Matthews Thunders in the Storm: SuperCrit #11

Michael Matthew victorious despite the storm

Michael Matthews delivered a punishing performance to overcome harsh elements in SuperCrit Round 11.

The 18 year old Matthews rode a hard race from the front, forcing all other contenders on the back foot, before delivering a final sprint to the line that wasn't to be matched by anyone else.

Coming home in second was the evergreen Graeme Allbon, followed by Suzuki Uno racer Sam Genge in 3rd.

A soaking Matthews was happy with his win, clearly enjoying his heavy training regime in the lead up to the National Road Titles in January.

'That was fun!' Matthews initially remarked upon coming in from the rain sodden course. 'I don't mind the wet at all and when the conditions are like that you just have to go a bit slower in the corners but its still pretty quick on those bends!'

Matthews was also went home with a few bucks in his pocket after taking out both Christmas cash sprints on offer.

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How it unfolded

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With heavy dark storm clouds looming ominously over Stromlo and the odd rain droplet landing on the course, many racers took the option to watch the race rather than face nature in her fury.

However, for those on course it was the fury of Matthews that they were feeling initially as he launched a hard turn straight from the starting line.

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Within two laps Matthews had split the race into three groups, with strong crosswinds proving to be the bane of the riders caught down the back.

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Sam Genge attacked solo from the front group, skipping away to a handy lead as Marc Williams (Rideshop), Simon Niemeyer (ACT Masters) and Graeme Allbon took a breather from the insistent early pace of Matthews.

As Genge's lead grew, the front runners of Williams, Matthews, Allbon and Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1) commenced the chase behind.

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Genge maintained his solo lead for another two laps, until the strong winds took their toll on his legs and he reluctantly returned to the bunch.

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Again Matthews surged hard in the bunch, this time seeing Allbon join him with the duo enjoying a 20 metre advantage. A hard strong turn of pace from Williams though neutralised the lead of Allbon and Matthews, returning the leading group of six together once again.

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At this point though Mother Nature unleashed her christmas blessing on the SuperCrit competitors, lashing the course with a monsoonal amount of water that soon soaked competitors and officials alike to the bone.

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As the commissaire declared a shortened race and gave the racers three laps to go, lightning began crashing down upon the Brindabella Ranges, creating a spectacular setting for the final laps.

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Not to be deterred by a puny bit of lightning, Matthews unleashed his own thunder upon the front group, surging hard from the front of the group at a lap and a half to go. Following vigilantly upon his wheel was Allbon, with Genge and Niemeyer also scrambling to stay in contact.

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As the level of water washing over the track turned into a torrent, Matthews gingerly picked his way through the final corners, leading the riders around in an aquatic game of cat and mouse.

As they threaded their way through the final bend, Allbon unleashed an early sprint on the riders, gambling on his strength down the final straight in the strong winds. In what looked to be the winning move, Allbon cleared out on all riders to 3 length lead.

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However Matthews had other ideas, and from third wheel he raced hard after Allbon, splashing past him in the final few metres to take a spectacular victory in the heavy rain and spray.

Allbon settled for 2nd, while Genge flicked Niemeyer for third.

Matthews wins SuperCrit 11 followed closely by Allbon

As riders were towelling down after the race, the rain cleared and a magnificent backdrop was provided for the presentations courtesy of a superb rainbow set against the the scenic view of Telstra Tower from Stromlo Forest Park.

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As this was the final race for 2008, the SuperCrit Team would like to take this opportunity to wish all competitors and officials a very Merry Christmas and a great New Year, and we look forward to more hard racing in 2009.

Storm clears post race over Stromlo Crit Track and Telstra Tower

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Top Ten Race Results SuperCrit Round 11

1. Michael Matthews

2. Graeme Allbon

3. Sam Genge

4. Simon Niemeyer

5. Mitch Lovelock-Fay

6. Scott Sparkman

7. Lewis Hopkins

8. Mark Gillett

9. Marc Williams

10. Fabio Calabria

Merryn Steers to Victory

Merryn Steer is pleased with a successful evening of racing

Photos courtesy of Greg Long

The women’s C starters have made a tradition of very well mannered starts, and it was again the case tonight. The nine riders took off at a sedate pace for the first three laps giving first time racer Kristen Walker time to adjust to racing conditions on the Stromlo circuit.

The riders are relaxed during the first few laps

After a few impatient thrusts and parries, Kate Molineaux eventually found herself riding away from the group solo, with the bunch not reacting. With several rounds experience racing with her, SportsCare rider Merryn Steer realising the danger that Molineaux can pose with a solo effort, so she quickly jumped from the bunch in an attempt to bridge. Walker, showing a natural nose for racing already, attached herself to Steer’s wheel and found herself in a break of three.

