Post date: Jan 25, 2016 10:36:40 AM
Hello Vets,
In this week's Bleat;
• Registration for 2016
• From the Desk of the Handicapper
• Racing this Week
• Race Reports
Please send me your contributions at: TheBleat@actvets.cc
Ian Morton
PLEASE NOTE: No riders will be permitted to compete in 2016 unless they are registered. This is to ensure that members have insurance coverage while competing in events. Rider registration will be checked at the signon desk tomorrow night. If you register at the last minute before coming out to the track, please bring along a copy of the confirmation email.
To register go to the IMG site. Logon with the username and password that you used to register last year. The annual subscription for 2016 remains unchanged.
If you have forgotten your password, go to top right hand corner and click on username and password. That will enable IMG to send you another password to your email address. To ensure you transfer the numbers and letters correctly it is advised to cut and paste.
Any queries please direct them to membership@actvets.cc and not the contact on the password retrieval page.
This week's changes;
Peter Young B to A
Brian Holloway C to B
Rico Fitch D to C
Phil Anderson E to D
Sue Frost F to E
Bob Miller F to E
Lynee Prentice G to F
Edwina Menzie G
Sue Powell C to B
Des Brown D to E
Andrew Simpson B to C
The club is calling for members to volunteer to act as referees (race director) or marshals at races in early 2016. Referees will soon be contacted by email. If you are not contacted but you put you name forward last year for referee training or you are keen to become a referee, please email me at race.committee@actvets.cc. Members keen to marshal can use the "Volunteer" link on the left side of the RMS or can email the race committee.
Rob Langridge
*** Note: Ensure you have registered for 2016 prior to this event ***
Where: Stromlo Forest Park
Sign on: 15 mins before scheduled start time wearing your registered number.
Race Description:
E/FG 5:50 30 min + 2 laps
Note the early start time for E/F
A/C 6:30 A 45m+2, C 40m+2
B/D 7:25 B 45m+2, D 40m+2
Race Director: Robert Miller
Contact: Email: photo@bobmiller.com.au Ph 0411 271 656
The nominated marshals for this event are;
• Ed Pellegrino
• Dominic Romano
The Program for Wednesday is as follows:
5.30pm – 6.00pm: Warm-up and free practice;
6.00pm – 6.20pm: 14-Lap graded scratch race;
6.20pm – 6.40pm: 2-Lap Handicap
6.40pm – 7.00pm: 12-Lap Snowball
7.00pm – 7.20pm: Italian Pursuit.
In the previous week we had a crash and a merged grades fiasco. This week, things went very smoothly except for one rider keen on merging grades (he's been rewarded with a promotion) and another who used the other bunch to gain an advantage (he got a red flag.) After a hot, breezy start conditions improved as the night went on. It was perfect for B&D grades. Many thanks to Rowan McMurray, Tony Weir, Richard Bourne, President O'Shea and Stu the first aider for their excellent support.
With only two starters the chances of a ding-dong battle were slim. Heather Sommariva and Edwina Menzies circled the the course together until Heather found another gear in the last lap.
F grade suffered in the heat somewhat. Not much happened until the last lap when Sue Frost and Bob Miller had a drag race to the finish. Sue got the nod by not easing up BEFORE the line. Both may want to have another go at E grade.
E grade had some action despite the breeze and heat. Phil Anderson and Andrew McRae got in small break for a while in the early stages. Des Brown seemed to be doing all the work on the front. He rode on the windward side for lap after lap much to the delight of the less tactically challenged riders. I'm not sure who instigated it but towards the end Phil, Ian 'the Bleat' Morton, and newcomers Leigh Nelson and Andrew Adams got well away from the others. Spurred on by having his wife watching Phil won the sprint from Leigh and Ian.
The only split in D grade occurred when B grade passed them. Rico Fitch won the sprint to the line from John Wilson and Ashley Sked.
C grade also appeared to be a quiet affair from the sidelines. Steven Stolk attacked once but was soon reeled in. James Mills finished ahead of Bryan Holloway and Damian Copland--the latter two earning promotions for their consistency.
