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Timbercorp Tour of GippslandNATIONAL UNDERAGE RIDERS CONTINUE GIPPSLAND DOMINANCE By Rod Morris - 8th August 2007 - Back to News The Australian under 23 cycling squad – better known as southaustralia.com – continued its stunning dominance of the Timbercorp Tour of Gippsland on the penultimate day, winning both stages and extending the overall lead of Castlemaine’s Zak Dempster.
Seven stages down and one to go, Dempster will carry a 14-second lead into the final stage, a 40km criterium in Bairnsdale.
Saturday belonged to the southaustralia.com with Sean Finning claiming the criterium in Paynseville and then Nicholas Sanderson winning the Paynseville to Dargo stage in the afternoon.
Their success followed on from Cameron Meyer (Stage 3), William Ford (Stage 4) and Dempster (Stage 5).
And the team may not be finished yet!
"Everything has clicked for us so far with all riders doing their part," Sanderson said.
Whilst the Tour of Gippsland is not effectively a team’s event, there are a number of Australian trades teams represented by a large number of riders and working well together.
It may make things difficult for riders not affiliated to teams, but it makes for some exciting racing.
Finning was part of a hard working breakaway group in the 33km criterium around the streets of picturesque Paynesville, raced however in very windy conditions.
He held off Victorian teenager Nathan Wise with national water polo league player Tim Middleton in third place.
The afternoon road race was one of the tougher stages of this tour, but Nick Sanderson and NSW’s Peter McDonald definitely deserved their one-two placings.
Sanderson, McDonald and small group of riders were away from the peloton almost all afternoon, chopping up the intermediate sprints and hill climb points.
But their performance did not detract from Zak Dempster’s overall tour lead.
Protected by his national teammates, Dempster in fact increased his overnight lead and barring any unforeseen mishaps will be declared Tour of Gippsland champion in Bairnsdale on Sunday afternoon.
How Day Four unfolded –
STAGE 6
Sean Finning’s reputation as a criterium specialist continued in the sixth stage with a hard working display at Paynseville.
Finning (22) won his third career race of this national series, following victory in the Mallacoota criterium in last year’s Tour of Gippsland and the Westbury Criterium in the 2006 Tour of Tasmania.
On a wind swept course at Paynesville, Finning had enough sprint power in reserve to out muscle fellow Victorian Nathan Wise and South Australian Tom Middleton, who is new to cycling at the finish line.
Fellow escapee riders, Chris Pryor (Qld), Brad Edmunds (Vic) and Hayden Josefski (Qld) filled the next positions before the sprinting bunch was led home by Nick Sanderson.
Tour leader Zak Dempster (Vic) was safely tucked away in the peloton with his main challengers, Chris Jory (NSW) and Ben Mather (Tas) not far from his back wheel.
Finning said the wind had made things tough for all riders, but it also helped spur him on to victory.
"Because the wind was hard for the break group, I knew it would also be tough for the chasers, so it was just a matter of putting the head down and going for it," Finning said.
Finning has a solid reputation as specialist sprinter, particularly in criterium races, but that didn’t guarantee him victory.
"Everyone in that break group had been riding so well, so I had to watch them all, I wasn’t sure who had the best sprint," he said.
"Thankfully I was able to get to the front at the right time and hold on to win."
The big story emerging from the stage was the injury forced withdrawal of Darwin based rider Matt King.
King, winner of Stage 2 and an early tour leader suffered a nasty crash in Thursday’s Stage 4, suffering mild concussion.
But a nagging calf injury took over on Saturday and King withdrew. At the time he was second in the King of the Mountain Championship behind Tasmanian Sid Taberlay.
STAGE 7
Climbers were looking forward to the afternoon stage, a 108 km trek from Paynseville to Dargo, including no less than seven intermediate hill climbs.
Tasmanian mountain specialist Sid Taberlay was one of the main chances, but with plenty of points in the Tourism Victoria King of the Mountains Championship and with his closest challenger out of the picture, he didn’t make his expected challenge.
Instead the early stage attacks came from Darcy Rosenlund, Cameron Meyer, Chris Pryor and Brad Edmunds.
