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- Written by Glenys Taylor
Jesse Sergent put up a great ride in the individual time trial for Eneco Tour’s stage 5 on Friday, taking third place for his big effort.
Jesse, 25, previous winner of the time trial in the 2011 Eneco Tour, was followed in the car by director Luc Meersman. Team Direcotr Dirk Demol commented: “Jesse did great. He obtained the maximum result and he gave everything. He was extremely motivated after having a year that was a bit less than expected. In the meantime he knows he can stay with the team for 2014 so he was extremely focused today. It was a nice performance. When he won here two years ago, it was on a totally different course. This year the roster of riders in Eneco is the best ever for sprinters, TT specialists and GC riders.”
Bradley Wiggins (Sky) was the 14th rider out of the start house and quickly set the best time at 16:13on the short 13.2km course from Sittard to Geleen. His time held strong until Sergent put up a stellar ride at 16:08, knocking Wiggins out of the hot seat by a five second gain. Sergent’s time became the one to beat. Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma QuickStep) attacked the course to go four seconds better, with Tom Dumoulin (Argos Shimano) later able to slip in between them to squeeze in to second place on the same time as Sergent.
Demol continued: “Our GC riders Bob, Max and Jan did well and didn’t lose much time. For Bob the course was a bit short. But all three are on a top level and ready for the weekend. We will go for it. Tomorrow we climb La Redoute three times with the finish on top. On Sunday it’s the longest stage at 208k with twice on the Muur and twice up Bosberg. It’s a mini Tour of Flanders. The real race starts tomorrow and we are still in the game.” RSLT’s Jan Bakelants is the best placed team rider in 17th at 37-seconds. Sergent is one second further back.
Lars Boom (Belkin) did enough to keep his race lead, now holding 4 seconds to Chavanel. Saturday’s stage is familiar to those who ride in the spring classics with routes used in the Tour of Flanders and Liège–Bastogne–Liège part of the course. Stage 6 is 150km beginning in Riemst and ending on the climb of La Redoute, giving challengers plenty of opportunities to try to knock Boom off the top step of the podium.
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- Written by Glenys Taylor
Hello Team It’s been a very, very busy last few weeks with many air miles clocked up and jet lagged battled head-on.
In early July, after finishing racing in Europe, we had a 5 day GP in Adelaide where we had a number of sucesses and really stuck it to the Malaysians and Australians. I had a podium place on the first day with a great win on the 3rd day in the Keirin, collecting even more points and I am now fully qualified for the World Cup season. My team mates also performed well, while we had a number of wins in the Match Sprint and an additional Keirin.
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- Written by Glenys Taylor
The weather forecasters just don’t seem able to predict the weather lately as although it was forecast for rain not a drop fell in Halcombe for the third interclub race with Wanganui.
A new course was being used for the first time today for a club race.
Registration at the Halcombe Rugby Club rooms worked well and the start was a gathering on the side road before heading up to the school and then along Mangaone Rd. This is when all riders noticed the wind – head on all the way along Mangaone Rd. The only relief came as they headed down the hill towards Makino Rd. This part of the race was a controlled area until riders entered Makino Rd. Then it was a steady climb until the tail wind kicked in just past Short Rd. This pushed riders along at a cracking pace until they turned at Stanway and headed back to Halcombe.
Thanks to Steve Stannard, Dennis Martin for marshalling out on the course along with thanks also going to Steve Challies, Katherine Stannard, Rebecca Denholm and Kirsty Kaihau for helping with registration and finish line judging, recording and race management.
Next weeks race is a new interclub event with Central Hawkes Bay. Please remember to look at the calendar for full details and if asked to register online please do so.
Points so far Bike Manawatu Wanganui
| Week 1 | 45 | 137 |
| Week 2 | 147 | 112 |
| Week 3 | 144 | 159 |
Click here for the results
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- Written by Steve Stannard
Sunday morning at Massey University is the inaugural Manawatu Cyclocross race at Massey University. Run in conjunction with the Manawatu Mountain Bike Club and Massey University, it's the first time an official cyclocross race has been held, in recent memory at least, in the Manawatu. Racing will start at 9 am, so please be at the end of Workshop Rd on the Massey Campus by 8:30 am to register. The Striders Half Marathon is also on Sunday morning, so if you are going to drive there, enter from Old West Rd and follow the signs for parking. Best if you simply ride up to Massey though!
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- Written by Steve Stannard
Bike Manawatu, in conjunction with Massey University's School of Sport and Exercise, hosted the cream of the country's under 17 cyclists last week for a five day camp.
Apart from some good rides and the Saturday race, the riders underwent a series of physiological tests at Massey and attended presentations by academics.
The camp was very well received by the riders, their coaches, and parents.
Bike Manawatu attendees included: Kate Stewart, Elizabeth Stannard, Michaela Drummond, Campbell Stewart, Robert Stannard, Chris Denholm, Nate Levin, and Alex West.