Hot on the heels from raising $1,800 for the Bushfire Appeal at the last race meeting, riders headed down to Altona for round 24 of the Footscray Cycling Club’s 2019-20 criterium season.
With more than 140 competitors signing up, every bunch had great numbers with B-grade reaching its rider limit. Riders raced in relatively calm conditions on the fast and smooth Drake Boulevard Circuit.
A-Grade’s race saw riders maintain a high average of over 45 kph with each and every break being chased down by the keen as mustard peloton.
In the end it was a bunch sprint, with 18-year-old Subaru-Giant Team rider Graeme Frislie taking a tight sprint from Pat Drapac and Dan Purcell.
Frislie, a Brunswick Cycling Club member, has just joined his new team and is looking to learn as much as he can.
“I got on to Subaru-Giant for the 2020 season and hoping to do well in the NRS [National Road Series] this year,” he said.
“I want to gain experience. [I’m] keen on studying and keep up the track training as that’s my focus, especially the Team Pursuit and Omnium. It was a good race today, the wind was savage so I thought I’d save it for the sprint.”
In B-grade, the race saw a high average of 42.5 kph with many riders trying their luck at a breakaway but most being brought back.
That was until the last 15 minutes, when a select few riders got up the road and stayed away albeit marginally.
Nick Owen, the strongest rider in the break took the win, beating home Matt Irons, Chris Quickand, Hamish Munro, with Ben McCarthy taking fifth in the bunch sprint.
C-Grade’s race was dominated by a mass-bunch-sprint with Footscray rider Peter Burke taking the narrowest of wins.
“What a race,” Burke said.
“The bunch would not let a break go all race. There were two guys driving it back together for most of the race and keeping the pace high. I got up to third wheel with 1.5 laps to go.
“After last week I worked out I needed to be second to fourth wheel coming around the last corner to place.
“I came round the last corner in third and started the sprint long. [I] couldn’t have raced a better race.”
Burke took the win from Alvin Dumaraos and Sam Tammaro.
In the women’s race, Imola Giusti took the win from Hannah Geelan and Kate Scarlett.
The men and women’s grades started together in D-grade. Keely Bennet took the actual sprint from William Haines and Shannon Craghill.
-Mark Micallef
