Masters,
In this week’s Bleat;
• 2023 Annual General Meeting
• From the Desk of the Handicapper
• From the Race Committee
• Five Peaks Challenge
• Racing this Week
• Race Report
Ian Morton
thebleat@actvets.cc
2023 Annual General Meeting
The AGM for the Capital Region Masters Cycling Club for 2023 will be held on Monday 13th February at 7:00pm at the Raiders Club Weston.
Members are invited to attend in person or can join via a zoom meeting (link to be advised).
For those that use zoom we need you to register your attendance. Use Chat in zoom to fully identify yourself. For example “Joe Blow is attending CRMCC AGM”.
NOTE: Any Apologies should be advised to the secretary.
Craig Tozer
Secretary Capital Region Masters Cycling Club
secretary@actvets.cc
ps We are always seeking members who are willing to join the Committee. You can download a nomination from: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Tt7NK_6jAoJRclpWUiMxWRqO1aaT_5pH
From the Desk of the Handicapper
Promotions
Stephen Terracini C to B
Rob Langridge
Handicapper
From the Race Committee
Race Directors
We are still lacking a few Race Directors for upcoming races (including tomorrow night). Anyone able to assist, please advise the Race Committee (race.committe@actvets.cc).
Registration for 2023
All members must be registered prior to racing in 2023.
Five Peaks Challenge
The Five Peaks Challenge non-competitive cyclo-sportive bike riding event is on again in Canberra on Sunday 23 April 2023. It is a personal challenge conducted by the Murrumbidgee Canberra Rotary Club with all profits going to charity.
There are two ride lengths: 120 km and 88 km and you can bypass as many of the peaks as you desire. You ride the peaks and your partner does the flat.
Full details and registration are at: https://www.rotaryrides.org.au/
RACING THIS WEEK:
Tuesday, 17th January: Stromlo Criterium
Note: Registration required by 17 Jan 2023 3:50 pm.
Any requests for Grade changes should be sorted out with the Handicapper prior to registration.
Late entries may be considered in exceptional circumstances. Please email race.committee@actvets.cc
Where: Stromlo Forest Park
Race Description:
E/F/G 5:50 30 min + 2 laps
A/C 6:30 A 45m+2, C 40m+2
B/D 7:20 B 45m+2, D 40m+2
Sunset @ 8:20
Race Director:tba Contact: Email: tba
Marshals: Bruce McMillan
Thursday, 19th January: Track Racing
The Program for Thursday is;
5.30pm – 6.00pm: Warm-up and free practice.
6.00pm – 6.40pm: 200m fly.
6.40pm – 7.00pm: Mystery race.
7.00pm – 7.20pm: Italian Pursuit.
Sunday, 22th January – No scheduled race
RACE REPORTS:
SFP Criterium – 10th January
5.50pm and it’s still 30 degrees and blowing a 20 km/h ENE, which isn’t going to help, you would think. It didn’t take long before the A Grade bunch to splinter, with James Meadley, Daniel Lekhac and Stuart Griffith making the decisive break of the race. Mid way through the race they were joined by Michael Rosser and Denis Mungoven, both bridging the gap individually. The lead group of 5 worked together and were never going to be caught by the chasing bunch. It came down to a bunch of 4 for the sprint with Stuart Griffith (Cartel) pulling away for a comfortable win over Denis Mungoven (2nd) and Michael Rosser (3rd).
C Grade followed a similar pattern with two riders going off the front early. As it went Stephen Terracini and Ian Preston were never under threat from the trailing bunch with no one seemingly able or willing to attempt to close down the leaders, who at one stage had almost the entire home straight to themselves. The sprint between the two saw Stephen Terracini edge out Ian Preston for the win with Andrew Buick the best of the rest coming in 3rd.
B Grade, the largest on the track with 26 riders, provided some of the more aggressive racing of the night, instigated by Darren Blackhurst’s continual attacks off the front, only to be reeled back in again and again by the bunch. It was a night of attrition with 5 DNF’s due to the pace of the bunch and attacks. On the bell lap the pack caught Blackhurst one last time and it was a large bunch sprint to the line, with Ben Healy taking the win with Stephen Schwenke 2nd and James Patterson 3rd.
D Grade was dominated by Brian Chugg, who at one stage found himself sitting ‘inadvertently’ behind some trailing B Graders. It was a meek Brian Chugg who returned to the group after being roundly castigated for ‘almost’ drafting. In the end the bunch, who were now aware that Chugg was the rider to watch, worked hard for the final laps, only to have Chugg take out the sprint ahead of Alex Sommavaria and Tony Sheehan in 3rd.
The 7 E,F and G graders took off into the cooling evening a tad after 7.30pm. The fewer numbers didn’t diminish the effort and concentration as the 5 E Graders stayed together for almost the entire 30 minutes. It came down to a great sprint out with Linda Stals edging out Asley Sked 2nd and Mick Donaldson 3rd. Robert Craine was the lone F grader and a persistent Gai Monahan the G grader.
The Director’s Combative Award for the evening goes to Darren Blackhurst for his many attacks off the front of B Grade going solo into the wind. He was unfortunate to be rounded up in the final sprint for an 11th place in B Grade.
Only one brown snake seen tonight by a rider doing warm up laps. Fortunately, it found other things to keep it occupied other than venture onto the track during the racing.
Thanks very much to Craig Tozer for opening up and assisting with the setup. Thanks also to Kerrie for marshalling, setting up/closing down and critiquing my (in)ability to update countdown timer board, Simon for being there to assist in First Aid, which thankfully wasn’t required and to Ross Hazelwood our kangaroo wrangler for ensuring E.F and G grade had a safe race.
