Cycling Cox retains Canty title
Greg Cox retained the Canterbury senior road cycling championship when he won a desperate sprint finish with the pre-race favourite, Brian Fowler, at Waikari on Saturday. Conditions were wet and cold for the championships and there were many retirements. The slippery roads also caused a problem and the first aid attendants had to treat 14 cyclists who fell. Two were sent to hospital for further treatment.
With three of the six laps completed in the senior 154 km championship the field was reduced to seven riders. Moving through Hawarden for the last time, Peter Coates fell heavily and lost any chance of winning the title. Approaching the finish Fowler led the sprint but Cox had enough in reserve to overhaul Fowler just short of the finish. Jim Ryder crossed in third place but he was later disqualified and third place was given to Mark Nichols.
Darryl Kircher produced a better sprint in a hectic finish to win the 77km junior championship. At the top of the first hill the field was split. Phillip Gibbs, riding aggressively, set the pace and with one lap remaining, he, Kircher, Dean Lovethpnd Searle were still in contention. The veterans championship,
also over 77km, was won by Graeme Brotherstone. It was an upset win for Brotherstone who beat the pre-race favourites, Allan Hood and Dave Hewson. Philip Baines' hopes ended when he crashed at the first corner and the retirement of Ross Bush and Gordon Duff during the race left three riders to contest the sprint. Debbie Landers won the women’s championship over 26km. She was closely followed by Katrina Stewart and Mary Woods. Landers had to withstand an appeal against her for alleged motor pacing skm from the finish when she had broken away from the rest of the field.
Wayne Eyre from the Woolston club won the novice 33km championship. He was five lengths ahead of John Andrews at the finish.
The junior novice event produced the best sprint of the day. It started 800 m from the finish when Grant Kiesanowski slipped the field, but he was overhauled short of the finish by Jason Smith. Mark Crosbie was second and Kiesanowski clung on grimly for third. Abbreviations used in the results are:
Hornby W.M.C.(H.), Woolston W.M.C. General Lee (W.G.L.), Timaru) (T.), Healing Papanui A.C.C. (H.P.), Mairehau N.C.C. W- . *. Senior championship (154 km- G. Cox (H.), 1; B.
Fowler (W.G.L.), 2; M. Nichols (H.P.), 3. Time: 4hr 12min 325. Junior championship (77km).- D. Kircher (H.), 1; P. Gibbs (H.P.), 2; D. Lovett (H.P.), 3. Time: 2:3.45. Veteran championship (77km).— G. Brotherston (W.G.L.), 1; A. Hood (H.P.), 2; D. Hewson (H.P.), 3. Time: 2:5.54. Women’s championship (26km).— D. Landers (W.G.L.), 1; K. Stewart, 2; M. Wood (W.G.L.), 3. Time: 45.42.
Novice championship (33km).- W. Eyre (WG.L.), 1; J. Andrews (M.), 2; J. Smith (M.), 3. Time: 54.29. Junior "novice championship (12km).— J. Smith, 1; M. Crosbie, 2; G. Kiesanowski, 3. Time: 21.23.
At the end of the championships Canterbury teams to ride at the national championships in Waikato in October were named. They are: Senior B. Fowler, G. Fox, B. Cowie, B. Stockwell, G. Fraine, C. Hogan, T. Horne, P. Coates, M. Nichols, G. Hume. Junior B. Kircher, P. Gibbs, G. Searle, D. Lovett, J. Morrison, B. Richardson, M. Baldwin.
Veteran: A. Hood, D. Hewson, B. Lang, G. Inwood, G. Duff, R. Bush. Women: D. Landers, M. Wood.
Novice: W. Eyre, J. Smith, J. Andrews, A. Macbeth, R. Brimer, J. Stokes, A. Donaldson.
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