Hilly race creates big splits in AusCycling Club Esports Series round 8

A balanced course has rewarded aggressive racing in round 8 of the 2022 AusCycling National Club Cycling Esports Series.

Yesterday’s race on Watopia’s ‘Figure 8 Reverse’ included two hill climbs and two flat intermediate sprints. A maximum of 20 points was awarded for the fastest through each segment, in addition to the 30 points for the first across the finish line.

The flat sprints rewarded those staying in the draft of the peloton, but the reverse ascent of Hilly KOM near the start of the race, and the forward Hilly KOM in the final 8 kilometres, gave an incentive for climbers to jump clear of the bunch in search of finish line points.

As a result, races across most of the categories saw major splits, with riders arriving at the finish in small groups – a marked contrast to the bunch sprints of round 7.

In Men’s A, Christo Ball (Randwick CC) was keen to attack early, forgoing segment times in pursuit of a finish result. Ball did manage to hold on to a narrow lead to cross the line ahead of Adam Bemrose (Gold Coast CC) and Kyle Marwood (Mackay CC), but Bemrose took the race win thanks to his fast climbing times on the KOMs.

The Women’s A race saw a clever ride by Valen Paniagua, who was dropped from the front group early on but devoted her efforts to setting the fastest time on each segment. She took the race win ahead of clubmate Marjan McGarry, who outsprinted B-category’s Kate Spicy (Dubbo CC) in a two-up finish to the combined race – but either way, they added 61 points for Randwick Cycling Club.

Tenille Galea (Mackay CC), Meghan Hayes (University of Queensland CC), Nick Spratt (Waratah Masters CC), David Nicholas (Bathurst CC) and Jon Lowe (Vikings CC) all came out on top in their categories.

Waratah Masters CC maintains its lead at the top of the standings at around 500 points ahead of Bathurst CC, with Randwick CC holding on to third.

Replay

Standings after round 8

1. Waratah Masters Cycling Club 3326
2. Bathurst Cycling Club 2858
3. Randwick Cycling Club 2016
4. Vikings Cycling Club 1859
5. Gold Coast Cycling Club 1399
6. Southern Cross Cycling Club 1107
7. University of Queensland Cycling Club 1102
8. Mackay Cycling Club 998
9. Northern Sydney Cycling Club 753
10. Illawarra Cycling Club 673

For full standings, information and how to participate, visit the AusCycling National Club Cycling Esports Series page.