Dougal Torrance started where he left off the week before: off the front. Paul Ledbrook joined him for a while. Whereas the wind slowed the chasing bunch the week before, many were able to rest and then quickly counter so the attacks were soon nullified. Chris Kon and Olympic/World champ Sue Powell also had goes off the front. With a lap to go, Paul and Dougal had a small break on the chasing bunch. On the back straight Peter Young upped the pace, crossed over and set sail for the line. Into the home straight Peter didn't do a 'Langridge" and let between two and 10 people pass him. Instead he powered up the finish straight for a very stylish victory. Chris was the first of the chasers followed by Andrew Murrell.
This was a torrid affair, and I was glad to be on the sidelines and not being put to the sword. Quon attacked from gun but Tiffen chased them down. Within a lap or so the bunch had split in half. Allan Bontjer spent his bickies getting across solo only to have the bunch reform. Then came more attacks from Ben Morrison, Peter Kitchen and Kel Boers. For what ever reason Quon applied a mid-bunch block causing a huge gap. Suddenly there were four A grade bunches in different positions on the track but all sharing the same pained expressions. Ed Pellegrino was well off the front for a while but the counter once he was caught sent him straight out the back. This left Ben, Nick Stewart, Mark Harris (of course) Marc Vroomans, Kel, Steve Isbel and Paul Connor as the Vet's Magnificent Seven! Steve opened up a substantial lead with a few laps to go but this was nullified by Kel. In the mad sprint for the line young Ben was too strong for Nick and Mark. Ben now has two wins from two starts.
Rob Langridge
We had ten riders for the 20-Jan track session. The weather was unsettled and the warm-up session saw a sprinkling of rain on the track. Fortunately, the track was warm and dried quickly before racing commenced.
The initial 12-lap scratch race was an all-in affair with B grade given half a lap start on A grade. Peta Brill moved up to A grade, after showing great form in recent track sessions. The A grade bunch was conscious of the significant advantage given B grade. They took up the chase quite diligently. Alec Millet led the B grade bunch for two furious laps with the gap to A grade undiminished. However, the A grade pursuit was relentless and the catch inevitable. Eventually Michael Langdon took a closely contested sprint from John-Paul De Sousa and Peta Brill.
The next event was the 200 fly, a 200m time trial from a flying start. This is a great event for building a powerful sprint. It is amazing how spent you can be after 200 metres flat chat. Michael Langdon set the only time under 13 seconds. However, all of A grade finished within a 1.3 second spread. Peta Brill had a good run to finish with second best time and Craig Kentwell finished a creditable third. Alec Millet set the best time for B grade with a finish only 0.04 seconds beyond the limit for A grade.
The 200 fly was followed by a mystery race. In this event, the final bell lap is signalled, at random, anytime after six laps. B grade was given half a lap start on A grade. Again, A grade chased diligently. The catch was made by lap 5. The bell came early, after only six laps, while most of the riders were together. The sprint was well contested with Michael Langdon taking a fine win from John-Paul De Sousa. Alec Millet showed great form by taking third.
The final event for the evening was an Italian Pursuit. Team 1 was anchored by Michael Langdon and Team 2 by Chris Thompson. Michael was expected to be the stronger finisher. The middle riders Alec Millet, Peta Brill and John-Paul DeSousa realised it was up to them to establish an early lead for Team 2. They did not disappoint and rode exceptionally well. By the final lap, Team 2 had a handy lead. Initially, it looked possible for Michael Langdon to close the gap. However, despite coming back from injury, Chris Thompson was not about to surrender. Ultimately, he took a fine win for Team 2. Both teams put in a maximal effort and enjoyed a fine contest.
Major place getters were as follows:
12-Lap Scratch: Michael Langdon, John-Paul DeSousa, Peta Brill.
200m Fly: (A Grade) Michael Langdon (12.99s), Peta Brill (13.73s), Craig Kentwell (14.25s). (B Grade) Alec Millett (14.35s), Steve Hirsler (15.01s), Ross Scutts (15.56s).
Mystery Race: Michael Langdon, John-Paul DeSousa, Alec Millett.
Combined Italian Pursuit: Winner, Team 2 (Chris Thompson, Alec Millett, Peta Brill, Pat Rooke, John-Paul DeSousa).
Season Point Score: Michael Langdon (135), Steve Jones (120), John-Paul DeSousa (117), Alec Millett (108), Steve Hirsler (100).
Graeme O'Neill