Capital Region Masters Cycling Club

Masters, In this week’s Bleat;

• CRMCC – Out and About

Dunc Gray velodrome over the weekend had our CRMCC Masters getting some good results @ the NSW Masters Championships. The fields at these events can be small – tiny even, which guarantees a podium – the riders though, are of course aiming for Anna Meares velodrome in April for the National Championships. Congratulations to:

Jim Veal – MMAS 10 – Gold in the TT and Keirin.
Craig Kentwell – MMAS7 – Bronze in the IP.
Peta Brill – WMAS5 – Gold in the Keirin, Scratch and Points races. Silver in the IP, TT and Sprint.
Sarah Stephens – WMAS3 – Gold in the IP. Silver in the TT and Keirin.

• From the Desk of the Handicapper

• From the Race Committee

• Racing this Week

• Race Reports

I go round and round in circles, really, really fast, on a big wooden bowl.
Victoria Pendleton CBE – British Former Pro Track Cyclist

Michael Langdon
thebleat@actvets.cc

From the Desk of the Handicapper:

From the Race Committee

Gunning road race is delayed to later in the year…expected around October 2023.

RACING THIS WEEK:

Tuesday, 21 March: Stromlo Graded Criterium

Note: Registration Cutoff: Tues 21/03/2023 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

Race Director: Robert Solomon Contact: Ph: (0423002507)
Marshals: Kerrie Muir
Medals: sheep stations

Thursday, 23 March – 6pm: Narrabundah Track Racing

(Final competitive track session for 2022-23)
The Program for Thursday is as follows:
5.30pm – 6.00pm:  Warm-up and free practice.
6.00pm – 6.20pm:  8-lap graded scratch race.
6.20pm – 6.50pm:  1-lap SS time trial.
6.50pm – 7.10pm:  2-lap handicap.
7.10pm– 7.30pm:  Italian Pursuit.

Graeme O’Neill – Race Director

Sunday 26th March – No road race scheduled

RACE REPORTS:

CRMCC Criterium Club Championships – 14 March 23

Stromlo Forest Park greeted the riders for part two of the Criterium Club Championships.

The number of the night was 3, with the dice rolled in 5 races and three in the breakaway came up 4 out of 5 times. The last number came up for one unlucky duck.

Race 1 – M4 and M5 raced separately.

M4 – Rainer Wilton attacked early and stayed away for most of the race to win. Behind the pace was still fierce with several counter attacks from Jason Chalker. Craig Lindenmayer, Craig O’Neill and Dom the Dominator hung on for as long as they possibly could, with the uphill crosswind section of the main straight taking most casualties.

M5 – This race started slowly until the dice was rolled and a selection of three was made. Steve Crisping ending up in a Tiffen sandwich made up of Gerard Tiffen himself and Jeremy Gilliam-Wells

As the laps ticked by, the pace remained relentless, with Paul Scherl, Christophe Barbaret and Marc Vrooms attacking and counter-attacking in an attempt to break away from the pack. Other Tiffen riders were seen to be helping out the break by neutralising any counter attacks. Stephen Blackburn went on the attack late in the nasty section of cross wind at the top of the main straight. Andrew Remley, Ed Logue, Mark Terracinini and Krusty Bryant did their best with the fierce pace.

In the end Gerard Tiffen beat Steve Crispin in the sprint, with Jeremy coming in third. Marc Vrooms, a good sprinter took out the main bunch prize, with the ever-strong Paul Scherl coming in closely behind Mark.

Race 2 – M1, M2 and M3 raced separately.

I think for the first time ever we had a decent bunch size for M1. Hence the decision was made to race three distinct races. The officials had to keep a close eye on proceedings to keep track — and much respect to the riders who kept their bunches of 3 apart as the 2 to go board came out and the bell rung.

M3 – Ben Morrison was a late entry to this race, with Conan giving Ben the go ahead to race. From this point onward Ben was favourite to win. And, so he did. But again it took a break of 3 to breakaway from the main bunch.

The breakaway consisted of Ben, Jimmy Carroll and Matthew Corby. A strong trio I hear you say. Well yes, Greg Zingelmann, Kieran Butler, Michael Rowland and Mick Rose had their hands full attempting the contain the power of the leading trio.

As expected Ben won the sprint and Mathew Corby came in second followed by Jimmy Carroll.

Thanks again to the rider for keeping the sprint lines sperate in the last two laps

M2 – In the first few laps, a breakaway group of three riders managed to pull ahead of the pack. James Medley, Daniel Lekhac and Jason Irwin worked together, taking turns and maintained their lead. The chasing group was chasing hard to the point of splitting up with David Parker being the best of the rest despite time trailing the majority of the race, unable to bridge to the smoothly working front three. Ross Goggin, Tobias McLaneghan and Ben Zeller expended a lot of energy to try and stay in the race. Ed Meeuwissen was seen doing some strong turns, but alas along with the other dropped riders he never saw the front of the race again.

The tightest and most controversial finish of the night saw James Medley win, but we could not sperate Daniel Lekhac and Jason Irwin. Also, Daniel and Jason could not positively say who won as they crossed through the chute.

We hope we got it right in the end with Daniel narrowly over Jason (and I do hope this matches the medal and pictures).

M1 – The riders set off at a blistering pace, jostling for position as they navigated the first turn. Two riders got away at this point and one more bridged within the lap to make a leading bunch of Stuart Griffiths, James Thorp, and Michael Davies. It was a harsh start to a race. Jarrod Taylor and Tristan Dimmock tried to get back on, but alas the pace never eased in the front group of 3. Dale Riley rode in strongly for forth place, but the main action was acted out between Stuart, James, and Michael. Stuart won the sprint over James and then Michael.

