EASY GROUP RIDES
EVERY SUNDAY (EXCEPT RACE DAYS)
PUSSER'S ROAD TOWN TO WEST END (AND BACK)
All bikes and levels welcome!
Start at 6:30am
Cyclists burst out the gates following recent COVID-19 lockdown
Phillippe Leroy led senior and junior cyclists out the gate in Sunday’s (September 16) BVI Mountain Bike Prison Break Race, in the first sporting action on Tortola, since sports were paused for a month from mid August, because of a COVID-19 spike and spread within the territory.
Leroy covered the course from Trellis Bay, through Little Mountain, out past the Prison, over to Little Dix Hill and down to HLSCC and return in 46 minutes in 33 seconds.
“The race was fun. I waited for people in Little Mountain because I didn’t want to cycle all on my own,” Leroy told Island Sun Sports. “On the Prison Hill, I didn’t go too hard but harder than the others. I didn’t want to kill myself on the hill and then went hard on the flat instead. It was fun. It was quick. It was easy.”
As the course was being used for the first time, Leroy said he had no idea how long it would take him to complete the 22.5 km circuit and thought it might probably take 55 mins to an hour.
“I felt fine. I didn’t go too hard on the prison hill, but you have to go hard on the part by the prison itself because it’s very steep, otherwise I went medium hard because I didn’t want to go in the red, so that I couldn’t push myself on the flat,” Leroy explained. “But it was a lot of fun.”
During the lockdown, Leroy planned a 24 hrs virtual ride but missed it and did 17 and did over 10,000m of climbing as well.
“I’m training less now. The most I’m going now is 5, 5½ hrs,” he said after his 46 minutes ride. “I try to do that almost every Sunday. I’m going home when I finish here. I’m supposed to do five hours today.”
Second place finisher Gareth Thomas, said it was the club’s third race since Hurricane Irma in 2017 and it was a tough race with about 15 participants including juniors who did a shorter course. Typically, the race would have two circuits up to the Balsam Ghut Prison.
“We felt that it was too early in the season, considering that people had not been racing aggressively so we decided to put Little Mountain in and then the prison as opposed to two prison circuits,” Thomas noted. “The thing is, you go hard. Little Mountain is no joke. You walk around there is hard, you ride around there is tough. I think it surprises people how steep it can be and there’s a few fast turns you have to be careful on, so those juniors, they wouldn’t be calling it little today, I’m sure.”
The race marked the first time Chris Graham was riding hills.
“And they were horrible,” Graham who was sixth told Island Sun Sports. “It’s worse than I thought but I was ok on the flat, so I caught up there.”
Graham said he liked the course, though windy on the ride back to Trellis Bay.
“The first time I ever raced with these guys as well—though I wasn’t racing,” he said. “It shows how good these guys at the front are. They’re elite.”
Shicorey Bertie led the Yeppies from the Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), on the junior course.
“Today’s race was kinda tough and hard on the second lap, but I made it through without walking too much up the hills,” Bertie who was second in the first race said. “I really caught myself coming back. The course was pretty tough but a little better than the last course.”
Bertie, who lives in the Sage Mountain area and had been practicing and playing basketball ahead of the race, said Little Mountain was tougher than many hills he ever drove on.
“I used a different bike and it felt different,” he said. “I learned that you have to try and keep your stamina and pace and it doesn’t matter which place you come.”
Final results
Men
1) Philippe Leroy, 46 minutes and 33 seconds.
2) Gareth Thomas, 52:40
3) Biff Smith, 52:56.
4) Mark Stephenson, 52:58
5) Shane Donovan, 58:55
6) Chris Graham, 59:30
7) Adrian Dale, 1: 10.00
8) Kay Reddy, 1:12
9) Jim Cullimore, 1:17
10) Kem Ketchem,
11) Michael Fay
Juniors
1) Shicorey Bertie, 55:13, (2-laps).
Other participants: Zavia Golding, Jaroy Daley, Sherwood Gaymes, Tyreke Bertie, Kijana Callwood, Nathaniel Piontowsaki and Kimon Lewis.
