Photo: Class “A” podium, (l to r) 10th Vallan Symns, 8th Kent “Bob” Gabourel, 6th Dylan Levy, 4th Atlee Lozano, 2nd Kenroy “Smokes” Gladden, 1st Roque Matus, 3rd Henry “Henno” Moreira, 5th Gabriel Cardozo, 7th Barney Brown, and 9th Kayden Pinelo.
BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Apr. 20, 2023
A week following the revered Holy Saturday Cross Country Cycling Classic on April 8, veteran riders across the spectrum, Classes “A”, “B” and “C”, hit the pavement in the 12th annual Weekend Warriors Cross Country on Sunday, April 16.
According to reporter William Ysaguirre who has covered many Weekend Warrior races, the minimum age for Weekend Warriors is 35 years, but categories are generally determined based on “experience and fitness to ride”. As he explained, “Santino used to be in B category, but he fell to C after he fell off a horse and needed surgery for broken clavicle, etc. This was his first race since surgery.” Respect, the Chief!
Cycle track sprinting star of the late 1970s, Carl Arnold, who was visiting from L.A., also took the ride in C class and came in with the lead bunch, but had to pull back to avoid a spill during the turn at the NAPA roundabout.
Category “A” and “B” riders started at Spanish Lookout cutoff on the George Price Highway and headed east to the Fabers Road roundabout, where they turned left into Chetumal Boulevard and then right at the junction with the Philip Goldson Highway, then east to the NAPA roundabout, turning back west towards the finish line in front of M&M Engineering, a distance of some 59 miles.
The “C” riders took off from the Puma Garbutt’s Gas Station in Roaring Creek and headed east on a similar path towards the finish in front of M&M, for a total of 50 miles.
The Weekend Warriors ride for fun, for health, for the camaraderie, but inevitably when guys find themselves together on the road, it soon becomes competition, fierce riding competition, where the old veterans also test themselves against each other in their age categories, and sometimes challenge the younger ones too.
Below are the top finishers (podium) in each category (courtesy of William Ysaguirre.)
Category “A”: 1st Place – Roque Matus (M&M Engineering, 2:47:44); 2nd Kenroy “Smokes” Gladden (Team SPD); 3rd Henry “Henno” Moreira (Team 501 Valvoliine); 4th Atlee Lozano (Rolling Shattaz/BZ Boyz); 5th Gabriel Cardozo (Team Santino’s); 6th Dylan Levy (Furnished Apartments Ltd.); 7th Barney Brown (Team DigiCell); 8th Kent “Bob” Gabourel (Team SPD); 9th Kayden Pinelo (Team CANO); and 10th Vallan Symns (Team SPD).
Category “B”: 1st Place – Fred Usher, Sr. (Unattached); 2nd Ryan Willoughby (M&M Engineering); 3rd Alberto Acosta (Los Lagos Ladyville Stingers); 4th Mark Tasher (Team K-Crew); 5th Kenneth Butler (Unattached); 6th Charles Garay (Team BFSC El Pescador); and 7th Roydell Reneau (Unattached).
Category “C”: 1st Place – Eric Chee (Team Santino’s); 2nd Santino “Chief” Castillo (Team Santino’s); 3rd Roger Bryant (Team 501 Valvoline); 4th Manual Esquiliano (Truckers Posse); 5th Gordon Tillett (Team PMA); 6th Sheldon Arnold (Team Big Blade); and 7th Carl Arnold (Unattached).