27/09/2003
12 committed cyclists endured wet and windy conditions to compete in the Yarragon Hill Climb. This race starts with a number of laps around the relatively flat Cloverlea circuit and finishes with a relentless 6km climb up Yarragon-Leongatha Rd. AFL fans used the grand final as a soft excuse to avoid the challenge. Many of the riders competing were using this event as a warm up to the Baw Baw classic.
A-Grade riders Thomas Sandner and Scott Keeble rode with the handicap of Geoff Thomson?s accidental movements to the front. Despite the urge to try and drop Thomo, the trio stayed together for 3 steady laps of Cloverlea. Thomas attacked at the bottom of the climb leaving Thomo behind with a swooping magpie. Young Scott was caught taking a drink and had to push hard to regain the safety of Thomas’s rear wheel.
Thomas was unable to break the rubber band to Scotty with several more determined efforts. Scott teased his veteran opponent with a helping push when his gears wouldn?t change and followed up with an attack of his own.
Realising that neither rider was going to get away, the pair crept up the rest of the climb playing games with each other to gain second wheel. Thomas led out the sprint allowing Scott to shift into the big gears and swing past for a 2 second victory. Thomo almost caught the playful pair crossing the line 19 seconds later.
B and C grade combined for a start with 6 competitors. B grade completed 3 laps of Cloverlea and C grade 2 laps before making the climb. The bunch remained together for lap 1 despite a couple of riders ingesting some dubious green water along Parkers Rd. During lap 2 Colin Brown paid for his time up front when he and lone C grader Michael Pridmore lost contact.
Colin displayed poor arithmetic when he missed the turn for lap 3 and went on to Yarragon with Michael. Colin was first up the hill in a race against himself and Michael followed to win C grade.
The rest of B grade completed all 3 laps and approached the climb together. Chris Beales and Tim Lee powered away from the field on the ascent. Tim rode at his limits, keen to test himself before his first attempt at Baw Baw. Chris also rode hard, keen to either get away from Tim or leave him breathless, anything to stop the questions about Baw Baw. Chris notched up another victory, using his years of experience to outsmart Tim in a sprint finish. Gavin Lane made the top 1 minute later to claim third place with Pete Bailey snapping at his heals.
Rod Atkinson was so eager to get out of the rain that he broke the gun for the D grade start. With dry clothes in mind, all 3 riders shared the work to complete 2 laps as quickly as possible. As with the other grades, all riders were together for the start of the climb. With little advantage of sitting on, this race was decided by pure climbing ability. Rod Atkinson proved his ability to win by a little over 2 minutes to Kym Fisher who prefers a sprint finish. Greg Williams made the ascent to third another 2 minutes down.