Race Director: Allan Bontjer
Results and Finish Chute: Nick Boylan
Lap Board and Timing: Mark Harris
Ducks and Kangaroos: Terry Moore
Race Director in training: Robert Solomon

Track Racing – Thursday 16 March

Lately we have been blessed with very good conditions for track racing.  Thursday 16 March was fine and quite hot for the time of year.  Initially, a brisk headwind impeded progress in the back straight.  However, as expected, the wind moderated as the evening progressed.  Attendance (9 riders) was below par, as several regular trackies were tapering for the NSW Masters Track Championships.  Nevertheless, it was a good evening’s racing with a challenging program.  This session was the final competitive event that counted towards the season championship points.  There is one more competitive track session (23 Mar) and a final presentation session (30 Mar) before closing out the 22-23 track season.

A Grade Scratch (8 laps)

Tim Jolly led off the A grade scratch and did two laps on the front before handing off to Wayne Benham.  The pace stayed relaxed until lap 5 when Conan Liu rolled to the front.  As expected, Conan accelerated and soon had the pack strung out and pushing hard.  Conan’s lap was followed by Martin Graham and John Paul De Sousa taking turns at the front.  John Paul rolled off early on lap 7 and positioned himself high on the banking, poised for an attack.  The pack rolled on with several riders getting twitchy at the prospect of an early final sprint.  The expected attack was initiated by John Paul with about 1.5 laps to go.  John Paul was followed out of the pack by Martin Graham, triggering an all-out sprint over the final lap.  Tim Jolly overhauled the bunch to take out the win.  John Paul dropped back leaving Martin Graham and Conan Liu to a brutal sprint duel for second place.  Martin just pipped Conan by the smallest margin.

B Grade Scratch (8 laps)

B Grade had 4 riders this week in some very windy westerly winds. (T. Jolly didn’t win the race as he’s not in B grade). The riders stayed together out of the wind for the entire race, swapping off strategic turns. It all came down to a sprint – and on the bell lap James Newhouse hit the afterburner and the green lantern (Hamish Anderson) tried to catch but couldn’t overcome the skill and speed of James Newhouse 1^st, Hamish Anderson 2^nd and Graeme O’Neill 3^rd.

200m Fly

The 200m flying start time trial is a favourite for many riders.  It was no surprise to see Hamish Anderson show up for this event.  It is a tricky, tactical event necessitating top speed in turn 1 and a flat tack surge down the banking and around ¾ of the track.  This week there were a few experimental lines taken. Conan Liu crossed the start line almost at the highest point.  It did not seem the optimal line, but it produced an identical time to his last effort, a month ago.  Hamish Anderson produced the stand-out time (13.94s, 51.7 km/hr) in B grade and Tim Jolly was first in A grade with a scorching time of 12.48s (59.7km/hr).  Tim seems to improve every time he competes in this event.

4-Lap Handicap

In this race if you’re a scratch rider there is immense satisfaction when the limit riders are caught – sit in until sprint time.  Four laps provides enough time to catch.  Graeme O’Neill started very fast.  However, on lap 2, the scratch riders caught the limit riders. Wayne Benham was on the front and the other riders just sat on his wheel.  No rider overtook Wayne until the bell.  On the bell, Martin Graham went the long way around the bunch high on the track.  Tim Jolly, the second rider at this point was positioned very well keeping the other riders on his hip – pushing them up the track – he then surged around Conan Liu to take the lead. Martin Graham dropped in on Tim Jolly’s wheel with just enough room in front of Conan Liu to do so.  Tim Jolly too strong 1^st, Martin Graham 2^nd just over Conan Liu 3^rd.

Italian Pursuit

There were two team of four riders for this week’s Italian Pursuit.  On paper, Team 1 looked marginally stronger.  However, teamwork counts in this event.  Mistakes like poor pacing, leaving gaps or non-optimal team order can make a big difference in the race outcome.  However, in this instance, both teams rode flawlessly.  Team 1 eked out a small advantage on lap 1 and relentlessly built their lead out to around 10m at the finish.  A fine win by Team 1 and a good competitive effort by Team 2.

Michael Langdon’s commentary on the Italian Pursuit here.

Major Placings:

8-Lap Scratch: (A1 Grade) Tim Jolly, Martin Graham, Conan Liu.  (A2 Grade) No entries.  (B Grade) James Newhouse, Hamish Anderson, Graeme O’Neill.

200m Fly: (A1 Grade) Tim Jolly (12.48s), John Paul De Sousa (13.34s), Wayne Benham (13.77s).  (A2 Grade) No entries.  (B Grade) Hamish Anderson (13.94s), James Newhouse (14.44s), Graeme O’Neill (15.52s).

4-Lap Handicap: (A&B Grades)  Tim Jolly, Martin Graham, Conan Liu, James Newhouse, John Paul De Sousa, Wayne Benham.

Combined Italian Pursuit:  Winner Team 1 (Tim Jolly, John Paul De Sousa, James Newhouse, Phil Coulton).

Final Omnium Points Score:

James Newhouse (18), Conan Liu (15), Tim Jolly, Phil Coulton (13), Graeme O’Neill (11), Gavin Stephens (10), Craig Kentwell, John Paul De Sousa, Wayne Benham, Martin Graham, Sarah Stephens (8).

Final Season Point Score:

Tim Jolly (391), James Newhouse (342), Conan Liu (290), Alison Hale (274), Craig Kentwell (242), John Paul De Sousa (224), Wayne Benham (178), Steve Jones (148), Graeme O’Neill (139), Ed Garnett (134), Gavin Stephens (128), Warwick Wilson (127), Ian Drayton (126), Hamish Anderson (120), Martin Graham (119), Phil Coulton (115).

Congratulation to Tim Jolly for taking out the Tack Season (point score) Championship and also, exceptionally, being a winner in every event for the 16-March track session.

