Busy weekend for local riders

National cycling coach Hassan Mohamed in partnership with the Carlton Wheelers Cycle Club will this weekend stage two cycling events that should test local cyclists’ ability to adapt to different styles of riding in the space of a day.

On Saturday, the riders will assemble at the inner circuit of the National Park for the 13^th annual Seven Seas 11-race programme, while the following day, the action will switch to the West Demerara roadways for the 12^th annual Regan Rodrigues road race.

The National Park activity will roll off at 09:00h with the BMX riders starting proceedings in the 6-9, 9-12, 12-14 and Open races, followed by the Junior/Juveniles and Mountain Bikers taking centre stage.

That will be followed by the senior riders taking to the course to compete in the Veterans Over and Under-50 years, and the feature contest- the gruelling 35-lap School Boys and Invitational, which will put a cap on the day’s action.

Alanzo Ambrose of Team Alanis won last year’s main race in a time of one hour, 19 minutes, 49.08 seconds, while Jamal John (Junior), Ian Jackson (Veteran), Ozia McUally (Mountain Bike) and Renaldo Narine (12-14 Boys and Girls) were among the other winners.

Representatives of Seven Seas, namely Karen Cornell, Nirvana Thakur and Claude Gunraj, are expected to witness the races and assist in the presentation of prizes at the conclusion.

Sunday’s race will commence at 08:00h in front of the Wales Police Station; proceed to Uitvlugt and return to the western end of the Demerara Harbour Bridge for the finish. On the upward journey, the riders will divert from the public road and head into the Parfaite Harmonie access road. They will then turn at the junction of the access road and return to the public road to continue the journey to Uitvlugt.

Team Gillette Evolution’s Michael Anthony is the defending champion of the Open race, having won last year’s event in a time of one hour, 56 minutes, 35 seconds.

Some of the other top performers included Jamal John (Junior), Junior Niles (Veteran), Keon Budhan (Mountain Bikes) and Whitney Poyer (12-14 Boys and Girls). The first six finishers, while the top three in the Junior, Veteran, Mountain Bike and Female categories, and the first Over-60 rider to cross the finish line, will all receive prizes.

Eight prime prizes will be up for grabs during the course of the race. The event is being sponsored by Ricks and Sari Agro Industries, of which the late Regan Rodrigues was Managing Director. He was also a former president of the Guyana Cycling Federation and Carlton Wheelers Cycle Club, a former champion race car driver and sport enthusiast. (Avenash Ramzan)