Shalan Bray leads the watchful Merryn Steer

The six riders left to chase could not get organised and found themselves spread along the straight in their chase attempt. Eventually Shalan Bray and Megan Mackenzie found their rhythm, but the pair could not impact on the three strong riders up front who were working an impeccable team time trial to stay away. Behind, Katherine Huckstep struggled on the down hill with her restricted gearing but formed an alliance with Rebecca McLaren, and the two were eventually joined by triathlete Emma Fielder, with Liz Lowe not quite able to make the junction with the group.

The lead break quickly imposed a comfortable lead on the rest of the field

With Molineaux having done the bulk of the driving in the front group, the final lap found her under attack by Steer and Walker. Steer pulled away to take her first win in a bike race follow in by Walker in an impressive debut, and Molineaux rounding out the three place getters.
With just one round to go before Christmas, the win puts Merryn Steer into top place in the women’s C point score table with 39 points, with the four following only separated by 10 points. The teams classification sees the Vikings Valhalla team with an unassailable lead, followed by Masters ACT, Bilbys Freshstart and Team SportsCare.

Race Results Womens C Round 7

1. Merryn Steer
2. Kristen Walker
3. Kate Molineaux
4. Megan Mackenzie
5. Shalan Bray
6. Emma Fielder
7. Katherine Huckstep
8. Rebecca McLaren
9. Elizabeth Lowe

Race Report: Simon Dwyer

All photos courtesy of Greg Long Photography

http://www.greglong.photostockplus.com/

From Hotham to Stromlo... Matthews Dominates SuperCrit #10

Michael Matthews on his way to cleaning up all sprints at Stromlo Forest Park

Photos courtesy of Greg Long

Michael Matthews (Suzuki/Uno) utterly dominated the tenth edition of the SuperCrit Thursday series, taking out all six sprints to win the race with three times more points then any other rider.

Matthews, fresh from roaring up Mt. Hotham in Victoria's Tour of Bright last weekend, used his sprinting prowess to haul in the majority of his points, before breaking away with hardy escape specialist Marc Williams (Rideshop) to finish the race off with a handy lead over the main field.

Placing second overall was Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1) with Graeme Allbon finishing in third.

Matthews, who was just recently informed of his inclusion into the Australian Institute of Sport for next season, was happy with his win in the windy conditions.

'I've been hanging for another win for a while now' stated Matthews after the race. 'I always enjoy racing hard and today was perfect for me. I like it when the race is tough, but I also like it when there is a bunch sprint, so I guess a pointscore suits me really well because they are hard and there is lots of sprints!'

How it unfolded

Riders were informed just prior to the start that in celebration of the SuperCrit hitting double figures that the race would be in the format of a pointscore rather than the usual standard criterium style of the first 9 rounds.

Upon the starting hooter being sounded the race quickly gained momentum with a few strong surges in pace keep the bunch ticking along prior to the first of six sprints.

Riders haul their way through the hay bales early on

Riders were seen jostling hard for position leading into the whistle for the first sprint with regular racers Justin Tomlinson and Marc Williams pushing up near the front.

First sprint saw Michael Matthews open the scoring with a nicely timed sprint to grab maximum points straight up, closely followed by Allbon, Calabria and Williams.

With the speed being maintained by regular contributions of pace from several riders, the second sprint also commenced all together. Again Matthews preyed on the competition, this time with hard man Simon Niemeyer taking second followed by Calabria and Matthew Meisel-Dennis.

Simon Niemeyer: doing it the hard way off the front

Again the third sprint was conducted with the main group intact. Matthew's demonstrated clearly why he is worth an AIS scholarship with another well timed sprint. This time Calabria managed second with Allbon in third and Adam Phelan sneaking the last points on offer in fourth.

Despite some strong racing and aggression, the fourth sprint was again tackled by a full bunch. Matthews made it four from four, with Calabria snaking in some more big points, Justin Tomlison in third and Meisel-Dennis taking fourth.

Matthews takes sprint four ahead of Calabria, Tomlinson and Meisel-Dennis

This time Matthews, sensing a victory already tied up in his points haul to date, launched up the road with Williams in a bid to seal his win. The duo swapped hard turns to open up a handy advantage over the main field. This aggressive pair maintained their lead to sprint number five, with Matthews out gunning Williams for the big points. Allbon gobbled up the third place on offer from the main group, with Adam Phelan taking fourth.

