It was a busy weekend for Southland’s cyclists, with two days of racing deciding the Outdoor H&J Smith Southland Time Trial and Road Race Championships.

Some 40 riders assembled at Makarewa on Saturday for the individual time trial, known as the race of truth, as riders take on the course one by one, battling the clock.

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Distances ranged from 10km to 25km, with the ages of participating riders varying from those racing in the U13 division to those in the masters 55 to 64 division.

The conditions were good for racing, with mild temperatures and little wind, making for good, fast racing.

Oliver Keast took the win in the U13 boys division over 10km, ahead of Oskar McIvor and Cooper Gough. The under 15 boys and girls competed over 15km, with Hamish Wallace taking the win in the boys’ race, ahead of George Thomson, with Poppy McIvor claiming girls’ race, ahead of Riley Faulkner.

The U17 boys division not only drew the biggest field, but produced one of the biggest winning margins as well, as Marshall Erwood raced to a commanding win, ahead of Hunter Thompson and Tom Kerr, recording the fastest time over the 15km course. Olivia McCabe took out the U17 girls title, ahead of Lucy McHutchon, Jaz McLeod the U19 women’s title, ahead of Jessica Spencer and Ciara Kelly, Emily Paterson the U23 women’s title, ahead of Tyla Green, and Julia Hunt the Elite women’s title.

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The masters women also raced over 15km, with Erin Criglington taking out the win, ahead of Nicola Stevens and Nichole Saunders, with the masters men category 3 (55-64) racing over the same distance, with Garth Cooper taking the win, ahead of Brendan Monaghan. Para-cyclist Hannah Pascoe and her tandem pilot Janet Willis took on the same course on their tandem, coming home with a very competitive time that would have given the riders in many of the other categories a good run.

The rest of the age groups competed over a 25km course, with Morgan Borrie taking out the U19 men’s division, ahead of Ronan Shearing, Jamie Wilson the masters men category 1 (35-44), and Marthinus Hendriks the masters men category 2 (45-54), ahead of Eddie Griffiths and Andrew Lienert.

On Sunday the action moved to Wyndham, with riders taking on multiple laps, or half laps, of a 36km circuit. Conditions were once again good, with a field of over 50 riders taking to the start line in the various categories.

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The U13 riders raced over 22km, with Oliver Keast taking another win in the U13 boys division, ahead of Oskar McIvor and Cooper Gough, with his sister Lily Keast taking the U13 girls title.

The U15 boys and girls raced over 36km, with George Thomson taking out the boys’ race, ahead of Hamish Wallace, and Poppy McIvor adding the road race title to the time trial title she had claimed the previous day.

The masters women also raced over 36km, with Erin Criglington taking the win to go with her time trial win from the previous day, ahead of Nicola Stevens and Sandra Cooper.

The under 17 riders raced over 58km, and in the boys’ race it was Marshall Erwood claimed the title, making it another double, ahead of Tom Kerr and Magnus Jamieson, while Bella Jubb claimed the girls’ title, ahead of Lucy McHutchon and Olivia McCabe.

The under 19 women also raced over 58km, with Jaz McLeod taking the win. Emily Paterson took the win in the U23 women’s division, ahead of Tyla Green, while Julia Hunt took the win in the Elite women’s division.

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Hannah Pascoe and Janet Willis competed over the 58km distance as well, producing another strong ride.

The rest of the divisions competed over 72km, with Ronan Shearing taking out the U19 men’s title, ahead of Reuben Heslip, while Matt Zenovich took out the Elite men’s title ahead of Blake Tait-Jones.

James Jubb took out the masters men category 1 (35-44) race, ahead of Jamie Wilson and Brendon McLeod, while Mike White took out the masters men category 2 (45-54) race, ahead of Marthinus Hendriks and Neil Cleghorn. The masters men 3 (55-64) title went to Garth Cooper, with Martin Lohrey in second, and Brendan Monaghan in third.

For event organisers Cycling Southland it was certainly a relief to be able to run the event in its intended spot on the calendar, after it had to be moved to September last year because of lockdown.

Cycling Southland Major Events Coordinator, Sally Marr, said the event would not have been possible without the support of the community.

“We are very thankful to our sponsors, Outdoor H&J Smith, for their continued support, and for our volunteers who give up their weekends to help make these events possible,” she said.

However, even after a packed events season, it is not time just yet to hang up the racing wheels.

“We are already preparing for our next major event, the Stonewood Homes Gore to Invercargill Classic, which takes place on Saturday 10 April. It is the longest running club classic in the country, and a real part of Southland’s cycling heritage, so it is an event riders really look forward to each year.”

Big Weekend of Southland Time Trials and Road Racing

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