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World Down Syndrome Day

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Saturday cycle races

SportsSaturday cycle races


It is comforting to see that the Association is reaching out and incorporating Race Organizers? events in their race calendar. For one thing, this initiative will bring everyone participating in these sanctioned events up to the required international standard of rules and local By-Laws set down.


This weekend the Association hosted a series of races:


? Firstly, an ?Open Male? race from Mile 2 to Mile 21 and back finishing in front of Leslie?s Imports. Starting time 6:00 p.m.


? Secondly, an ?Open Female? race starting from Mile 2 to Mile 10 and back finishing in front of Leslie?s Imports. Starting time 1:00 p.m.


? And finally a ?Host Opened Mountain Bike Race? under the patronage of the Gracie Rock Village Council. The race started from Mile 2 finishing at Gracie Rock. A distance of approximately 19 miles on the Western Highway and approximately 3 miles through their feeder road turning at the Rockville cut-off. Their starting time was 1:00 p.m. Note that all races were on Saturday 23rdApril, 2005.



In the first race, the Open Male, 17 riders participated. It was Santino?s Giovanni Leslie and Marlon Castillo, BTL Fusion?s John Newport and Byron Pope in a seemingly suicidal breakaway. They were off at the sound of the gun and were never caught by the peloton. In the end it was Leslie and Castillo finishing together, with Leslie winning the sprint to the finish line. They completed the distance in 1h?31m?56s, averaging 24.8 mph. Third place was captured by Byron, finishing 40 seconds behind the leaders.


In the second race, the Open Female, only three females took the start. It ended with Shalini Zabaneh of Sagitun taking top honors while Sandra Vallestro of M&M Engineering and Valerie Prince finished second and third, respectively.


With only two weeks to go to the Female Cross Country, this is a weak showing from the females. Is it they do not want the others to see their strengths and weaknesses? Is it they are not in agreement with the race distances? One thing is for sure: this type of showing is not doing any good for their development. Training is important. So is racing, especially in the shorter distances, which sharpen skill in decisiveness and thinking on their feet. Think about it, ladies.


The Gracie Rock community-sponsored event under the auspices of the Association had some excitement to report on. Twelve riders took the starting line: three ? Guinness Seahawks; five ? Santino?s/ SanCas; and three unattached youth. Can you see the rivalry? Santino?s/SanCas versus Guinness Seahawks, but there was a youth who stole the thunder from under their snout. There was no breakaway in this one. Everyone jostled, attacked and marked each other.


In the end Santino?s Giovanni Leslie outsprinted the peloton. The youngster ? Edmond Camal – surprised Ernest Meighan to capture second place. The riders were on mountain bikes, but make no mistake: the youngster gave account of himself with some very big fishes. Michael Lewis, Charles Lewis and Ernest Thurton from Guinness Seahawks, Mateo Cruz, Juan Gonzales and Santino ?The Chief? Castillo, Jr., were there. Bravo, Camal, bravo!!!


It is worth mentioning that Giovanni is racing at a higher and improved level. He won the race between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m., and some six hours later he won again in the afternoon. You are coming of age when you will be relied upon to defend the garland. No more you would be expected to clean up station prizes and sent out as ?the rabbit.?


The Santino?s Racing Club held their race scheduled for Saturday, 23rdApril, a distance of approximately 40 miles. They traveled from Mile 2 up to the Mile 15 round-a-bout on the Western Highway; then onto the Hattieville/Boom road routing through Burrell Boom, exiting at the Boom bridge, returning to the Western Highway, finishing in front of Leslie?s Imports Enterprises.


Twenty-four riders participated in the event. It was George Abraham of Santino?s and Gilroy ?Cable-Boy? Robinson leading the race from Mile 11 going to the end. Abraham completed the distance in 1h?59m?55s, averaging 20 miles per hour Cable-Boy was second. A group of seventeen riders scurried in the sprint for third place. In the end, Maurice Kelly outran the field.


It is expected that the Labor Day Classic will be run on Sunday, 1stMay. The 15thrunning of the Female Cross Country comes up on Mother?s Day, 8thMay.


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