Race organiser Jorge Sandoval is anticipating lead changes after the postponed third race of the Trust House North Island team cycling series to be contested tomorrow on a challenging course north of Masterton.
The race was originally set down for last Sunday but was rescheduled after riders expressed concerns about having to race at the same time as the final of the Rugby World Cup.
Labelled as the “Queen” race of the series by Sandoval, tomorrow’s race includes a tortuous 3km climb to the finish at the top of Rangitūmau Hill.
“Race three has consistently been the toughest challenge in the Trust House teams’ series each year, yet remarkably, it’s the one everyone eagerly anticipates,” Sandoval said.
“For all categories, the race unfolds on undulating terrain and concludes with a gruelling hilltop finish, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we witness new leaders emerging in some categories after this race.
“Rangitūmau Hill, a fixture in the series for the past four years, is a familiar route for club riders from Masterton, who typically ascend it once a year. However, this year’s race promises to thrust many riders into the unknown,”
Riders in category two will travel from Rangitūmau towards Hastwell via Mauriceville. On their return, the riders will turn left onto Dreyers Rock Road towards Alfredton, where they do a U-turn and return to the finish, climbing first Dreyers Rock Hill before continuing to the finish at the top of Rangitūmau Hill with a total distance of 114km.
Categories three and four ride from Rangitūmau to the outskirts of Eketāhuna via Mauriceville before returning to the finish at the top of the hill, a distance of 68km.Category four is the category that Masterton riders should put into practice all their hard training in their home territory over the last couple of months.
Local rider Chris Sutherland from the Tararua Builders team is the series leader of category four after two races.
All races start from the Rangitūmau Hall at 10 a.m. and finish at the top of Rangitūmau Hill at about 12.15 pm.
In other cycling news, a recently discovered trophy, the ‘Two Mile Cup’, was contested on Tuesday night as part of Athletics and Cycling Masterton’s Wizwirelss twilight racing series on Tuesday night.
Thirty-two riders lined up for the start of the 3.2km time trial, and not surprisingly, the younger legs cleaned up all the podium positions with Caleb Roberts recording the fastest time of four minutes 31 seconds, five seconds clear of Leroux van der Leek, and Tom McCallum third.
The main event was a 20km graded race around the Lees Pākaraka loop. Van der Leek prevailed in a sprint finish in A Grade in 30:32, holding off Dominic Green and Erik D’Abois.
The B Grade was won by Josh Duly from Andy Linton and Warwick Burr, while the C Grade went to Ricky Blade from Greg Baillie and Stephen Price.