Graeme O’Neill & Michael Langdon

Uriarra Homestead – Sunday 19 March

It was a hot one with 26 riders braving the heat.  The race was reduced to 2 laps for each grade for a distance of 48km due to the expected hot weather.

A grade was away first and remained in a tight bunch to the finish with Christopher Short taking the win from Alex Newman and Brenton Clark.

B grade was away next and was more spread out by the finish with our van driver Marc Vroomans in first followed by Dimitar Dojcinoski and Michael Rowland. A big congratulations to our visitor Rui Sui who rounded out B grade.

C grade was close on their heels with the win going to David Dickson (overall 8^th) followed closely by Simon Costello (overall 9^th) and Ed Logue (overall 10^th).  Looks like B grade may be beckoning.

D, E and F grades started as a bunch, with Alex Sommanriva taking the win in a tight finish from Terry Moore and Alain Arbaut for D grade.  Russel Marston took the win in E grade followed by a tight bunch with Poupee Lam and Jan Koehler taking second and third respectively.  F grade bought home the tail with Elizabeth Lowe and Linsday Graham fighting it out at the end and Elizabeth taking the win.  Congratulations to Michael Spojaric for coming in third.

A big thanks to the support crew, Michael Golding for providing first aid and driving the course to relay messages due to communication difficulties at the Condor creek end.  The three ETCs,  Kim Malcolm, Polly Templeton and Rob Langridge, Marc Vroomans for driving the van and lastly Dan Lekhac for providing me with support at the start and finish.

Chris Copeland – Race director.

Masters, In this week’s Bleat;

• CRMCC – Out and About

Race Forever – International Womens Day Club Championship Criterium

• From the Desk of the Handicapper

• From the Race Committee

• Racing this Week

• Race Reports

“You cannot breach the gap between opportunism and ability” — Phil Liggett

Michael Langdon
thebleat@actvets.cc

From the Desk of the Handicapper:

From the Race Committee

Gunning road race is delayed to later in the year…expected around October 2023 (= more training time).

RACING THIS WEEK:

Tuesday, 14 March: Stromlo Club Championship Criterium (part II)

Note: Registration required by 14 March 2023 3:50pm.
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

Race Director: Alan Bontjer Contact: Ph: 0422 808 035
Marshals: Kerrie Muir
Medals: will be presented at the end of each race…

Thursday, 16 March – 6pm: Narrabundah Track Racing

The Program for Thursday is as follows:
5.30pm – 6.00pm:  Warm-up and free practice.
6.00pm – 6.20pm:  8-lap graded scratch race.
6.20pm – 6.50pm:  200m fly.
6.50pm – 7.10pm:  4-lap Handicap.
7.10pm– 7.30pm:  Italian Pursuit.

Graeme O’Neill – Race Director

Sunday 19th March – 9am, Uriarra Homestead

Grades A, B, C, D – three laps and Grades E, F, G two laps of Uriarra Homestead – top of Uriarra Crossing – Condor Creek – Homestead. (Cutoff: 18/03/2023 8:00 PM)
Directions: Assemble at Uriarra Rd / Brindabella Rd, T-Junction. From North Canberra slightly faster Coppins crossing & right onto Uriarra Road. From Sth Canberra follow Cotter Road down to bridge crossing, turn right onto Brindabella Road.

RACE REPORTS:

CRMCC Criterium Club Championships – 7 March 23

Welcome all to the ultimate showcase of speed, stamina and sheer determination, Week 1 of Capital Region Masters Club Championships. For months our skilled ladies and mature gentlemen (55+) have been preparing themselves for the pursuit of glory on our legendary SFP course and to battle it out for the coveted title of grand champion.

With a strong northerly greeting the contenders, racing was going to be tough. First off were the silverbacks the M8’s to M11’s. Setting off first were the M8’s and all M9-M11’s grouped together to prevent turning the race into a TT. With the M’s setting a solid pace Mick Donaldson quickly become the first casualty but battled on as a proud soloist to finish in style. Even though the M9’s started behind the M8’s, the paring of Alex Sommariva & Bruce McMillan came out firing and soon caught and then joined the remaining M8’s. While the adrenaline pumped and the wheels continued to spin for the entire 30 mins it came down a sprint for all four age groups as follows:

Race 2 was a star studded affair and an awe-inspiring display of athleticism by our club ladies and cycling titans. Their head-to-head battle was of epic proportion and worthy of a TV coverage. Having stayed together for most of the race, Terry “the destroyer” Moore decided enough was enough driving not once but several times up the hill and into the wind to try and break up the pack. For Theresa McLachlan, I’m going to award the VB hard earner award. Theresa even with her heart being ripped out of her chest dug in deep. She allowed (not by choice) for Terry to have her fun up the hills, but using the wind to her advantage plus a lot of cheering from Kerry, Theresa re-joined the pack several times…..well until her heart rate hit 200+. The red hot pace by being set by Terry also got the better of both Poupee Lam and Sue Powell. With 2 laps to go it was anyone’s race between Terry, Peta Brill and Alison Hale, on the bell lap and a cheeky wink to the sidelines we knew an epic finish was going to entail and Peta didn’t let us down. Peta won, Terry was second and Alison third. Breaking this down across the five age groups the results were:

Finally Race 3 and the steeds, the M6 and M7’s were champing at the bit to get going. 16 riders toed the line (7 – M6’s and 9 M7’s) and were set them off in two waves. Immediately it was on like DONKEY KONG and the three musketeers from the M6’s as I like to call them wanted to break the hearts and souls of every other rider on the course and they certainly did. (Steve Crispin please note I’m racing you next week so please be kind to me unlike the musketeers). The first M6 ;/ was Timothy Moore after a long 3 minutes and 2 laps in. On Lap 3, Michael Whyte blew up followed by the smiling Tony Sheehan on lap 4. Now everyone knows there was a fourth musketeers and last night was no different. Wayne Benham normally a C grader was taking it to the three musketeers matching their speed, agility and tactics for much of the race until he also fell away in the dying stages. As a Queenslander, Wayne gets my XXXX Gold award this week. Focusing again on the machines known as the three musketeers (Darren Blackhurst, Conan Liu and Christopher Short) it was still anyone’s race. Darren did much of the damage at the beginning followed by Conan in the middle but it was Christopher that did all the damage in the back end. He destroyed the blossoming bromance and took the M6 win, 2^nd Conan Liu and 3^rd Darren Blackhurst.

