CYCLING SEASON HEATS UP AS RACE THE RIDGE CROWNS NEW BC PREMIER SERIES LEADERS 
April 28, 2014 (Maple Ridge, B.C.) – Race the Ridge, the second round of Cycling BC’s BC Premier Road Series, saw the province’s top racers vie for the overall stage race victory and the coveted series leader’s jersey last weekend over two days of furious racing in Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge.
“Spectators and fans were treated to some great racing and we definitely lucked out with the weather,” said Race the Ridge organizer and Cycling BC Race and Event Coordinator Barry Lyster.
April showers hit the later starts as Race the Ridge kicked off on Saturday morning with the Thorn Hill Road Race on some of Maple Ridge’s beautiful rural cycling roads, but the riders prevailed and were greeted by sunshine in the afternoon.
The seven-lap, 68.25-kilometre Cat 1/2/3 women’s race was dominated by the six-woman strong Trek Red Truck Racing presented by Mosaic Homes Team who attacked from the start and left the remaining riders to chase. World Junior Track Cycling Championships silver medalist Kinley Gibson’s (Trek Red Truck p/b Mosaic Homes) of Edmonton, Alberta, was the first escape to stick as a result of the barrage of attacks by her squad. She held on to the take the solo victory, while fellow teammates Leah Guloien of Port Moody and Shoshauna Routley of Abbotsford, BC escaped later in the race to finish second and third, respectively.
The 10-lap, 97.5-kilometre Cat 1/2 men’s competition saw a similar show of control from the Accent Inns/Russ Hay’s presented by Scotia Bank team that launched Jacob Schwingboth of Surrey into top spot, finishing 14 seconds ahead of the rest of the podium, fellow teammates Canadian Time Trial Champion Curtis Dearden of Victoria and Dylan Davies of Newmarket, Ontario, rolled across the finish in second and third place, respectively.
Local Ride Racing’s Brett Wakefield of Maple Ridge pulled off an amazing solo win in the seven-lap, 68.25-kilometre Cat 3 Men’s contest, executing an early breakaway that he held to the end.
“Race the Ridge has always been one of my favourite races on the calendar,” said Wakefield. “Not only does it take place in my hometown, but the road race course really favours my abilities. Winning here was extra-special for me, because it was also my first ever road win.”
Christopher D’Arcy (Todd’s Racing) of Vancouver won the bunch sprint for second place, while Trevor Stothard (Trek Red Truck p/b Mosaic Homes) of Victoria finished third in the race and top Junior. Mike Elliston (Speed Theory) of Vancouver was the top Master 40+ finisher in seventh.
Maple Ridge native Maggie Coles-Lyster (Local Ride Racing) went on the attack in the Cat 3/4 women’s race, breaking away from the field, only to be reeled in by eventual winner, Musette Caffe’s Louisa Scarlett of Vancouver and third place, Gillian Ellsay (Trail Bikes) of Courtenay. Fifteen-year-old Coles-Lyster was the top Junior finisher of the five-lap, 48.75-kilometre competition.
Stage two of Race the Ridge was a challenging 12.5-kilometre individual time trial in Pitt Meadows. Despite the flat terrain, riders faced a constant headwind as they powered north towards Pitt Lake along the area’s scenic agricultural roads. Justine Clift (Glotman Simpson Cycling) of Vancouver managed to break the Trek Red Truck presented by Mosaic Homes stranglehold with her time trialing prowess to take the Cat 1/2/3 women’s stage win in a time of 18 minutes and 30 seconds. Road race winner Gibson clocked the second-fastest time, trailing Clift by 21 seconds, while Morgan Cabot (Glotman Simpson Cycling) of Vancouver finished third.
The winner of the Cat 1/2 men’s time trial was no surprise as the Canadian champ and obvious favourite Dearden stamped out his competition with a time of 16 minutes, 37 seconds. His Accent Inns/Russ Hay’s presented by Scotia Bank teammate, Cody Canning of Victoria finished second, trailing by only four seconds, while IRC’s Jordan Landolt of Victoria finished third, only seven seconds off of Dearden’s time.
Ellsay pedaled to top spot in the Cat 3/4 women’s time trial, taking the junior win, followed by fellow junior rivals Clara Mackenzie (CSI Pacific) of Victoria in second and Coles-Lyster in third.
Alex Langley of Vernon stopped the clock in 17 minutes and 58 second for the Cat 3 men’s victory, followed by Fulgas Racing’s Matthew Van Nostrand of Vancouver in second, and top junior Cordell Dickie (Cycling BC) of Kelowna in third. Richard Wooles (Cycling BC) was the fastest Master 40+ man with a time of 18:06.
The third and final stage of Race the Ridge 2014 was the much-anticipated Town Core Criterium, which took place on a technical 800-metre course in the heart of downtown Maple Ridge on Sunday morning. Once again, spring showers struck briefly, but the rain held off for the majority of the event that included a free kid’s race for our next generation of cycling champions.
In the Cat 1/2/3 women’s race, the Trek Red Truck p/b Mosaic Homes squad once again used their numbers to whittle down the field and force their competitors onto the defensive. Despite attacks from Local Ride Racing’s Sandra Walter of Coquitlam and time trial winner Clift, the Trek Red Truck team managed to shut them down and sent their own riders into the clear. Walter, Clift, and Mighty Riders racers Sara Bergen of Vancouver and Jennifer Gerth, also of Vancouver, worked together to reel in the break and force the dominant team into chasing, but they were unable to break the Trek Red Truck sweep. Routley came out on top, followed by teammates Gibson and Jenny Lehman of Victoria.
