With the curtain coming down on the 2021 Crit racing season, we held our Crit club championship for junior and senior riders.
First up we had the juniors, and we had a trio of eager riders ready to race, firstly over a timed hot-lap, and then followed up by an age graded handicap. It was a great effort by all 3 riders, and its our pleasure to award the U17 title to Dempsey Burton, U15 to Bernie May, and U13 and Overall Junior Champion to Richard May. Well done to all 3 riders!
Next up we had an open non-championship race for all-comers over 30mins + 3 laps, and it was a motley crew of riders who came and went, including visiting riders and those warming up for the championship race. With all the bodies coming and going it was hard to tell who was in the race, but in the final sprint Dene Bourke just pipped Swanny for the line to take out a hard fought win.
Finally we had the championship race over 40mins + 3 laps, and we had around 15 riders lined up at the start – a great turnout! There was a fast pace from the start, and the group was quickly whittled down to a hard-core of 10 riders trading blows at the front of the race. As the clock ticked down, Houlty made a huge surge and opened a sizeable gap, but it proved to be too early and this was soon closed down. But with almost perfect timing Holly sprung free with 2 laps to go, and as she took the bell for the final lap was holding a sizeable lead from the bunch who were struggling to put a chase together.
But as riders hit crit hill for the final time, Holly’s lead evaporated in a puff of smoke as the big hitters surged to the front. And although he claimed to be suffering from man-flu, Missile Mick Harris eased to the front down the final straight to sprint for a well deserved win – congratulations Mick Harris our 2021 Male Club Crit Champion. An outstanding second place went to club rookie Matt Bedford – a great reward for all his recent efforts, while Ollie took out the last spot on the podium. With Holly coming home in the pack she comfortably secured the title of Club Crit Female Champion – well done Holly Harris!
Finally we also had the opportunity to present the 2020 Roger Munday Award – this goes to an up & coming rider who has shown dedication and perserverence to progress over the course of the year. This year we were proud to award this to Toby Inglis, and it was presented to Toby by Roger’s family – well done Toby, keep up the great work in 2021!
Well done to all racers for competing on the day and over the season. Pending council approval we hope to return to the road this Saturday – watch this space!