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Club Races
Les Powers to Victory
Stawell Racecourse - Sunday
13th May 07
A small group of motherless souls (or soulless riders
with mothers, or mothers themselves!!!) fronted for
the Grampians Veterans Cycling Club Mothers Day Handicap
Road Race.
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Les Power |
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Starting at Stawell Racecourse, the 63km circuit heads
out on the Pomonal Road, then circles around Lake Fyans.
The hills between Halls Gap and Pomonal ensure that
riders are well warmed up before the long, predominantly
uphill, return to Stawell.
During the race, all contestants
kept a keen eye open at each corner for Tony’s
mother, whom he had promised last week would be manning
a corner, but nobody made a definite sighting. Perhaps
Tony's absence on the day meant that his mother still
has the upper hand.
Limit riders Les Power and Larry Bales
made the most of their 23 minute handicap and were
able to capitalise on the fine, calm conditions. They
shared the workload until the closing stages of the
race. Approaching the hills of the Black Ranges with
about 4kms to go, both riders were well aware they
were in the danger zone, where the limit riders often
get caught.
Heads down and working hard, they
were not aware of how big a gap they still had over
the following field. Up the last major hill Power made
his move, quickly establishing a winning break. Power
kept the pressure on over the remaining few kilometers
to cross the line a minute ahead of Bales, who came
in second.
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Race winner Les Power (left) and
runner
up Larry Bales |
Scratch riders Gerard O'Brien, Daryl Elliot, Jamie
Bennett and Danny Monaghan successfully hunted down
the 10min middle markers, Dean Hayward, Tania Walter
and Ross Lumley, catching them 10 kms from home. This
led to a friendly group who finished 3 minutes after
Bales arrived home, with Danny Monaghan too good in
the final sprint finish for third.
Monaghan continued his purple patch,
following up his win last week by scoring the fastest
race time of 1:39:29.
“My
first ever fastest time,” he said afterwards.
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