Season start short, sharp and humid

EUREKA Cycling Club staged the first official race of the 2022 racing season on Sunday, 30 January.

Sultry and almost windless made for rare Learmonth conditions, with thick cloud cover at least keeping the day from getting too hot.

Division 1 were fast out of the blocks with Jarrod King and Jason Hendry launching many attacks in the first 10 kilometres – covered enthusiastically by Dean Wells and visiting Geelong Surf Coast riders Paul Sheean and Robert Ray.

By mid-race the field had whittled down to six riders thanks largely to Dayne Pearce creating havoc with King.

A confused sprint decided the race, with just two bike lengths covering Hendry, King, Wells and Pearce at the line, all trailing Sheean who had the strongest finish.

In Division 2 the race started off slowly with the pace not picking up until the long straight run over Mount Misery, when Patrick Garner, Tim Sinclair and Jason Birch took control of the race and kept the speed high all the way to the turnaround point.

The return leg was at a more sedate pace with no action until Rick Calvert launched out of the sharp turn at Addington.

He was brought back and visiting Northern Cycling riders – Michael Smith and Simon Bell – set the pace to the final turn.

A slow tempo towards the finish line set the sprint up for Garner to blast past and create the race winning gap with Sinclair and Brian Ure fighting out the placings.

Conversely, down in Division 3 it was an action-packed race with many riders throwing caution to the wind and attacking the dozen strong pack.

Peter Lamb, Peter Livitsanis and Danny Whelan made the early stages of the race a tough introduction for Trial Riders Evan King, Jake Miocic and Brett Miller.

Craig Jenkins and Steve Linane joined forces for multiple attacking moves and broke away with Andrew Wilson, before the trio were chased down by the bunch.

Those three and Miocic got away in the final few kilometres and fought out an enthralling sprint finish – Wilson taking the victory.

Finally, Division 4 saw new club member Geoff Edwards powering up the hills with Jennifer Collier holding her own.

Laura White and Julie Connellan found the climbs and pace a bit too hot as the leaders rode away. Eventually Edwards packed too much punch in a long sprint to the finish line.

Race Results – 42-kilometre graded divisions – Waubra (out & back): Division 1 – 1st – Paul Sheean (Geelong Surf Coast), 2nd – Jason Hendry, 3rd – Jarrod King. Division 2 – 1st – Patrick Garner, 2nd – Brian Ure, 3rd – Tim Sinclair. Division 3 – 1st – Andrew Wilson, 2nd – Steve Linane, 3rd – Craig Jenkins. Division 4 – 1st – Geoff Edwards, 2nd – Jennifer Collier, 3rd – Laura White.

 

– BY DEAN WELLS