Masters,
In this week’s Bleat;
• From the Race Committee
• Rotary Five Peaks Challenge
• Racing this Week
• Race Reports
Ian Morton
thebleat@actvets.cc
From the Race Committee
Coaching
The Race Committee is looking to establish a roster of people prepared to act as coaches/mentors for new members who want to develop their skills.
Could anyone who is interested or who knows anyone who might be interested, please let the Race Committee know (race.committee@actsvets.cc)
Race Directors and Marshals
The RMS has been updated with the ACT races that we have currently secured approval.
We are looking for volunteers to fill the Race Director and Marshal positions so that we can ensure the running of these races.
Rotary Five Peaks Challenge
Early bird entries close on 26 March. More details at: www.rotaryrides.org.au
RACING THIS WEEK:
Tuesday, 8th March: Stromlo Criterium
Note: Pre-registration required by 8 Mar 2022 3:50 pm.
No late entries accepted.
Where: Stromlo Forest Park
Race Description:
B/D 5:50 B 30m+2, D 25m+2
E/F/G 6:25 E/F/G 22 m + 2
A/C 6:55 A 30m+2, C 25m+2
Race Director: Jeremy Gillman-Wells Contact: Email: jezgw@icloud.com Ph 0434 111 172
Marshals: Craig Coleman
Thursday, 10th March: Track Racing
The Program for Thursday is;
5.30pm – 6.00pm: Warm-up and free practice,
6.00pm – 6.20pm: 8-lap graded scratch race;
6.20pm – 6.50pm: 2-lap handicap race (Omnium Event).
6.50pm – 7.10pm: 12-lap graded snowball.
7.10pm – 7.30pm: Italian pursuit.
Note: This session will be the second last competitive track session for the 21-22 season. It will conclude the 4-event Omnium championship. The season presentation evening will be 24 March 2022.
Sunday, 13th March – No Scheduled Race
RACE REPORTS:
SFP Criterium – 1st March
The Toughest Conditions Ever greeted riders last Tuesday, with the first day of autumn bringing rain that washed away not only the sunshine but the race referee’s notes – so apologies are in order if the race report appears to be merely inspired by actual events.
Off first was E/F/G grades who probably had the pick of the conditions. All grades rolled away together with Andre Swenson and Bernie Crowe quickly settling into a tempo and letting E and F go up the road. Michelle Hodgetts requested an upgrade to E before the race started and then proceeded to put her F grade colleague to the sword with she and Chris Copeland towing the field around most of the race. With the handicapper present and adjusting race grades post-race, Chris got up over Mick Donaldson with Rosemary Robinson rounding out the podium and Michelle Hodgetts claiming the final position in E grade and Ross Heazlewood the lone rider in F finishing with the bunch to take the points for the win. In G grade Andre Swenson prevailed over Bernie Crowe in what must have been a fairly tough evening out with just the two in the group and the inclement weather.
With A and C grades rolling up the race was on, with a break both Mark and Stephen off the front in their respective grades at one point or another. Mark eventually returned to the bunch in A grade and Stephen, who nearly earned a warning for chasing A grade as they came past dangling off the front of C grade for a while before being swallowed up but hanging on for a strong second place finish behind a very strong Simon Porombka and in front of an evergreen Dale Kleeman who was very impressive. The B grade bunch worked well to bring back Stephen Terracini and then stay together for the bunch kick, impressive to watch.
With a dozen finishers in C and 14 in A grade the limited skills of the race referee were tested and some in the main A grade bunch were inadvertently shown the 2 laps to go board twice. However the break of four had established itself early and was on for young (welcome to the club James Meadley) and old with Nathan Spillane, Jeremy Gillman-Wells and Gerard Tiffen working extremely well together and lapping the C grade field several times and keeping the main bunch at a steady distance. The chasing group didn’t stand a chance of catching such a committed break and a few lone efforts to bridge ended up nowhere. The main interest was going to be if anybody could roll Gerard Tiffen for the win and in the end his teammate Jeremy Gillman-Wells took a very first, with Gerard second, James Meadley third and Nathan Spillane the chocolate medal. Back in the main field it ebbed and flowed a bit but finished in one group with Marc Vroomens getting the bunch kick over Christophe Barbaret and Mark Terracini. A bit of excitement in the final corner occurred with what sounded like an exploding tyre was confirmed with Michael Payne limping across the line with a popped front tyre, having hit a rock. Further salt was rubbed into the wound when Michael’s spare had a hole in it and the call of shame was made to the broomwagon. A tough night out.
By the time B and D got away the weather had become even more filthy, truly a race for the hard men, and Mongo. A dozen riders, evenly split amongst the two grades and to the surprise of nobody, Dominator The attempted an early break but it didn’t end up going anywhere with a group of four rolling around in a race that was shortened due to inclement weather leaving Gavin Stephens toughing it out solo for 5th, Dominic Romano pipping Darren Blackhurst for the bronze and Ed Pellegrino proving the best able to handle the cold and wet to beat Pete Young for the victory.