Dylan Cooper and Graeme Allbon chasing hard

As the main group slowed to regain their breath after sprint five, Williams and Matthews poured on the pace up front, solidifying their lead with good old hard driving turns. Dylan Cooper (Marco Polo Racing) along with Peter and Deane Rogers (Rideshop) tried hard to match the pace of the leaders back in the bunch to no avail.

Deane Rogers drives the remnants of the peloton

With the leaders out to an untouchable gap, the race for the minor placings became fast and furious back in the main field.
Strong surges of pace and late attacks marked the final portion of the race leading into the bell lap.

The break on FIRE; Matthews leads Williams in the race to the line

As Matthews nailed his second SuperCrit win of the season by pulling away from Williams in the last run to the line, Allbon fought hard back in the peloton to grab what was left of the double points on offer for the last sprint. Allbon managed get get there in the end, with Calabria pushing him all the way to the line just ahead of Adam Phelan in fifth.

In the final washout of the points, Matthews was clearly the victor, with Calabria just holding on for 2nd place one point clear over Allbon in 3rd. Marc Williams, despite his hard racing in the break finally finishing in 4th with Simon Niemeyer in 5th.

Top 10 Race Results SuperCrit Round #10 - Pointscore Edition

1. Michael Matthews 35 points
2. Fabio Calabria 12 points
3. Graeme Allbon 11 points
4. Marc Williams 10 points
5. Simon Niemeyer 3 points
6. Justin Tomlinson 2 points
7. Adam Phelan 2 points
8. Matt Meisel-Dennis 2 points
9. Neil Skipper
10. Simon Dwyer

Photos Courtesy of Greg Long Photography

http://www.greglong.photostockplus.com/

Smith Swoops to Victory

All photos courtesy of Greg Long

After the customary slow start to women’s C, it was a confident Amanda Koerber who made her made her intentions clear early in round 6. Several attacks and some strong pulls on the front that stretched the bunch out into single file eventually causing a split with Carly Rickerby, Kylie Biilman and Merryn Steer on board the Koerber Express.

With the chasers clearly working in the red to keep it under control it looked as though the winning break had formed, however the lead group riders clearly didn’t like the look of each other as they stopped working together and sat up. The back of the peloton lead by Emily Clark, the hard working Mel Connor, Carol Paice and Linda Rigby pulled themselves back on and it was all status quo.

Meanwhile, Donna Smith sat in the bunch watching closely and looking relaxed while keeping her nose out of the wind. There was a quiet moment as the ladies got their breath back before another flurry of attacks from the likes of Liz Lowe and Katherine Huckstep, each one marked by the bunch but taking the bit more from the legs for the finish.

The bell lap came around and the full field of 12 riders were still all on par with a bunch three wide and riders with eyes peering back over their shoulders as much as to the front. On the slight rise up the back straight Smith exploded from the bunch leaving a frantic scramble of riders in her wake. Leading the chase were Shalan Bray and Steer.

Smith’s initial jump on the bunch was good enough to take her to the finish for her first win. Bray just got the edge on Steer for second while Biilman outsprinted the improved Rickerby for 4th place. Race protagonist Koerber eventually rolled through the finish chute in 6th place.
Special mentions this week to Katherine, Emily, Carol, Liz and Mel who all have massively improved their skills and ability to read the race over the last few weeks. The five of them were not only passengers in the peloton this week but active in shaping the race.

Results Women's C Grade Round 6

1. Donna Smith
2. Shalan Bray
3. Merryn Steer
4. Kylie Biilmann
5. Carly Rickerby
6. Amanda Koerber
7. Linda Rigby
8. Katherine Huckstep
9. Carol Paice
10. Elizabeth Lowe
11. Emily Clark
12. Melinda Connor

Race Report: Simon Dwyer

All photos courtesy of Greg Long Photography

www.greglong.photostockplus.com

Not a Haas been; SuperCrit Round 9

Haas powers the winning break around the twisting course

Photos courtesy of Greg Long

Nathan Haas of the Suzuki Uno racing squad overhauled a fast finishing Dean Windsor (Drapac Porsche) to take victory in Round 9 of the Vikings Cycling Club's SuperCrit Thursday series.

Haas, who is more commonly seen either mountain biking or rushing between classes at university, has just recently started testing his legs on the road scene. With some impressive performances on the dirt to his name, including making the Aussie team to race the Canberra round of the Mountain Bike World Cup, Haas seems to be transferring his off road capabilities to the tar with immediate results.

Haas managed to escape the clutches of the peloton ten minutes into the race in a break group of five, before it was whittled down to three. Included along side Windsor in the Haas break and hanging on for third overall was the strong Tuggeranong Vikings' racer of Neil Skipper.

