Festival of Cycling - Day 2

Invercargill’s Tom Scully continued his winning way on day two of the Armstrong Motor Group Festival of Cycling today, becoming the first person to win both days of Christchurch’s annual celebration of cycling.

Christchurch threw up yet another warm day for day two of the Armstrong Motor Group Festival of Cycling, which lined up today at Canterbury University for the City Criterium. Prior to the February earthquake this exciting closed circuit race had been staged on Oxford Terrace in front of several thousand spectators. But the technical course within the university campus put on a good show in front of a big crowd.

With New Zealand's top two teams, Pure Black Racing and Subway Cycling both lining up, the City Criterium was always going to be a fast and furious two-wheeled grudge match. With six corners in the one kilometre lap, the tight and technical Canterbury University course added even more tension as crashes affected the results of almost every race.

More than 20 riders started the elite men’s 45min race, but such was the pace that only 10 finished. Right from the gun Subway Cycling tried to dictate proceedings, with Christchurch’s own Paul Odlin setting a furious tempo on the front to discourage any attacks and thus setup a sprint finish for teammate Jason Allen from Christchurch.

The furious pace saw several riders dropped after just three laps, and Pure Black Racing’s Jason Williamson tried to settle things down by blocking Odlin. But the inform Odlin would have none of it and took the lead back, and even established a small break that was gathered in by national under 23 road race champion Mike Vink from Team Mico-ProTrain. Pure Black’s James McCoy then tried to spoil Odlin’s pace making, but after a lap Odlin took the lead back.

All this happened in just 10min of furious racing. After 15min riders as good as national elite bronze medallist Jeremy Yates from Napier were dropped. After 20min Jason Allen was dropped, which meant a change to Subway’s tactics. Looking for a breakaway, Paul Odlin took the first sprint prime and then attacked straight away. But it proved his undoing as he overcooked the next corner at more than 50k per hour and hit the road hard, out of the race.

Pure Black’s Mike Northey (Akld), last year’s City Criterium winner, attacked instantly, hoping to establish a break in the confusion. Yesterday’s Waipara Challenge road race winner, Tom Scully, followed Northey and the two looked likely to establish a break until time trial specialist Mike Vink dragged the chase bunch back to them.

Quietly sitting in the bunch until now had been Slovenian champion, Andi Bajc. But as Vink caught the leaders Bajc took a flyer that saw him win the second sprint prime after 30min. Vink eventually closed down the Slovenian, and at the 35min mark he made an attack of his own.

Pure Black riders Daniel Barry, James McCoy and James Williamson were unable to close this dangerous break and Vink held a four second lead for several laps until Bajc put in a big effort to bring him back and further cull the chase bunch.

With five minutes remaining, the race was down to just Vink, Bajc, Northey and Scully, who had been sitting back conserving energy. Not wanting to get caught in a sprint against speedsters Northey and Scully, Vink attacked again only to have Northey bring him back, whereupon Vink attacked again, only to have Bajc bring him back. With three laps to go the pace stalled as the sprinters refused to roll through, so Vink tried one last time to get away, but wasn’t allowed any leeway this time.

With a lap to go Bajc and Vink knew their only hope was to be in the slip stream of the faster finishers as they entered the home straight. But Tom Scully wasn’t pahsed and simply lifted the pace out of every corner so that when they hit the home straight no one else was strong enough to come past.

Scully crossed the finish line travelling at more than 60k per hour, holding out Mike Northey by a bike length, with Bajc and Vink filling third and fourth. After winning yesterday’s Waipara Challenge 90k road race, Scully became the first rider to win both days at the Armstrong Motor Group Festival of Cycling, but freely admitted that the criterium was the tougher of the two.

“The pace was on all the way really, but on such a technical course I knew it would come down to positioning on the final lap so I just waited until then.”

While Tom Scully dominated the men’s racing this weekend, the women’s races were dominated by Nelsonians, with Karen Fulton winning yesterday’s Waipara Challenge road race and clubmate Jeannie Kuhajek winning today’s criterium with a gutsy solo breakaway that embarrassed some of the country’s best criterium exponents.

The women’s race was billed as a battle between Aucklanders Emma Collins and Kate Chilcott, and Napier’s Serena Sheridan, with up and comers like Alexandra’s Sophie Williamson and Invercargill’s Sequoia Cooper being dark horses.

Sixteen women started the 35min criterium, which right from the gun took on a single file procession as the field followed half a dozen favourites, who in turn tried to follow each other. Emily Collins stuck her nose out to nab the cash for the 10min sprint prime, but the race didn’t really spark until the 17min mark when Jeannie Kuhajek took a flyer.

Thinking she was just trying to clean up the 20min sprint prime, the bunch let her go. Kuhajek did indeed take the prime, but with a 10 second gap to the chase bunch she pinned her ears back in the hope of holding her lead all the way to the win.

Riders such as Collins, Chillcott, Sheridan and Cooper should have known better. In this race exactly a year ago Kuhajek and Olympian Cath Cheatley broke away together, with Cheatley winning the sprint. The tight, technical Canterbury University course was even more suited to a strong breakaway rider, but her competition simply let Kuhajek ride away.

With 10 minutes remaining Emma Collins made a bid to bridge the gap. But all it did was blow the chase bunch apart and Collins wasn’t able to close the gap alone. Serena Sheridan closed Collins down and brought Chilcott and Cooper with her. But they still weren’t closing on Kuhajek.

With two laps of the 1k circuit remaining the chasers made one final bid, but the Nelsonian matched their effort. On the final lap she had enough in hand to enjoy the home straight and glided across the finish line with arms held high and a huge grin.

Kuhajek, an American now living in Nelson who still races the American pro circuit, sited last year’s loss to Cath Cheatley as the secret to her success this year.

“Last year Cath sort of showed me how to race a good criterium,” she said. “As soon as I saw this year’s course, with all the tight corners, I knew it would be even better for a breakaway. So I just tried to do the same as last year.”

The Armstrong Motor Group Festival of Cycling is organised by Christchurch event management company, Tailwind Events, who also organise the New Zealand Professional Road Cycling Championship and LeRace cycle race. For full details see www.tailwindevents.co.nz.

Armstrong Motor Group Festival of Cycling
Day Two - Christchurch
City Criterium - Elite Men
1, Tom Scully, Invercargill
2, Mike Northey, Auckland
3, Andi Bajc, Slovenia
4, Mike Vink, Christchurch
5, Daniel Barry, Christchurch
6, James Williamson, Alexandra
7, Sam Horgan, Christchurch
8, James McCoy,
9, Anthony Chapman, Christchurch
10, Mark Prutton, Christchurch
City Criterium – Elite Women
1, Jeannie Kuhajek, Nelson
2, Emily Collins, Auckland
3, Sequoia Cooper, Invercargill
4, Kate Chilcott, Auckland
5, Serena Sheridan, Napier
6, Hayley Mercer, Christchurch
7, Shailie Sanbrooks, Canada
8, Charlotte Lucas, Christchurch
9, Nimesha Smith, Christchurch
10, Sophie Williamson, Alexandra