Top New Zealand teams announced for Top NZ Tour

Gordon McCauley has rolled back the years to put himself in a strong position to win his first Trust House cycle classic next week.

At the age of 36 the man who calls himself “the people’s champion” is in some of the best form of his distinguished career. Last Sunday he successfully battled wind and rain to secure a record fifth New Zealand road championship at Te Awamutu after an outstanding ride for second in the Tour of Southland before Christmas.

Despite his numerous appearances in the Trust House-sponsored tour victory has eluded the Aucklander but with the backing of his new UCI team, Subway Avanti, this might finally be his time.

The team combined superbly at Te Awamutu after McCauley jumped away from the field from the outset, its members filling the first four placings, leaving defending champion Julian Dean and fellow European-based professionals, Tim Gudsell and Greg Henderson, in their wakes.

“I saw Gordon win in Te Awamutu, and I had to be impressed,” said Trust House tour director Jorge Sandoval. “Typically he was very aggressive from the outset, and it paid off. He’s won so many of his races this way. Gordon is now in a position to win this tour for the first time.

“He’s a promoter’s dream the way he races, and with his forthright comments. Life is never dull around him.”

His team-mates are:

Joseph Cooper, second behind McCauley in Te Awamutu, and the 2006 national under-23 champion.

Jason Allen, third in Te Awamutu, and a member of the national elite track squad.

Eric Drower, second in last year’s Tour of New Caledonia, which included two stage wins, King of the Mountains at this month’s Tour de Vineyards, and fourth in Te Awamutu.

James Williamson, the national under-23, and club under-23 road champion.

Four other New Zealand teams should also figure prominently, namely Trust House, Cardno, Enterprise, and Star and Garter.

Appropriately the Masterton-based Trust House sponsored team will be led by local boy Scott Lyttle, who is also now based in Europe.

“With Trust House our main sponsor it is my responsibility to always assemble a good team to represent it. This time I’ve recruited a Spanish professional, David Peña, a good Australian Marc Williams, Paul Oldin, of Nelson, and one of the best New Zealand up-and-comers, Michael Torckler, to support Lyttle, whose strength is on the hills,” Sandoval said.

“Paul is a work-horse who has proved his worth in tours in the last two years, and he will do everything in can to get Lyttle and Williams to the front in the closing kilometres of each stage to try and give Trust House victory.”

The new Team Cardno is led by new national time trial champion Jeremy Vennell. He will be supported by two members of his American team, Team Bissel, New Zealander Peter Latham and Canadian Omar Kemp, and experienced Kiwis Justin Kerr and Daniel Warren.

Vennell, a good all-rounder, is based in Belgium, Latham, also an accomplished track rider, was in the teams pursuit squad at the Athens Olympics, and Kerr has raced a lot in Europe.

Hastings’ Jeremy Yates, among McCauley’s toughest competitors in New Zealand, moved from the Subway team to join the Enterprise group, and they have quickly enjoyed success. Yates, a former world junior road champion, beat a good field in an event last month up Admiral Hill, the same Wairarapa climb that will be pivotal to the chances of whoever wins the five-day January 21-25 classic.

Robin Reid, one of New Zealand’s most consistently good cyclists domestically, and the 2002 Trust House victor, has assembled a group of Nelson riders for the Star and Garter team. The others are Chris Nicholson, George Bennett, Dean Fulton and David Ayre.

“Young Bennett is a potential stage winner, and top 10 finisher,” Sandoval said. “He showed a lot of ability in finishing second behind Jeremy Yates last month in a climb up Admiral Hill.”

Sandoval was confident the numerous quality New Zealanders scattered through the teams would provide stern opposition for the Australian invasion of more than 30 cyclists. Again the likely tour winner might well come from the top three finishers on the third stage up Admiral Hill.

The tour starts on Wednesday with a Teams Time Trial around Fraser Park in Lower Hutt. The following day riders will race the 135km stage from Featherson to Masterton, will be the first time to see who is gong good as they ride up the 7km Te Wharau Hill after 75kmts into the stage.

For more information please contact Jorge Sandoval on 0274 464 300