Calverley and Bergstrom Retain ROAG Series Lead

[Matt]

Excitement was rife on Sunday as ROAG Series overall forerunners, Carl Calverley and Natalie Bergstrom came out full force to retain their overall leads at the Safire Baynesfield MTB Classic, the fifth instalment in the Series.

 

Although neither Calverley nor Bergstrom won their races in the 65km race, both cyclists have solid points that ensured the top spot remained theirs.

 

 

Andrew Hill (02:28:01) claimed the number one spot in the men’s 65km race making light work of the course. Hill also made light work of the King of the Mountain by claiming the maiden King of the Mountain title for himself. He was closely followed by Travis Walker (02:28:03) Third over the finish line was Calverley, in a time of 02:29:30.

 

 

Julia Colvin claimed Queen of the Mountain and victory for the women, in a time of 03:02:18, followed by Natalie Bergstrom (03:04:10) and Jackie Moore (03:06:35).

 

The 65km was billed as fast and mean with just the right balance between climbs like the Baynesfield Breaker and fast descents that had the camera crews searching for an extra gear to stay ahead on the motorbikes.

 

The 45km course had all the features of the 65km except for the full Baynesfield Breaker and the views from the top of the ridge. Patrick Belton (01:53:57), Julian Jessop (01:54:34) and Joshua Nelson (02:02:26) came first, second and third, respectively. The ladies’ 45km title went to Frankie du Toit in a time of 02:22:43, followed by Robyn Ryan (02:23:33) and Savannah Schuit (02:26:24).

 

The 20km course took families and riders through the tractor museum near the Baynesfield offices and along the avo orchards to the small dam wall. Thereafter, a meandering internal road took riders past the lodge and to their first test of the day, namely the Lodge Climb. Just after the Lodge Climb and 10kms into their race, competitors headed right along the ridge overlooking the big dam and the vistas of the Baynesfield Estate.

 

Thomas Jessop crossed the 20km finish line first in a time of 00:43:49, with Tiffany Keep taking the title in the ladies’ race, in a time of 00:51:30.

 

Safire would like to thank all the riders, families, vendors, organisers, Baynesfield Estate for allowing them to host the race, Jody Butler and Ingrid and Wally Flint for putting on a magnificent show on the day. For more information on Safire please visit www.safireinsurance.com. More photos will be updated to the Safire website over the course of the next week or two. To view these please visit: http://www.safireinsurance.com/events.php

 

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