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:
Promotions/demotions
Nil
Rob Langridge – 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 1st, Hamish Anderson 2nd and Graeme O’Neill 3rd.
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 1st, Martin Graham 2nd just over Conan Liu 3rd.
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 8th) followed closely by Simon Costello (overall 9th) and Ed Logue (overall 10th). 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.
