Aggressive and popular Cox has his own ideas

Press, 18 November 1981, Page 36

Aggressive and popular Cox has his own ideas

By

RAY CAIRNS

Some of the most interesting and constructive comments on the Healing-3ZM Tour of the South, when it finished at Latimer Square on Sunday, came from the Waikato runner-up,' Stephen Cox. Though, rather surprisingly, still only 26, Cox rates as one of New Zealand’s most experienced and accomplished road cyclists. He is probably one of the most popular, too, for there are no frills to Cox. He is not a sprinter of blinding speed; he is not a mountain goat on the hills; lie is not a 'shattering time trialler. But Cox is, to say the least, a' very worthy performer in all these different facets of road cycling. He also has a rugged and aggressive attitude to the sport, and a heart as big as a pumpkin, qualities which combine to make him near enough the outstanding road rider in New Zealand.

There are challengers, naturally: Blair Stockwell has very similar qualities, Jack Swart on his day stands supreme, Vern Hanaray is not finished yet, all being well with his recent hernia operation, and Roger Sumich is hard to match when it comes to single stage races and stages of tours. But Cox is steadily putting

together a record which marks him as the most reliable of road-men; he just doesn’t get the results to back up that judgment. When it comes to winning the most important races, Cox can only really point to this year’s Southland tour, when Swart withdrew while the leader, and the 1979 Dulux tour. But he is mightily respected by his fellows and opponents: the only rider who beat him in the Healing3ZM Tour, Alan Peiper, was moved .to observe that he was “a real grouse” bikerider. So his thoughts were worth noting, both those he made at the prize-giving and later. Firstly, in delivering some highly-deserved praise for the 19-year-cld Brian Fowler. Cox thought it was unjust that Fowler should be a close contender for the race victory all the way, yet win. in genera! classification, little more than a stage winner. Returning an over-all performance was the aim of a tour, insisted Cox, and that was a valid point. So much for the prize structure, with which Cox otherwise had no real objec-

tion. The nature of the New Zealand tours was next to come under scrutiny. Particularly. Cox bemoaned the absences of time trials. Generally, the only time trials in the tours are those used in the prologue stages of the Dulux and Southland tours, and basically designed to find a tour leader. The one year exception was in Southland this year, in the anniversary race, when there was a very rugged climb to the top of Coronet Peak. Not surprisingly, perhaps, Cox was a brilliant winner of that stage; so, equally unsurprisingly, Cox strongly favoured the return of a

reasonable length time trial to the longer tours. He also questioned the size of the time bonuses given to stage victories. He cited Peiper earning 30 seconds in bonuses in the Dulux tours on the last stage — “and that’s what he beat me by.” More, Cox dwelt on the winner of a stage of the Healing-3ZM tour receiving a 15 second bonus, fourth place — “he might only be a length away” — 10 seconds less. But, refreshingly honest as always, “I’d think —it was right and fair if I was a gun sprinter, of course.” No-one would suggest that the cyclists should dictate the conditions to the tours’ But there is a sound and sensible lot at the head of New Zealand road cycling at present, and their views are worth considering. Perhaps it could be said as a closing aside that they are a much better-behaved lot, too. The Ministry of Transport officers on the tour were generally high in their praise of the road behaviour of the cyclists in the Healing3ZM tour, and the referee, Des Smith, imposed only one penalty — of a minute, and for receiving pace — in the entire tour. That probably constitutes some sort of record.