The M7’s was a race of two halves. During the first half the 3 eventual champions let the M7 minnows do all the work and David Johnson was screwed over from the start. All the M7’s allowed Dave to lead from the front for the first 8 minutes until a kind hearted Greg Mitchell decided to offer Dave a short reprieve. Precisely at the 15 min mark and with the wind to his back Ian “I’m going to chew your legs off” Preston made one of this signature attacks. Having FOMO, both Mark Harris and Michael Foulds joined in and quickly reeled Ian in leaving the remainder of the M7’s praying for a Bradbury or mob of roos to slow these blokes down. With ~6 laps to go, Mark Harris simply got bored and decided to vesper both Michael and Ian by chasing down the M6’s and to his credit he did catch them. After losing touch with Mark both Michael and Ian slowed their pace quite considerably offering hope to the remaining pack. In reality, they were just playing with the rest of M7 and on the bell lap said Hasta la Vista and they rode off into the sunset (yes it was getting dark) to claim 2^nd and 3^rd respectively behind Mark who was now already doing a shoey. A special mention should also be made to Brian Chung who tried to spice the main bunch up with half a lap to go to complete Week 1 and an exhilarating competition.

Well done to all the competitors, spectators, club members, roos, dogs, ducks and the brown snake named Steve that made this year’s competition one to remember. And a special mention to our ever-charismatic medic Simon Whitehead, the best marshal a director could have Kerri Kerrie Muir and Chloe and Declan who I roped in to help with timing and the all-important ringing of the bell. Thanks All.

Michael Hanbury – Race Director

Track Racing – Thursday 9 March

Thursday 9 March provided very good conditions for track racing.  The temperature was moderate to warm.  Initially, a brisk headwind impeded progress in the back straight.  However, as expected, the wind moderated as the evening progressed.  Attendance (14 riders) was encouraging and provided a good evening’s racing.

A Grade Scratch (8 laps)

Martin Graham led off the A grade scratch at a brisk pace, handing off to Ben Davis at 3/4 lap.  Ben was economising on energy and soon handed the lead to Tim Jolly.  Tim did a lap at steady pace before handing off to Conan Liu.  In usual form, Conan immediately kicked up the pace and soon had the bunch strung out and split into 3 groups.  The pack held on desperately until Conan gave up his lead to Craig Kentwell.  Gavin Stephens, John Paul De Sousa and Wayne Benham followed with turns on the front of a consolidated pack.  Wayne Benham raised the pace through lap 6, giving a good lead out for Martin Graham to put in an attack on lap 7.  Martin gained about 10 metres on the bunch.  However, this week Tim Jolly reacted early, hunting down Martin and dragging Conan Liu out for the pursuit.  Martin, Tim and Conan competed over the final lap with Tim taking the win from Conan and Martin holding on for a comfortable third place.

B Grade Scratch (8 laps)

B Grade had 6 riders in the race – the pace was noted as economical with riders taking one lap turns to build the pace.  James Newhouse stayed high on the track to cover Ali Hale’s inevitable attack.  It didn’t happen this week.  However, team Amore member Sarah Stephens rode a technically excellent race off the front and kept both Ali Hale and James Newhouse on her hip, pushing them up the track as she overtook Ian Drayton, thus delaying any Hale / Newhouse attack.  Sarah powered ahead to take the win, Ali Hale 2^nd and James Newhouse 3^rd.

2-Lap Handicap

The 2-lap handicap was the final race in a 4 event, Omnium championship.  It was run all in, with 14 riders from A and B grades.  There was plenty riding on this race.  Up to 5 points were available, giving several riders a chance to take out the Omnium championship.

The A grade (scratch) riders were given an extra second start on their handicaps, as B grade had previously dominated the short handicaps.  Despite this, the event unfolded with great rides by B graders Sarah Stephens, James Newhouse and Phil Coulton.  Phil bolted out of the blocks from near limit and almost managed to hold off the entire bunch.  Only Sarah Stephens and James Newhouse were able to chase Phil down.  Sarah took out the handicap with a terrific pursuit and James Newhouse had an excellent ride to snaffle second place.  James has been ultra-competitive in the short handicaps.  This placing gave him a well-deserved win in the Omnium Championship.  The standard of riding in this race was exemplary, with very disciplined behaviour as the bunch consolidated approaching the finish line.

8-Lap Snowball

The Race Director combined all grades for this race.  Points were awarded for sprints on laps 7, 5, 3 and 1 lap to go.  A complicating factor was that B grade were given a half lap head start on the A grade riders.  Thus, A grade riders needed to catch and pass B grade prior to winning any points.  Final sprint points were awarded using an escalating points system as the race progressed.

Lap 7 – sprint 1: B grade riders Ali Hale 1^st and Ian Drayton 2^nd got the points
Lap 5 – sprint 2: B grade riders were still in the points with Ali Hale once again 1^st, Sarah Stephens 2^nd and James Newhouse 3^rd

At lap 4 the A graders caught the B graders and from here Martin Graham took control and rode a fast and clinical race, winning the next two sprints from the front!

