josh Steele crossed the line third and fourth respectively but
were a long way behind Stevens and MacKirdy. MacKirdy, who has now placed second
in consecutive weeks, will be chomping at the bit at the next meet to be first
over the line.
The B-grade race saw another Stevens victory with Chris Stevens sprinting past Mark Kershaw with only metres to go. It was a well deserved win for Stevens who over the last couple of weeks has really pushed the group with his high work rate. The last lap took an interesting turn with Ben Vagnarelli making an early break from the pack but was caught by the chasing riders at the final turn and finished a credible fourth. Greg Hatcher crossed the line in third place and was another rider who enjoyed setting the pace at the front.
A group of six riders made up C-grade with new rider Matthew Benson impressing his fellow competitors with a strong ride in his first criterium event. Benson, 14, tried to out sprint his group with a long charge to the line but was overtaken down the finishing straight by Brenton Woon and settled for second place. It was Woon's second win in as many races and he will probably be joining the large B-grade group in coming weeks. Amanda Steele crossed the line in third place, which was a great result in her first race since being struck with illness while away at Christmas.
Long-time club member and current handicapper Angelo Ylia produced a win in
D-grade finishing in front of Michael Anderson and Simon Woods who finished
second and third respectively.
The Riverland Cycling Club is creating a lot of interest around the Riverland
with races held twice a week, organized training rides and with members entering
races and other organized cycling events such as Veterans races, the Be Active
Tour (January), Sea to Vines(November) and Coast to Coast (February 19). All
interested riders are welcome to join the club. For more information about membership
and race programs check out www.riverlandcyclingclub.com, recognized as one
of the best cycling websites in Australia.
Results
A Grade 1 Lee Stevens 2 Hamish MacKirdy 3 Nigel Willoughby 4 Josh Steele B Grade 1 Chris Stevens 2 Mark Kershaw 3 Greg Hatcher 4 Ben Vagnarelli 5 Lara MacKirdy 6 Angus Boase C Grade 1 Brenton Woon 2 Matthew Benson 3 Amanda Steele 4 Peter Weston 5 Elton Reimann 6 John Eshman D Grade 1 Angelo Ylia 2 Michael Anderson 3 Simon Woods 4 Barry Trewren 5 Gordon Lawton