Haas, clearly looking strong throughout the race, attacked his breakaway companions twice in the final three laps in an attempt to avoid a small group sprint.

However, despite leading out the finish down the long final straight, Hass found the legs after being jumped by the experienced Windsor to overhaul the international racer and claim his first ever SuperCrit win.

'I'm estatic with how that panned out' gasped a wide eyed Haas after the race. 'It's my style to try to breakaway, yet I have never sprinted that good before!'

Haas was full of praise for his breakaway comrades stating that 'both the two boys with me worked really well. It's always great when a break can hang on for the win, especially when it's three against the bunch.'

How it unfolded

With many of Canberra's local racers gearing up for this weekends climbers delight otherwise known as the Tour of Bright, a slightly reduced field lined up for this weeks SuperCrit.

Immediately off the line, and quickly speeding away to a handy gap was Velo Canberra's Andrew Circosta.

Andrew Circosta escapes the peloton

Circosta built his lead to forty metres advantage, holding on to his gap for the next five laps in a strong example of time trialling prowess.

Unfortunately for Circosta, the ambitious early break wasn't to be this week, seeing Circosta pegged back by an alert main field ten minutes into the race.

The counter-attack was swift, sudden and race defining when it came from eventual winner Haas, moments after Circosta was engulfed back into the fold of the peloton.

Making sure to put themselves in the move, aside from Windsor and Skipper, was former junior world time trial champion Deane Rogers, along with Southern Highlands racer Justin Tomlinson.

Justin Tomlinson forcing the pace in the break

The severity of the attack, combined with the immediate and urgent turns of pace from all members of the breakaway group saw the leaders quickly gain a ten second gap over the main field.

A desperate chase resulted back in the main field to try to contain the rapidly expanding gap of the Haas group. Peter Rogers (Rideshop), Mark Harris (ACT Vets), Michael Tolhurst (Velo Canberra), Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1) and Mitch Lovelock-Faye (TLC) all through their weight behind the chase in an attempt to reel the break back in.

Twenty minutes into the race, and the strong turns of pace started to take their toll on the breakaway with Tomlinson missing the wheel after his turn and fading back to the main field.

Sensing a possible weakening of the leaders up front, Calabria attacked out of the main field with Tolhurst in tow in an attempt to cross the widening gap.

The attack resulted in splitting the main field asunder, with riders scrambling in ones and twos to try to match the speed of Tolhurst and Calabria.

Two laps later the main field regrouped, however despite the flurries in pace, the leading four riders stretched their advantage to fifteen seconds lead.

A strong turn of pace from Haas a lap later ended the ambitions of Deane Rogers in the leading group, with Rogers returning to the main field.

Despite some strong chasing back in the peloton from Tolhurst, Tomlinson, the Rogers brothers and Simon Junakovic, the lead trio of Haas, Windsor and Skipper stretched their lead to 25 seconds.

Neil Skipper charges through a corner leading the break

As the laps counted down and the race entered its final stages, Haas surged down the front straight with two laps to go. Windsor marked the move quickly as did Skipper.

Half a lap later and spectators were treated to Haas again unleashing on his two breakaway companions. This time Haas hit the pace hard out of the saddle and accelerated up the back straight gapping Windsor and Skipper each by five lengths. Haas continued on with his move, powering in the saddle as Windsor and Skipper both valiantly clawed across the gap back to the wheel of Haas.

As the bell lap sounded, the foxing commenced with Haas leading out the trio for the final lap of the Stromlo Forest Park course. Windsor bided his time in second and Skipper in third, as the main field increased their pace half a lap behind.

The leaders maintained their positions all the way round the final lap, keeping a wary eye on each other.

Haas exited the final corner first, lining up for the long final down hill straight to the finish. A moment of hesitation saw Windsor pounce on Haas, riding clear of him on the left hand side of the course. Haas reacted quickly, and in true mano-a-mano style, drag raced Windsor down the centre of the racing track.

Haas in grimacing determination managed to generate the power required and hauled Windsor back in, claiming the win with a big throw at the line to the tune of half a wheel. Skipper took third two lengths behind, while Micheal Tolhurst cleaned up the remaining spoils of the bunch in fourth place some twenty seconds later.

Haas out guns Windsor and Skipper in the charge to the line

Top Ten Results SuperCrit Round 9


1. Nathan Haas
2. Dean Windsor
3. Neil Skipper
4. Michael Tolhurst
5. Justin Tomlinson
6. Mark Harris
7. Fabio Calabria
8. Deane Rogers
9. Peter Rogers
10. Mitchell Lovelock-Faye

All photos courtesy of Greg Long Photography

http://www.greglong.photostockplus.com/