Lap 3 – sprint 3: Martin Graham 1^st, Tim Jolly 2^nd, Conan Lui 3^rd, James Newhouse 4^th
Lap 1 – bell lap sprint: Martin Graham 1^st, Tim Jolly 2^nd, Conan Lui 3^rd, Ali Hale 4^th, James Newhouse 5^th

Overall results:  1^st Martin Graham (9pts), 2^nd Tim Jolly & Alison Hale (7pts), 3^rd Conan Liu (5pts).

Michael Langdon’s commentary on the 8-lap Snowball here.

Italian Pursuit

There were two team of six riders for this week’s Italian Pursuit.  Initially, the race unfolded in very promising fashion with both teams putting in good early laps and Team 2 gaining a slender lead.  The race remained close as the final laps unfolded.  However, Gavin Stephens (team 1) had an unfortunate mishap, touching a pedal as he slowed on the steep banking and falling down the track.  Gavin had abrasions, but was not badly injured, as the fall was from slow speed.  After Gavin’s fall, team 1 slowed to check on him and he immediately received attention from Simon Whitehead, the track’s first aider.  The commissaire decided that the race would be neutralised and all riders given equal points for their season points score.  We wish Gavin a speedy recovery from his injuries.

Major Placings:

8-Lap Scratch: (A1 Grade) Tim Jolly, Conan Liu, Martin Graham.  (A2 Grade) Craig Kentwell, Gavin Stephens, Ben Davis. (B Grade) Sarah Stephens, Alison Hale, James Newhouse.

2-Lap Handicap: (A&B Grades) Sarah Stephens, James Newhouse, Phil Coulton, Gavin Stephens, Alison Hale.

8-Lap Snowball: (A&B Grades) Martin Graham (9pts), Tim Jolly, Alison Hale (7pts), Conan Liu (5pts), James Newhouse (3pts), Sarah Stephens (2pts), Ian Drayton (1pt).

Combined Italian Pursuit:  Team 1/2 draw (neutralised).

Final Omnium Points Score:

James Newhouse (18), Conan Liu (15), Tim Jolly, Phil Coulton (13), Graeme O’Neill (11), Gavin Stephens (10), Craig Kentwell, John Paul De Sousa, Wayne Benham, Martin Graham, Sarah Stephens (8).

The CRMCC Omnium Track Shield for season 22/23 is awarded to James Newhouse.

Season Point Score:

Tim Jolly (366), James Newhouse (321), Conan Liu (274), Alison Hale (274), Craig Kentwell (242), John Paul De Sousa (207), Wayne Benham (169), Steve Jones (148), Ed Garnett (134), Gavin Stephens (128), Warwick Wilson (127), Ian Drayton (126), Graeme O’Neill (125), Hamish Anderson (103), Martin Graham (102), Phil Coulton (101).

Graeme O’Neill & Michael Langdon

Masters, In this week’s Bleat;

• CRuMbs+ Out and About

• Season Points Score

• From the Committee

• From the Desk of the Handicapper

• From the Race Committee

• Racing this Week

• Race Reports

“One of the most important days of my life, was when I learned to ride a bicycle.” — Michael Palin, British actor

Michael Langdon
thebleat@actvets.cc

CRuMbs+ Out and About

Kerrie Muir – 3rd in Gravel n Granite

The Gravel and Granite race was held in Tenterfield on Saturday 4 March. Congratulations to Kerrie Muir placing 3rd in M7 for this 105km event and 16th overall.

Tolland Open Handicaps 

The Saturday race out Wagga way was a 95km handicap with over a 100 starters. The handicapper did a great job on this occasion, as a group of 12 riders from bunches 4 and 5 managed to hold off scratch by 27 seconds, with the legendary Mark Harris coming in 3rd! Fantastic ride Mark.

Marc Vroomans is another regular at Opens and he bagged 17th in a bunch of 27 riders that held off scratch by a minute in the slightly shorter 78km handicap held on Sunday.

Mansfield Hotel Tour

When hearing the words ‘hotel tour’, a steak in the bistro and a schooner in the bar comes to mind but not for two intrepid club members who went all the way to Mansfield, Victoria, to contest a ITT and two road races as part of the Mansfield Hotel Tour. Young Dan Lekhac finished 5th on GC for Masters A, while race committee star Chris Short was 14th in Masters C. 

Season Points Score

The season poinst score ends on the last race (criterium / road race) of the daylight saving period. Medals go into production…and are awarded @ the Xmas wheel race end of 2023 – for places 1st, 2nd & 3rd (male/female). Current points score:

Women – Kerrie Muir 90; Linda Stals 79; Elizabeth Lowe 69; Cat Riley 55; Theresa McLachlan 50
Men – Steve Crispin 130; Kevin Newhouse 93; Brian Peak 93; Brian Chugg 88; Michael Hanbury 85

From the Race Committee

Gunning road race is delayed to later in the year…expected around October 2023.

RACING THIS WEEK:

Tuesday, 7 March: Stromlo Club Championship Criterium

Note: Registration required by 7 March 2023 3:50pm.
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

Race Director: Michael Hanbury Contact: Ph: 0430515896
Marshals: Kerrie Muir
Medals: will be presented at the end of each race…

Thursday, 9 March – 6pm: Narrabundah Track Racing

The Program for Thursday is as follows:
5.30pm – 6.00pm:  Warm-up and free practice.
6.00pm – 6.20pm:  8-lap graded scratch race.
6.20pm – 6.40pm:  2-lap Handicap (Omnium Event).
6.40pm – 7.10pm:  8-lap Snowball 7.10pm– 7.30pm:  Italian Pursuit.

Graeme O’Neill – Race Director

This is timely reminder that all track riders need to be 2023 financial members before setting foot on the track, and this includes if you are officiating (for insurance coverage purposes). The track program will move to online registration and payment for next season. As many track riders are already using the RMS registration and online payment system for criterium and/or road race entry, we will be offering this rego and payment method for the remaining 5 track sessions this year. We will still be accepting cash on the day, and Square payment during this transition period. Please see the calendar entry for Thursdays https://rms.crmcc.org.au/calendar.

