Riders master heat of streets in Kees Glorie Memorial

Albany Cycling Club held their Kees Glorie Memorial Handicap race with 13 enthusiastic riders setting off on a hot ride last Saturday.

This challenging and interesting course took the field over the Kalgan River to Two Peoples Bay and Nanarup Beach, before heading back to the finish at Great Southern Grammar.

Soon after the start, Beau LeFort and Brett Dal Pozzo exerted their influence on the race and already had a handy lead when they turned towards Two Peoples Bay.

A group of nine riders were together at the turn, followed by Shirley Thurston and Stephanie Bennett riding well together a few hundred metres back.

The pace and pressure was on during the Two Peoples Bay leg of the race, with the heat taking its toll on quite a few riders.

A group consisting of Brent Schoof, Jacob Crowe, Jimmy Watmore, Ryan McLaren, Paul Gibson and Andrew LeFort were working well together and were limiting the time losses to Beau LeFord and Dal Pozzo, who continued to push strongly at the front of the race.

Mike Staude had dropped back to support Liz Cooper, who was riding well and also limiting her losses to the riders ahead.

At the Nanarup Beach turn the pressure had built even further, and Brendon Mencshelyi had lost ground to the Ryan McLaren group.

McLaren, Gibson and Andrew LeFort were looking strong, but the heat seemed to be affecting Watmore and Schoof.

Cooper and Staude were continuing on calmly and steadily, while Thurston had put distance between herself and Bennett.

The dash back to Great Southern Grammar was a beauty.

Beau LeFort and Dal Pozzo continued their individual time trial at a cracking pace.

Andrew LeFort, Schoof, Crowe, Gibson and McLaren hurtled towards a finish line sprint, having put some distance between themselves and Watmore.

Mencshelyi was still riding a good, solid race not too far ahead of Staude and Cooper.

First across the line was Beau LeFort in a time of 1 hour 19 minutes 3 seconds, three minutes ahead of Dal Pozzo.

The real action was to come a few minutes later with handicap winner McLaren sprinting to the line five seconds ahead of Gibson, who took out second place on the day.

They were closely followed by Crowe, Schoof and Andrew LeFort. Cooper crossed the line a short time later to be third on handicap.