D grade had all six starters finish the race, and they looked to be having about as much fun B grade and the race officials were. Jonathon Chowns rode a very strong race for the win in front of Kevin Newhouse and Frank O’Sullivan. Chapeau to all though.
Fingers crossed for better weather for the last few races, and thanks to David Buckley for the assistance and timekeeping, and also to Rob Langridge for setting up and providing advice during the course of the races.
Ben McDuff
Track Racing – 3rd March
Weather for the season’s 11th track racing session was cool with a strong head wind in the Bundadome front straight. There was a smattering of rain before the warm up commenced. However, the track was dry by the time the first rider began practicing. Despite a few threatening clouds, it remained fine for the race session. The uncertain conditions likely affected attendance, which was quite poor with just 11 riders, 6 in A grade and 5 in B grade. Terry Danaher lined up in B grade for his first track session with our club. However, Terry is an experienced track rider who adapted quickly to the racing.
The 8-lap A grade scratch race was fairly tame by usual standards. It commenced at an even pace with turns by Tony Beasley, James Newhouse and Craig Kentwell. Michael Langdon rolled to the front on lap 4. He can usually be counted on to ramp up the pace. However, this time Michael was content to keep the pace even. After turns by Tim Jolly and John Paul De Sousa, Tony Beasley returned to the front on lap 7. This was Michael Langdon’s cue to attack. Michael soon had a 20m gap and held that comfortably through the bell lap for the win. Craig Kentwell and John Paul de Sousa put in a solid pursuit and were locked together approaching the line. Craig nosed ahead for second place with John Paul having a healthy gap on the remaining field for third place.
The B Grade scratch race was also fairly orderly, though the pace was quite high from the start. Graeme O’Neill had a shaky start, almost pulling out of a pedal before pursuing hard to close an initial gap. The action really started on the penultimate lap when the whole field put the hammer down. Karen Clutson and Alison Hale were soon out front, as usual. This time Karen powered over the line for a win over Alison in second place. Newcomers Terry Danaher and Frank O’Sullivan battled for third place with Terry taking the place in a good first ride with the track group.
The evening’s second event was a series of paired match races, with points counting towards the 4-event, Omnium Championship. These were interesting contests with some close results. Tactics were fairly similar across the event with most riders trying to get a small advantage in the high banking sectors. Winners were Michael Langdon, Tim Jolly, Tony Beasley, Karen Clutson and Terry Danaher.
The evening’s third event was a 2-lap handicap with A & B grades combined. Alison Hale and Karen Clutson scorched off the start line and overhauled the limit rider in half a lap. However, James Newhouse and the rest of the field were soon pursuing hard and keeping Alison and Karen well in sight. Alison had the pace to hold off everyone for a close win over Karen Clutson in second place and James Newhouse in third place.
The track session closed with the usual, all-in, Italian pursuit. This event ended up with 2 teams of 5 riders. The teams were closely matched so it was no surprise that the small differential at the finish could be put down to better teamwork by Team 1. Team 2 made a small mistake in allowing a gap to develop in their paceline over the initial laps. This provided all the advantage that Team 1 needed for a good win.
Major place getters for Wednesday were as follows:
8-Lap Scratch: (A1 Grade) Michael Langdon, John Paul De Sousa. (A2 Grade) Craig Kentwell, Tony Beasley, Tim Jolly. (B Grade) Karen Clutson, Alison Hale, Terry Danaher.
2-Lap Paired Match Races: Winners (A1 Grade) Michael Langdon (A2 Grade) Tim Jolly, Tony Beasley. (B Grade) Karen Clutson, Terry Danaher.
Combined 2-lap Handicap: Alison Hale, Karen Clutson, James Newhouse
Combined Italian Pursuit: Winner Team 1 (John Paul De Sousa, Tim Jolly, Karen Clutson, James Newhouse, Graeme O’Neill).
Omnium Championship Points after Round 3:
Michael Langdon (13), Graeme O’Neill (13), Tony Beasley (11), James Newhouse (9), Tim Jolly (8), Frank O’Sullivan (7), Karen Clutson (7), Alison Hale (6), Kerry Knowler (5), Lindy Hou (5), Terry Danaher (5).
Season Point Score Update:
Alison Hale (221), Tony Beasley (210), Craig Kentwell (186), James Newhouse (179), Michael Langdon (173), Steve Jones (128), Graeme O’Neill (123), Ken Birch (119), John Paul De Sousa (116), Karen Clutson (107), Bruce Griffin (97), Kerry Knowler (93), Phil Coulton (75), Wayne Benham (68), Warwick Wilson (62), Ben Davis (58).
Graeme O’Neill