You will need to know your Club-assigned race number (not your TG number when you made your annual payment), which you can look up by doing a name search in the Results section of the RMS https://rms.crmcc.org.au/index, and a credit card for making the $10 payment. If you are encountering issues, please contact Conan, the Club Membership Officer via membership@actvets.cc.  Should there be a track cancellation due to weather or personal circumstances, we will roll your entry fee over to the next session. 

Conan Liu – Club membership Secretary

Sunday 12th March – no road race scheduled

Next road race: is the 19th of March, 9am at Uriarra Homestead

RACE REPORTS:

Lookout Hill – 5 March

32 riders toed the start line for what was an amazing Autumn Day atop of Lookout Hill. Riders across A through D were facing 46.0 kilometres while the E and F grade had 36.0 kilometres.

A grade was sent away first, with a strong, relatively even nine rider field. Through the first half lap the group came past Lookout Hill all together, down to the Point Hut turn around. On the way up (to no surprise) Steve Crispin was just off the saddle dancing on the pedals a little to see who’s legs he could sting. No real effect was had as the re-group happened and down towards Tharwa they went. Lap two was unchanged, and as we watched from the start line, the group was all pretty comfortable. It was lap three where a leap off the front occurred, Cartel’s Callum Henshaw threw it up the road. By this stage marshal Karen and I had relocated and were now watching proceedings from the finish line. Callum came back up the hill (with two laps to go) still maintaining a 20 to 25 sec margin. With a very visual display of team Tiffen colours at the front, we were not really sure if they were chasing or just maintaining the gap, either way, fellow Cartel rider Steve Crispin was breathing easy nowhere near the wind. With a lap to go Callum was still holding the gap and we were thinking he may be onto something here however, as they crested the hill for the final half lap things had changed. Callum had been caught and there was a split in the group. Coming up the hill towards the finish line the group was bunched and spread wide. With 75 metres to go Gerard Tiffen had the slightest of gaps back to Callum Henshaw and this was how it finished, GT in first, Callum in second and Steve Crispin coming in for third.

B Grade field of six rolled off about 40 seconds after the A grade crew and coming back past the start line we thought they might actually catch the A grade boys as the gap had dropped to about 20 seconds. They were all working well together to maintain the cohesion. Newly crowned CRMCC rider Jonathon Glover and second time racer Dimi Dojcinoski were looking comfortable in the B grade pack. Everyone was still clipping along at good pace as they came through lap two. From an onlookers point of view, there seemed to be a healthy respect within the group, with everyone seeming content to see this one to the finish line. Observing from the finish line, with a lap and half to go Dimi appeared to want the pace to pick up a bit as he and a couple of others had the slightest of gaps. This little manoeuvre wasn’t to be however and as they approached the finish line for the bell lap they were all back together. As the group came past, we couldn’t help but observe, that both Conan Liu and Dimi appeared to be under no pressure at all, this was going to come down to a sprint now for sure. Well, a sprint it was, as they approach the line a bright orange jersey was seen stepping out to the right, power was being transfered through the pedal and a scared expression was to be seen on the second timers face. They hit the line with Dimi in front just nudging out Conan and a fast finishing Craig Lindenmayer taking out third.

C Grade were next off the line. Seven riders in total all facing the 4.5 laps. These guys also appeared very content to keep everyone together, at least for the first lap anyway. They were also clipping along at a nice pace not losing any time to the B grade group in front. Past the finish line with two laps to go the seven had become six with Ed Logue calling it a day. As the sun continued to shine down at the finish line, a depleted group came past with a lap to go, the six had become four and looked like they would remain for the final lap. Communications from the Tharwa turn around confirmed this to be the case and as they approached the finish line another sprint ensued. John Paul De Sousa was just just just too strong for James Tonkin (who may have sat up early) and Ian Preston rounding out the third podium step.

D Grade has a grand total of three riders roll off the start line. The format of which was maintained throughout the whole 46km. All three riders were appearing to take equal turns and the smiles on their faces were infectious. The downside of this well-oiled machine was that there isn’t much to report. The three remained the three until the finish and even then there was a attempt made to all cross the line together. The final results with show however, that Michael Hanbury crossed in first with John Stockman taking second and Brian Chugg rounding out third place.

E/F Grade were sent away together, with a couple of late scratchings from the E grade field. Seven riders in total (six from E and one from F) were completing the 3.5 lap, 36km course. Attempts to help Lindsay Graham not have to ride the whole course on his own were thwarted by the E grade crew as, after the first half a lap Lindsay was indeed off the back. Cresting towards lookout Hill for the first time, it looked as if another victim may be taken with Cat Riley being dropped  off the back. However, her tenacity saw her chase back along the flat and the group was once again back together. Cat wasn’t going to get caught like that again and after the second, and bell lap, the group still remained together. Down the long straight towards Tharwa the group was unchanged with Russell Marston taking the front position. Figures came into view as they approached the finish and in the end it was Russell Marston from Cat Riley and Ashely Sked.

Lindsay Graham maintained the rage representing the F troop, riding the whole 36km on his own and crossing the line in first place in an impressive 1:26min.

Big thanks to Tony, Darren, Ben and Karen for their help on the day. As always, the races cannot go ahead without the help of our volunteers. Thanks also to the David Parker and the race committee for their assistance in the lead up. Long live road races.

Nathan Spillane – Race Director

SFP Criterium – 28 Feb

Perfect conditions greeted riders with warm and largely still conditions setting the scene for some exciting racing.