Brian Peak
Track Racing – 12th January
Track racing continued for 2023 with a session on Thursday 12 January. The weather was quite hot, with a headwind gusting on/off the front straight. The wind waxed and waned during the evening. Attendance was slightly lower than expected with 12 riders, 6 in A grade and 6 in B grade.
A Grade Scratch (8 laps)
The A grade scratch race commenced with Tim Jolly leading out for almost two laps at a very relaxed pace. When Tim rolled off the lead, Conan Liu took over and cranked up the pace to the point where the bunch started to string out and suffer. Unusually, Conan stuck to this task for three laps with the bunch just hanging on, via grim determination. It seemed unlikely that such an early, sustained attack could work. This proved to be the case, with Conan eventually tiring and handing off to Wayne Benham. Wayne piloted the bunch at a solid pace, towards the bell lap. By this stage, several riders were jockeying for good attacking positions. The final attack commenced approaching the bell, with Steve Jones leading out Tim Jolly and Gavin Stephens. Tim surged past Steve as the finish approached, taking the win. Steve held on for second while Craig Kentwell took third following a potent, final lap effort to overtake Gavin Stephens.
B Grade Scratch (8 laps)
B Grade started their scratch race with an even pace – 6 riders completing one lap turns in the hot (31⁰C) and still conditions, perfect for the track scratch race. The bunch stayed together initially. However, with 3 laps to go (Ed) Garnetti on a Jim Bundy steel frame put in a blistering attack from second spot, just as the lead rider rolled off the front. He just stayed out front, setting a torrid pace. However, Ali Hale, James Newhouse and Karen Cluston took chase. They had to time their attack to ease past as Ed was weakening on the penultimate lap. On the bell lap, James went high and tried to get around the Cluston / Hale paring but couldn’t make it. Ultimately Karen Cluston (1st) held off Ali Hale (2nd) with James Newhouse 3rd.
A Grade Points Race (20-laps, 4 sprints)
The points race is a torrid event, with multiple sprint efforts. It is also quite tactical, because riders need to accumulate early sprint points, while keeping energy in reserve for a final sprint that attracts double sprint points. It was interesting to see two different tactical approaches garner top points in this event.
The first two sprints were dominated by Conan Liu who gained maximum points. Tim Jolly invested just enough in the first two sprints to take second placing in each. He continued this approach through the event, taking second place in each of the four sprints to garner a total 20 points.
By contrast, Steve Jones took it easy in the first two sprints gaining a fourth place initially and a third place in the second sprint. Steve attacked as the third sprint lap approached and riders began to tire. Steve’s attack was ruthless. He soon gained around 40 metres on the field and held out to the finish taking the final two sprints in an impressive effort. Though Steve was the moral victor, his effort garnered an identical 20 points to Tim Jolly’s effort, so both riders were declared equal winners.
Conan Liu was compensated for his early efforts by garnering 19 points, just missing the win.
B Grade Points Race (15-laps, 3 sprints)
In the B grade points race, Ed Garnett launched out early for the first sprint. After taking it by a big margin, he looked to continue with his lead. However, the sprint effort took its toll and Ed was soon run down and drifting to the back of the bunch. After the first sprint, Alison Hale, James Newhouse and Karen Clutson were contenders for the remaining sprints. Alison is the form rider in B grade and proved it by taking both the second and final sprints to garner a winning total of 18 points. Alison can never completely relax as James Newhouse and Karen Clutson usually put up a strong challenge. In this race, James accumulated 14 points for second placing, with Karen just one point adrift for third place.
A special mention should go to Ian Drayton for a gritty performance in this race. Ian is improving week by week and hung in with the bunch, never giving up, despite being well below his normal form due to training interruptions.
Italian Pursuit (6 laps)
All riders took part in the Italian pursuit – 6 laps – with conditions becoming windy. Both teams executed their pursuits with good discipline and error free. Both teams were well matched over the initial lap. However, on the first changeover, Team 2’s Karen Clutson used the tail wind to perfection to gain a crucial boost in speed. She held her speed and completed a scorching lap to put Team 2 into a handy lead. The gap did come back to Team 1 after Karen’s lap, with a strong turn by Team 1’s, James Newhouse. However, subsequent good turns by Ed Garnett and Wayne Benham restored Team 2’s lead. In practice, Team 1 needed to be building a lead in the early laps, as Team 2 had three strong riders (Gavin Stephens, Tim Jolly & Steve Jones) for their final laps. Team 1 kept on the gas for the final laps and rode well trying to get back into the contest. However, the anchors for Team 2 didn’t ease up in the slightest, giving Team 2 an emphatic win.
Michael Langdon’s Italian Pursuit commentary here.
Results Summary:
8-Lap Scratch: (A Grade) Tim Jolly, Steve Jones, Craig Kentwell, Gavin Stephens, Conan Liu. (B Grade) Karen Clutson, Alison Hale, James Newhouse.
Points Race: (A1 Grade) Tim Jolly & Steve Jones (20 points), Conan Liu (19 points) Wayne Benham (7 points). (A2 Grade) Craig Kentwell (9 points). (B Grade) Alison Hale (18 points), James Newhouse (14 points), Karen Clutson (13 points).
Italian Pursuit: Winner Team 2 (Tim Jolly, Steve Jones, Gavin Stephens, Ed Garnett, Ian Drayton, Karen Clutson)
Season Point Score Update:
Tim Jolly (197), James Newhouse (171), Alison Hale (168), Conan Liu (165), Craig Kentwell (157), Steve Jones (124), Ed Garnett (107), John Paul De Sousa (98), Wayne Benham (96), Mark Canaider (89), Graeme O’Neill (78), Ian Drayton (75), Hamish Anderson (73).
Graeme O’Neill & Michael Langdon
