Andrew Kirk has won the 2018 edition of the prestigious Armidale Cycling Club Dangarsleigh Bianche following an enthralling race on a mixed 35km course with 14km of challenging dirt roads. The race took place in near perfect conditions on Saturday afternoon with a large competitive field with the majority electing to race on mountain or gravel/cyclo-cross bikes.
This year it was run as a mass-start event with a supposed neutral zone for the first 500 metres but Kirky showed his intent from the start and riders were quickly strung-out as they climbed up the first rise. Recognising his best chance of victory was to maximise his advantage on the sealed road sections, he attempted a number of fairly blunt attacks on his ultra-lightweight road bike but all were easily covered by those following on heavy, wide-tyred steeds. By the Monument there was an 8-strong bunch at the front with small clumps of riders trailing back over the next 4 minutes.
The next section included a number of lengthy chasms in the road surface, capable of swallowing up road wheels however it was safely navigated by all before the first sector of gravel commenced. Houlty went off hard at this point on his MTB and was joined by Andy Robb on his road steed. The pair started to pull out a commanding lead over Jason Simmonds and Rob Hale, themselves being chased by Tom Simmonds and Kirky. These four chasers combined as they re-entered Enmore Rd, 50s down on the lead pair. Within a short distance, Andy Robb punctured leaving Houlty with no option but to press on solo. He continued to hold off the chasers who had dropped Rob by the regular 15km turn.
By the time riders made the homeward left-hand turn into Black Lane, Houlty’s lead on the three chasers was down to 25s. Rob was a minute further back and a minute behind him were Swanny, Dave Jenner and Ben Livings with Pat Ferris going well on his MTB just a few seconds behind.
The corrugations and rough surface of Sector 2 worked in Houlty’s favour and he extended his lead back up to 38s as riders rejoined Enmore Rd. By now it was just Jason and Kirky in pursuit but their road tyres helped close the gap once more on the fast downhill run to the Monument. As Houlty turned left into Knobs Rd, Kirky was hot on his heels and he caught him on the lower slopes of the climb. Houlty tried to break away again with some strong surges over the rough surface but couldn’t shake the former 2010 Club Champion. Houlty made one last effort, charging down the descent to rejoin Dangarsleigh Rd for the final 2km and briefly held a gap of around 10s but once on the sealed road, Kirky came past with ease and extended his lead from there to the finish to win by a margin of 12s with Jason doing well to finish 36s later in third place.
Emily Wooster won the lucky door prize draw and there were some great rides from others in the pack, including an impressive 7th place for Pat Ferris on his MTB and an 8th spot for former winner Dave Jenner. It was really good to have so many MTB club riders participate via day licences and also fantastic to have nine women racing on the day. Clearly these are really popular races that combine social riding for all abilities with a bit of friendly competition – watch this space for more!
Many thanks to Ray, Kenny, Wilf and Col for their sag-wagon, organising and timekeeping support and to Lachie McPhie for taking on the sign duty and running the race. Well done Kirky on a strong ride and deserved victory and congratulations and thanks to all riders who contributed to a great afternoon of racing.
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Note: some of the timings might be a bit out for the lower placings due to rider identification challenges for the timekeepers, apologies if so!