The Bermuda Bicycle Association’s 2016 Road Racing season concluded with the a Madison Digicel Criterium held in Southside, St. David’s.
Also coming to an end was a season-long points series which rewards consistency across the six month campaign.
It was no surprise that in the A Category Junior riders Kaden Hopkins and Matthew Oliveira animated the race from the start with Hopkins jumping out to a quick lead and was then joined by Oliveira to form a pairing of the Winners Edge riders that was not catchable by the chasing peloton. Though Hopkins faltered midway through the race, leaving Oliveira to continue at the front on his own, Hopkins held on for second place and left the peloton to sprint for third place which was taken by Darren Glasford, also of Winners Edge. Oliviera recorded a time of 30:05.2, Hopkins clocked a time of 31:43.9 and Glasford finished in 30:12.6.
In the B race, the series leader and eventual winner Adam Kirk made an early move to remind the field that he was there to keep the racing fast. Though this initial move was shut down he jumped off the front with just a few laps to go and held off the effort of the peloton, securing yet another victory in 32:57.0. Kirk’s teammate Otis Ingham took the sprint for second in 33:03.9 and Bicycle Works’ Clifford Roberts rounded out the podium with a time of 33:04.4.
Team Tokio’s junior rider Ziani Burgesson took a strong win in the C Category where the final run into the line was a head to head battle between Burgesson and Paulo Medeiros of Winners Edge. The fourteen year old Burgesson showed great determination in leading out the sprint from the final corner and then holding off a hard charging Medeiros with a time of 32:41.4, Medeiros was clocked in 32:44.5. The final spot went to Garth Fleming who took the points series title ahead of Medeiros and Burgesson with a time of 32:47.2.
Rose-Anna Hoey continued to show her strength in cycling by taking the Women category ahead of her Madison-Digicel teammate Sarah Bonnet. Hoey clocked a time of 31:38.8, Bonnett recorded a time of 31:52.9. Wenda Roberts edged out Tristan Narraway for third place in 33:25.4 and finalised the series in second behind Bonnett with Narraway in third.
Ingham won the Junior A Class with a time of 17:31.4, Tommy Marshall was second in 17:33.4 and Nicholas Narraway finished third clocking a time of 17:43.7.
Smith recorded the win in the Junior B Class with a time of 17:32.8, Megan Hands was second in 17:33.1 and Zoe Hasselkuss finished third in 17:34.9.