E,F and G Grade:

E,F and G Grades all rolled off together and kept things social for the opening lap or two with Theresa McLachlan setting a comfortable tempo on the front of the bunch. Lindy Hou and Colin Calderwood on the tandem was also contributing to the pace making but it wasn’t until Jim Veal put in a big dig coming down the home straight that the various bunches split apart. With seven riders away, Ricco Fitch took up the role of ‘el tractor’ driving the pace and stringing the bunch out behind. Around the halfway mark, Jim tried to go solo again but was swiftly joined by Poupee Lam before the two escapees were swallowed up by the chase. With less then ten minutes on the clock, Theresa tried once more but Jim was having none of it and welded the bunch back together. Two laps to go and Ricco was back on the front drilling it hard, before Theresa baking on ‘third time lucky’ put in another audacious attack on the bell. Through collarbone, it looked like Theresa had it with a gap of several bike lengths to Jim. But as they hit the back straight, new club member Graeme Townsend sought to make his presence felt, surging forward to latch onto Theresa’s wheel as they rounded the final bend. Strung out across the road in the dash to the line, it was Poupee Lam who had enough power to take a classy victory, Graeme holding on for second with the tandem of Lindy Hou and Collin Calderwood taking third after being spurred along by Jim in the final sprint.

Having rolled home near the head of proceedings, Jim took a comfortable victory for G Grade ahead of Gai Monahan and Bernard Crowe while in F Grade, Lindsay Graham rode a tactically astute race to capitalise on the hard work of Mijo Spoljaric, who set tempo throughout much of the race, with Dennis Puniard in third. And lest anyone bat an eyelid at the tactical nous Lindsay showed in the final, worth reflecting on the fact that this was Lindsay’s 400^th – yes, 400^th – race for CRMCC so doubtless he’s probably picked up a thing or two in the several hundred hours he has clocked up in the saddle racing with Vets! 

A and C Grade:

A Grade rolled away with Stu Griffith in a clearly unsociable mood attacking on lap one. Concerned for his wellbeing, Steve Crispin and Jeremy Gillman-Wells rode across to what looked like a dangerous early break. Ben Morrison must have agreed, and worked hard at the head of the chasing bunch to neutralise the threat. Dennis Mungoven was next to try his luck but couldn’t make the move stick, before Steve C casually clipped off the front once again and slipped into the familiar TT mode. JGW was steadfast as always in shouldering the chase for Team Tiffen. Michael Davies and Paul Scherl were also contributing to the chase with even the odd cameo from GT himself and around the halfway mark it was all back together. Not one for crowds, Steve attacked again through collarbone with Ben attentive in bridging the gap, Stu G anchored on his wheel as JGW was put to work once again leading the chase behind. With the clock ticking down, the gap to the leaders continued to grow as the three up front rolled turns like a well-oiled unit. Tiffen through everything into the chase behind but even with the help of Connan Liu and Mark Vroomens, it was quickly apparent the podium would be decided amongst the escapees. With two laps to go, the call no rider wants to hear – ‘ducks, ducks, ducks’ –  sang out through the peleton as said ducks orchestrated a pitch invasion, but it wasn’t enough to slow our leaders or change the inevitable results. Having taken a lap out for a mechanical, chapeau to Ben Morrison who opted not to contest the sprint finish leaving the Cartel duo to their own drag race for bragging rights. True to form, Stu G went clear by a bike length on the line, Steve in second and Ben comfortably rolling home in third. 

C Grade saw Michael Hanbury trying his luck early on but with Matt Dunstall chasing, discretion got the better part of valour and Michael returned to the fold. Mark Vardy put in a big dig down the home straight which quickly had the peleton strung out single file, before Damien Copeland put in the first of what would turn out to be several attacks for the night. The elastic still unbroken around the halfway mark, Anthony Dick came to the front to restore some order, but Michael H and Damien C were having none of it, off once again in a bid for glory. As the chasing bunch disintegrated, a leading group of six emerged but with the clock ticking down, watchfulness among the escapees got the better of group cohesion. Terry More tried to go solo but was quickly reeled in, before Dimitar Dojcinoski decided the time was ripe to fly the coop, quickly establishing a decisive lead. Indeed, so well was Dimitar riding that after a merging of the grades, it wasn’t entirely clear whether Dimitar was out front of A Grade or C Grade as both bunches failed to make up much ground on the solo escapee. So it was that Dimitar stayed clear to win by half a lap, Paul Clare winning the ‘best of the rest’ sprint for second with Michael Hanbury collecting third after being active all night.

B and D:

With light fading, B Grade got underway with a sense of purpose albeit a collegiate one as the bunch stayed together through the opening laps. Martin Graham and Andrew Chamberlain were prominent at the head of affairs, but it took an attack by Paul Angelatos down the back straight to signal a new phase of the battle. All strung out, Nathan Edwards rode the bunch back together with some help from Tom Stewart-Moore. Further attacks saw a group of six riders away briefly before the bunch regrouped but no sooner said and done, had Chambo taken off on a solo bid for glory. After swiftly establishing a lead of several bike lengths and settling into his tempo, Chambo looked to be away before Michael Foulds put in a monster turn to drag the chase back into contention, and then went on the offensive himself together with two or three other riders. But as the clock ticked down and the bell lap approached, the field was once again together, BOAs being ratcheted up for the inevitable sprint to come. So it was that Tom Stewart-Moore proved the fastest in the dash to the line, coming home ahead of Michael Foulds and Ben Zeller although not before another contender was kind enough to give the spectators a running commentary on his sprint, which looked to be going well until ‘nah, f@#k it’ bellowed out and the legs appeared to seize up. Kudos also to a rider in green who rode aggressively all night – yes, not very descriptive I realise but given said rider wasn’t wearing a number, it’s the best I can offer and a subtle reminder to wear your numbers if you want to (a) race and (b) be remembered. 