LEROY CONTINUES TO SCHOOL BVI MOUNTAIN BIKE FIELD
This Sunday (August 16) saw BVI mountain bikers tackling the roads, trails and beaches of Beef Island in the 2020 Beef Island Race. Almost 40 adults, juniors and kids competed in various races during the morning.
The course which included a “Sand Pit” section on Long Bay beach, and off-road sections on the trails of Beef Island was 6.41 km (3.98 miles). The full course was four laps and the fun/novice was two laps. The 11 Juniors raced one lap with some throwing in an extra lap for fun.
Surprising no one, Philippe “Flying Frenchman” Leroy wiped the floor with the field, putting younger riders to shame, and lapping many on the course. Gareth “the Donut Kid” Thomas was second, showing that a high carb, high sugar, diet does in fact pay dividends and that weight driving down on the pedals counteracts the static weight in the saddle. Biff Smith was seconds behind Gareth, also proving that a ‘9 beers not 11’ hydration strategy the night before a race is also an alternative worth exploring.
After the main races, the Trellis Bay Time Trial Kids Race was held where a one lap mountain bike time trial was attempted twice. All competitors bettered their times on the second lap! This was followed by a two lap time trial.
1 Philippe Leroy 58:57
2 Gareth Thomas 1:03:00
3 Biff Smith 1:03:12
4 Yohan 1:07:28
5 Justin Smit 1:08:35
6 Matt Crossman 1:12:57
7 Dominic Bufton 1:16:15
8 Alastair Abrehart 1:19:02
9 Kay Reddy 1:23:50
10 Jim Cullimore 1:28:51
11 Laurens Blok 1:29:10
12 Rusty Burns 1:42:28
13 Adrian Dale 1:45:30
14 Hadley Chilton 1:21:23 (3 laps)
15 Tom Merrigan 1:26:08 (3 laps)
16 Ray Wearmouth 39:25 (2 laps)
17 Michael Fay 1:09:20 (2 laps)
Kem Ketchum DNF
Alex DNF
Juniors
1 Mervin 52:14 (2 laps)
2 Shicory 52:20 2 laps)
3 Sherwood 26:30 (1 lap)
4 DeShawn 26:45 (1 lap)
5 Hugh 30:55 1 lap)
6 Jahain 30:58 (1 lap)
7 Jaroy 34:30 (1 lap)
8 Zavia 39:02 (1 lap
Nathaniel DNF
Karliyah DNF
Kaynna DNF
EVENT PHOTOS
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FLYING FRENCHMAN TAKES VIRGIN GORDA RACE
21 riders braved the Virgin Gorda Race on Sunday. Organised by the BVI Mountain Bike Club, this was the first mountain bike race since Hurricane Irma in September 2017.
Unsurprisingly, Philippe Leroy wiped the floor with the field completing the 11.73-mile course in 50 minutes and 55 seconds, Dan Mitchell (56:01) crossed the five minutes later (albeit on a road bike), and Gareth Thomas (1:01:37) took the third place slot. Nineteen riders took on the full loop of torture which saw them climbing 2,200 feet in hot and humid conditions, while Rusty Burns and Sergio Dantas sensibly undertook the shorter fun/novice course.
Full Course Results
1 Philippe Leroy 50:55
2 Dan Mitchell 56:01
3 Gareth Thomas 1:01:37
4 Orano Andrews 1:07:51
5 Biff Smith 1:11:58
6 Shane Dononvan 1:12:22
7 Clinton Simmons 1:14:21
8 Mingo 1:16:16
9 Anghel George 1:18:46
10 Jermain 1:27:13
11 Alastair Abrehart 1:28:23
12 Dominic Bufton 1:30:36
13 Jim Cullimore 1:40:46
14 Clayton 1:42:39
15 Kay Reddy 1:58:01
16 Adrian Dale 1:58:02
17 Laurens Blok 2:18:01
18 Johan Blok 2:18:02
19 Tito DNF (broken frame)
Fun/Novice
1 Sergio Dantas 58:10
2 Rusty Burns 1:35:04