ALTHOUGH 2010 has only just begun Ballymena Road Club - Scott Roof Tiles – cyclists are already preparing for the new season.
Registration has commenced and will continue each Monday night in January and many, who intend to compete this year, have already signed on and have commenced their pre season training.
BRC race secretary Tommy Wilson is already thinking of the ra
cing season and he has drawn up the programme of club time trials and road races which are scheduled to commence on 14th April with the Australian pursuit event on the Sheddings course at Broughshane.
Cycling Ulster has also issued their draft calendar of open race promotions for the forthcoming season. Ballymena Road Club will again play a full part in the hosting of races with three open events to their credit.
Their first of the season will be the Wallace Caldwell road race at Galgorm on Saturday 10th April 2010.
The 2009 version of this race was one of the closest in recent seasons with the leading quartet attempting to find their best position for the sprint and the scene was set for a thrilling finish with the result in doubt right to the line.
Simon Williams (Orchard) proved best and won by one length from Mark McKinley (Newry) with Thomas Martin (Clann Eireann) third and Gary Cranston fourth. They were all timed in at 3 hours 1 minute 18 seconds.
Ballymena’s Leo McAllister took fifth at 1 minute 40 seconds with Conor McAllister sixth at 3.32 they had been with the leaders for much of the race and should be amongst the favourites for the 2010 event.
The Red Hand Trophy road race is scheduled for Broughshane for Saturday 8th May 2010.
If the 2009 version of the Caldwell race was close it was nothing compared to the 2009 Red Hand, when history was made after an exciting day’s racing, which saw a dead heat declared at the finish of the Blair International Transport sponsored road race, when Ryan Connor and Glen Kinning couldn’t be separated, that despite viewing two different photographs of the finishing sprint.
This was the first time the honours have ever been shared in this Ballymena Road Club Scott Roof Tiles promotion and it came at the end of a thrilling 68 miles race, which saw the leaders never any more than 55 seconds ahead.
Torrential rain greeted the finish of the race but if anything this added to the drama as the front pair emerged out of the gloom and into the view of the waiting spectators. Kinning opened up the sprint but Connor closed right up at the line and they just couldn’t be separated and both riders agreed to the honours being shared and history was made.
The road club’s third open race promotion is the Tommy Smyth cup “Town and country” event at Bellaghy.