And lastly to D Grade, who kindly made the job of putting together the race report much easier by sticking together throughout the night. Jonathan Chowns and Michael Whyte were regulars on the front while Vanessa Judge also contributed to the pace setting and hurting the legs of those strung out behind. Despite one concerted effort by Michael W to get away around the halfway mark, it was a night for the sprinters. In the downhill run to the line, made all the more complicated by the overlap of B and D bunches, Michael W held his nerve and proved the quickest taking the win ahead of Kevin Newhouse and Vanessa Judge.

All in all, a fun night of racing and good spectating to be had. A big thanks to Kerrie Muir – aka ‘Duck Lady’ – who was a fabulous co-conspirator in the marshalling arena and earned universal praise for her tireless efforts to rid the track of the pesky Anatide envoys. 

Brad Peppinck – Race Director

Track Racing – Thursday 2 March

Thursday 2 March provided excellent conditions for track racing.  It was a warm with a light headwind in the back straight.  Attendance (9 riders) was, again, below par.  However, the group had a good evening’s racing.

A Grade Scratch (8 laps)
Tim Jolly led off at an easy pace and did two laps, raising the pace in the second lap before handing off to Martin Graham.  Martin must have been conserving energy as he handed off to Conan Liu after half a lap.  Conan can be relied on to stir the pot and, sure enough, he kicked up the pace as lap 4 commenced.  John Paul De Sousa and Tim Jolly brought the pack along with Conan.  After the pair completed turns on the front, the race was getting quite pacy.  However, the bunch was soon quite compact and slowing as Martin Graham again rolled to the front on lap 6.  Martin took a short turn before Conan Liu again stirred up the bunch.  This was the cue for Martin to put in a solid attack, that initially looked quite promising, if a tad premature.  After Martin gained 20m on the bunch, Tim Jolly began one of the furious pursuits that are becoming his trademark.  Tim accelerated past Martin on the final lap, accompanied by a pursuing bunch including John Paul De Sousa, Conan Liu and Wayne Benham.  Tim was uncatchable and took
the win, followed by Conan Liu (2^nd) a fraction ahead of John Paul De Sousa (3^rd).  Another interesting contest!

B Grade Scratch (8 laps)
B Grade had 4 riders racing with the return of Alison Hale from Canada and seemingly unaffected by any Poutine intake.  The riders took conservative turns on the front.  Alison Hale controlled the race awaiting James Newhouse’s attack to plunder yet more season points.  Graeme O’Neill with one lap to go tried to stay on Alison’s wheel.  However, as the bell went so did Alison launching a devastating attack with James Newhouse in pursuit.  James closed the gap substantially, however over the line it was Alison Hale 1^st, James Newhouse 2^nd and Graeme O’Neill 3^rd.

Paired Match Races (2 laps)
The match racing was an Omnium championship event so all riders we keyed up to perform well. James Newhouse was paired with Alison Hale for the first event. The race was quite tactical for the first 1.5 laps with Alison trying to temp James into the lead, without success. The final half lap sprint commenced with Alison in the lead. James overtook in the final turn but could not gain the sprinter’s lane. This allowed Alison a second surge that almost succeeded. James took a close win. 

Next up Conan Liu just held off John Paul De Sousa for a win. 

Due to uneven numbers, Tim Jolly, Martin Graham and Wayne Benham competed as a threesome. Tim Jolly was the favourite. Although Tim was ultimately the winner, Wayne Benham rode a great tactical race and made it a close-run thing for Tim.

The final pairing was Phil Coulton against Graeme O’Neill. Phil took the lead coming off turn 1 and looked a comfortable winner. However, Graeme put on a desperate spurt rounding the final bend and almost caught Phil unawares. A panicked final burst from Phil, as Graeme drew level, was sufficient for a win by the closest margin.

2-Lap Handicap
The limit riders got excellent starts. In particular, James Newhouse flew down the back straight with 1.5 laps to go. The limit riders were way too fast for the scratch riders. A great race by James Newhouse got him home 1^st, Wayne Benham 2^nd, and John Paul De Sousa 3^rd.

Italian Pursuit
8 riders again for this week’s Italian Pursuit.  The amore pairing were completely absent – no love in this contest!  Warm and still conditions had the teams keen to get it on. Team 2 got a fantastic start provided by Phil Coulton.  Team 1 also started well but the initial pace of Team 2 was the pivot point.  A nice start then allowed the Team 2 anchor riders of John Paul and Tim Jolly to maintain a solid pace. On paper Team 2 was a little stronger and this was reflected with the win over Team 1.

Major Placings:
8-Lap Scratch: (A1 Grade) Tim Jolly, Conan Liu, John Paul De Sousa.  (A2 Grade) No entries.  (B Grade) Alison Hale, James Newhouse, Graeme O’Neill.
Match Race Winners: (A Grade) Tim Jolly, Conan Liu.  (B Grade) James Newhouse, Phil Coulton.
2-Lap Handicap: (A&B Grades) James Newhouse, Wayne Benham, John Paul De Sousa, Martin Graham, Phil Coulton.
Combined Italian Pursuit:  Winner Team 2 (John Paul De Sousa, Wayne Benham, Tim Jolly, Phil Coulton).

Omnium Points Score:
Conan Liu (15), James Newhouse (14), Tim Jolly (13), Graeme O’Neill (11), Phil Coulton (10), Gavin Stephens, Craig Kentwell, John Paul De Sousa, Wayne Benham, Martin Graham (8).

Season Point Score:
Tim Jolly (348), James Newhouse (307), Conan Liu (258), Alison Hale (256), Craig Kentwell (229), John Paul De Sousa (197), Wayne Benham (158), Steve Jones (148), Ed Garnett (134), Warwick Wilson (127), Ian Drayton (119), Graeme O’Neill (116), Gavin Stephens (113), Hamish Anderson (103).

Michael Langdon’s commentary on the Italian Pursuit here.

Graeme O’Neill and Michael Langdon