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Murwillumbah CC

Nobbys Creek, March 15, 2003

By Phil Ruge

A fine and warm afternoon greeted the 60 riders who lined up to contest the weekly road race conducted by the Murwillumbah Cycle Club on Saturday 15 March 2003.

This week's course was Nobbys Creek, a distance of some 55 kilometres which takes riders out through Chillingham to Bald Mountain before returning back to the finish at Dulguigan via a 10 kilometre detour into Nobbys Creek. Narrow rough roads and numerous short but steep climbs demand a combination of strength and tactics for riders hoping to finish well in these races.

A Grade had a good field of 10 riders and wasted no time in getting down to racing. Their progress along the course was marked by a series of attacks but none were sustained for long until the passage into Nobbys Creek were a group of 4 riders managed to slip off the front of the bunch. This quartet stayed clear over the final 10 kilometres of race to claim the prizes with Chris Thompson first, Ashley Bryant second, Ashley Gowie third and John Kane in fourth place.

B Grade also put on a quick race for the 9 riders in their group. Again this race was notable for a seemingly endless series of attacks and surges but despite the efforts of the would be escapees no attack was successful. This was too much for some though as several riders succumbed to the fluctuating pace. At the end a young heart and legs took the win for Sam Tate whilst a recent secret training camp in New Zealand helped 'young' Graeme Harvey into second place. Third home was Paul Howard with Stephen Scotcher settling for a solid fourth place.

A good field of 17 riders started in C Grade but this race was thrown into chaos just a few kilometres after the start when a dog ran out from the roadside into the fast moving bunch! This brought a number of riders down including Peter Haywood, Sara Rota and Diane Monk all of whom required medical attention.

A smaller group of about 10 riders left the carnage behind and quickly got back to racing with several riders strung out by Bald Mountain. This continued on the return to Nobbys Creek which saw just 3 riders left in contention once this difficult section of the course had been completed. First home was Peter Watts with Sean Swain and Ealden Tucker close behind for second and third spots respectively. Next home was Bob Mockridge after a desperate chase of the front runners!

D Grade also had a good bunch of 16 riders. This race was marked by a consistent pace thanks largely to the efforts of Gary Wardrop and Steve Grant. Whilst this stretched the sprinters on the numerous climbs they were not to be left behind! At the finish their perseverance paid off with Frank Schirmer first then Tom Allen, Dennis Brown and Ted Mathot rounding out the top places.

E Grade had a separate race for the 8 starters over 36 kilometres to Chillingham and return. It seems that everyone in this race was willing to share the work so that at the end an intact field fought out the places. First was Lee Hall followed by Bill Mustard and Peter McMahon.

Racing next week is over the 55 kilometre Bald Mountain course. Start time is 3.00 pm DST from Pat Smith Park, Dulguigan. The next Club meeting is this Wednesday, 19 March 2003 at 7.30 pm at the Tweed Tavern, Murwillumbah. All riders and interested parties are most welcome!

Results

A Grade
 
1 Chris Thompson (Gold Coast)
2 Ashley Bryant (Murwillumbah)
3 Ashley Goewie (CATS)
4 John Kane (Murwillumbah)
 
B Grade
 
1 Sam Tate (Murwillumbah)
2 Graeme Harvey (Murwillumbah)
3 Paul Howard (Murwillumbah)
4 Stephen Scotcher (Murwillumbah)
 
C Grade
 
1 Peter Watts (Toowoomba)
2 Sean Swain (Murwillumbah)
3 Ealden Tucker (Murwillumbah)
4 Robert Mockridge (CATS)
 
D Grade
 
1 Frank Schirmer (Murwillumbah)
2 Tom Allen (Murwillumbah)
3 Dennis Brown (Murwillumbah)
4 Ted Mathot (CATS)
 
E Grade
 
1 Lee Hall (GoldStars)
2 Bill Mustard (Murwillumbah)
3 Peter McMahon (Murwillumbah)