The Third Annual Barry’s Roubaix road cycling race presented by Maple Ridge’s Local Ride Bike Shop on Sunday, April 8 is the province’s first big competitive cycling event of the season and promises to be even more exciting this year as organizer Barry Lyster has turned the old course on its ear and started from scratch to offer riders a brand new route.
“The change came late in the organizing process and made things a little more stressful,” said Lyster. “An unexpected high permit cost left us to either cancel the event or try to get another route ready in time for Roubaix Sunday. With that said, we are thrilled to announce a new route for the 2012 Barry’s Roubaix. The new course has more gravel than the original one, which should make things even more interesting for spectators and extra challenging for the riders.”
About half of the course’s 10km length is on the scenic Pitt Meadows Dyke System along the Fraser River and the other half features some of the area’s the beautiful rural roads. The new loop will start and finish on Kennedy Road near the Pitt Meadows BMX track.
Barry’s Roubaix pays homage to the famous Spring Classic road cycling race, Paris-Roubaix, which will feature its 109th edition on April 8, and is known for its grueling conditions, such as rough cobblestone roads and gusting winds.
“Last year’s Barry’s Roubaix was on an epic day that made ‘April Showers’ look like a drop in the bucket. We’re hoping for something in between this year – we want it to be tough for the racers, but we don’t want our faithful volunteers to freeze out there on the course,” said Lyster.
As the race draws closer, Lyster reminds potential racers to register for the event. Registration is available online at www.karelo.com until 4:00pm on Saturday, April 7. Check out www.localride.ca and go to “Our Races” for more information about Barry’s Roubaix.