In the end Gibson captured the overall Race the Ridge victory, followed by Guloien in second, Routley in third, Lehman fourth, and Clift in fifth. Walter was awarded the Jeremy Storie Most Aggressive rider award for her efforts in animating the road race and criterium.
Bergen pulled on the BC Premier Series leader’s jersey as the top-ranked rider in the series after the first two rounds.
Schwingboth secured his second stage victory, winning the criterium and thus the overall classification in a thrilling high-speed 45-minute criterium that saw the Accent Inns/Russ Hay’s presented by Scotia Bank armada shut out their rivals with move after relentless move that shattered the field. The team’s Cid Martinez of Burnaby took the second podium spot, while Canning sprinted to third. The BC Premier Series jersey rests on the shoulders of Dearden, who will be tasked with defending it in next month’s third round.
“The battle for the BC Premier Series title is getting more intense. I’m really looking forward to seeing how round three unfolds,” said Lyster. The Robert Cameron Law Cycling Series, the third event of the five-race BC Premier Road Series, takes place May 30 to June 1 in Victoria.
Coles-Lyster earned the Jeremy Storie Most Aggressive Rider award after a very savvy Cat 3/4 women’s criterium that saw her win both primes and launch a breakaway in a counterattack off of her Local Ride Racing teammate Kelsey MacDonald’s (Pitt Meadows) own move. Coles-Lyster also sprinted to win the race and defend her junior women’s BC Premier Series lead.
“Winning the criterium at Race the Ridge was the best feeling. I came around on the final lap, and could barely make myself stand to sprint for the finish, my legs were so tired. Though, I was so proud of myself and couldn’t stop smiling when I came across the line in first!” said Coles-Lyster.
“I’m thrilled that I get to keep wearing the series leader’s jersey. It feels pretty special. One of my big goals for the season is to win the series and I’m really motivated to do well at the next races,” she added.
Scarlett took second spot, followed by junior rider Mackenzie in third. It was Ellsay, however, who took home the overall Race the Ridge title.
The Cat 3/4 men’s field was the largest group to hit the course and the action was non-stop as the riders railed corners and threw down attacks. It was Local Ride Racing young gun, Port Coquitlam’s Jackson Pickell who won the high-octane bunch sprint for the win, followed by Todd Racing’s D’Arcy in second, and Langley in third.
“Despite my wins, the most enjoyable part of racing this weekend was being able to help my teammate, Jackson Pickell, win the final stage and move up into second overall in the GC,” said Wakefield.
Pickell’s result, along with the resulting 20-second time bonus, shot him up to second in the overall standings behind teammate and new Cat 3 men’s BC Premier Series leader Wakefield. Pickell also earned bragging rights as the top-ranked junior. Fergus Horrobin (DEVO p/b Catalyst Kinetics) of Vancouver will be the rider to watch at round three of the series as he carries the junior men’s lead.
Langley finished third overall in the stage race. Joost Van Ulden (Glotman Simpson Cycling) was the best Master 40+ in the criterium in 11th place, while Wooles took the overall top Masters ranking. However, it was Elliston who earned the honour of defending the BC Premier Series leader’s jersey at the next round.
Elijah Buffalo (Urban Painting Team) of Whitehorse, YT won the Cat 4 Men’s overall stage race, while Conor Martin (Norco) took home the U13/U15/U17 general classification win.
Normand Richard (Escape Velocity p/b Catalyst Kinetics) won the time trial only category in a time of 17 minutes, 30 seconds.
Race the Ridge was made possible by the generous support of the following sponsors: Golden Ears Physiotherapy, Power2Max Canada, Superior Glass, Panago Pizza Maple Ridge Square, District of Maple Ridge, City of Pitt Meadows, Cycling BC, Kicking Horse Coffee, Arcus Community Living, Q Energy Drink, Cycles Lambert, Ramada Inn Pitt Meadows and Pedal Magazine.
BC Premier Series sponsors are: Cycling BC, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Jakroo.
About Race the Ridge presented by Local Ride
Race the Ridge presented by Local Ride is one of BC’s longest running road stage races. Local Ride is an organization based in Maple Ridge, BC that produces high quality cycling events in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows. Race the Ridge was voted second in the Canada-wide 2013 Pedal Magazine Awards in the Best Race Event category behind Local Ride Racing’s Pumpkin Cross. Local Ride also includes a multi-discipline cycling team, comprised of some of the best cycling ambassadors you will meet. Find out more at www.localride.ca/race-the-ridge.
About Cycling BC
Cycling BC is the provincial governing body for the sport of cycling BC, representing a full range of cycling disciplines including Road, Track & Cyclo-cross, Mountain Biking and BMX. Cycling BC has 2000 licensed riders and over thousands of club members participating actively in competitive cycling across the province cyclingbc.net.
About the BC Premier Series
The BC Premier Series is a new high-level competitive road cycling circuit in the province that aims to raise the quality of racing in the province and establish a prestigious provincial tour that BC’s talented riders will aspire to win. The 2014 BC Premier Road Series consists of five popular events: the DEVO Spring Series Classic Stage Race, March 29-30, Race the Ridge, April 26-27, Robert Cameron Law Cycling Series, May 30-June 1, UBC Grand Prix on July 8, and the Tour de White Rock Criterium on July 12. Thank you to series sponsors: Cycling BC, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, and Jakroo. More about the BC Premier Road Series, including series rules: cyclingbc.net/road/road-race-calendar/bc-premier-road-series/.