Eventually things began to settle down and a quality group of five riders, including Nick Sanderson, Peter McDonald, Rosenlund, Tony Mann and Miles Watson established a pack of five attackers and were able to get up the road by over four minutes.
McDonald was the highest ranked General Classification rider of the quintet and there was plenty of work and attention to detail to come from Sanderson.
"I was happy to keep it at around four minutes, that wasn’t going to do too much damage back to Dempster and the rest of the team," Sanderson said.
A dual Bendigo Madison winner, Sanderson hasn’t yet established much of a road riding record.
"In fact I can’t remember winning anything of note on the road," he said.
"A lot of credit should go to Peter (McDonald) as well, he worked very hard over the mountains."
Whilst obviously disappointed, McDonald accepted his second placing, the third time he has scored a minor podium spot this week.
"I’m not renowned for my sprinting, but I’ll take what I can," he said.
Miles Watson was one of the surprise packets of the seventh stage.
He stayed with Sanderson and McDonald for almost 80 km before eventually being reeled back to the bunch and coming home in 23rd place, 1.41 minutes behind the leaders.
Leading the chase group home for third place was NSW rider Robbie Cater, 49 seconds adrift.
With Taberlay ensuring victory in the King of the Mountain Championship, the Victoria The Place to Be Sprint King title will go down to the wire.
Cameron Meyer (WA) holds an 11-point lead over Darcy Rosenlund (Qld) with a maximum of 48 points still up for grabs.
Meyer also leads in the East Gippsland Shire Council Criterium Championship, but is only 2-points clear of Peter McDonald and a further point to Grant Irwin (Qld).
And the Timbercorp National series has Dempster and Irwin locked together on 34 points, with stage, tour and finishing points all to be determined in Bairnsdale.
Day Four results –
STAGE 6 – PAYNESVILLE CRITERIUM, 33 km
1. Sean Finning (Vic), 47.29 minutes
2. Nathan Wise (Vic), same time
3. Tom Middleton (SA), same time
4. Chris Pryor (Qld), same time
5. Brad Edmunds (Vic), same time
6. Hayden Josefski (Qld), + 4 seconds
7. Nick Sanderson (Vic), +17 seconds
8. Grant Irwin (Qld), same time
9. Patrick Shaw (Vic), same time
10. Marcus Wettenhall (Vic), same time
STAGE 7 – PAYNESVILLE TO DARGO, 108.9 km
1. Nick Sanderson (Vic), 3 hours 5.24 minutes
2. Peter McDonald (NSW), same time
3. Robbie Cater (NSW), +49 seconds
4. Grant Irwin (Qld), same time
5. Nicholas Walker (Vic), same time
6. Patrick Shaw (Vic), same time
7. Sid Taberlay (Tas), same time
8. Chris Jory (NSW), same time
9. Zak Dempster (Vic), same time
10. Ben Mather (Tas), same time
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Zak Dempster (Vic), 14 hours 50.54 minutes
2. Chris Jory (NSW), +14 seconds
3. Ben Mather (Tas), +54 seconds
4. Peter Herzig (NSW), +2.11 minutes
5. Patrick Shaw (Vic), +2.58 minutes
6. Grant Irwin (Qld), +3.45 minutes
7. Cameron Meyer (WA), +4.16 minutes
8. Steven Robb (Vic), +4.30 minutes
9. Cameron Hughes (Qld), 4.34 minutes
10. Peter McDonald (NSW), +5.54 minutes
Championship categories –
Victoria The Place to Be Sprint King: Cameron Meyer (WA)
Tourism Victoria King of the Mountains: Sid Taberlay (Tas)
East Gippsland Shire Council Criterium: Cameron Meyer (WA)
The Big Garage Bairnsdale Most Aggressive: Peter McDonald (NSW)
To come – (Sunday)
Stage 8: Bairnsdale Criterium, 40 km, 12.30 p.m. start
Further Information -
03 5224 2466 John Craven Director- Caribou Publications
Madeleine Brialey Co-ordinator – Caribou Publications
0428 151 204 Mike Quist East Gippsland Shire Council
0407 684 765 Matt Trewin Timbercorp
0401-760-912 Rod Morris Media Liaison
Source: http://gippsland.com/ Published by: news@gippsland.com
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