| |
Tour Of The North Stage 6 - Alhadeff on the Line
Dubliner Paul Helion successively defended his yellow jersey yesterday to run out a worthy winner of the 50th Anniversary P & O Irish Sea Tour of the North 5-day cycle race. The Usher Irish Road Club rider held an overnight lead of 36 seconds over Englishman Mike Harrison (Cyclestore.co.uk) but during the 75-mile stage based around the Casltereagh Hills his Usher team-mates controlled the stage from start to finish. They set a blistering pace from the start at Dundonald to discourage any breaks and kept a close eye on all those who were a threat to Helion’s overall lead.
Last year’s winner Ballymena’s Ryan Connor, now competing for the semi-pro DF Logistics, did manage to escape on the first King of the Hills climb at Killyleagh but his lead was never allowed to go over 30 seconds and he was eventually reeled in by the fast moving bunch.
A crash at the start of the second 38-mile circuit at the bottom of the Gilnahirk Road climb saw two riders hospitalised and also led to a splintering of the main group. Richill’s Richard Alhadeff (Orchard Wheelers) and Scotsman Gordon Murdoch (Glenmarnock Wheelers) managed to escape and at one stage built up a 1 minute lead with 20 miles remaining. They stayed clear to the line with Alhadeff winning the stage from Murdoch while Greg Roche (Team Fuji Bikes) led home the main field, which included Helion just 12 seconds later.
Local Castlereagh CC rider Glen Kinning clinched victory in the AA King of the Hills competition. He began the stage in the Polka Dot jersey but relied heavily on his team-mates snatching points on the three climbs to prevent Banbridge CC’s Roger Aiken overtaking him in that classification. Aiken, who did an epic ride on Monday’s tough 70-mile stage in the Glens of Antrim, had to be content with second place whilst Ryan Connor was third.
The 5 days of racing produced some outstanding performances from local riders. Crumlin’s Matthew Ward (Phoenix), who held the yellow jersey after Stage 2, attacked every day in an attempt to oust Helion from his podium position. Lisburn’s Mark Greer (Maryland) had a superb stage victory in Bangor on Sunday. Also impressive throughout the race were Martyn Irvine (Ards CC) guesting on the Northern-Dave Kane team, Castlereagh CC’s Peter Hawkins and Brendan O’Brien (Roe Valley/Classic Walls). Juniors Adam Petrie-Armstrong (Northern-Dave Kane) and Simon Williams (Orchard Wheelers) also had an impressive tour and will be names to watch out for in the future.
A special mention must go to all those who helped make the race so successful, not least among these being the PSNI who ran a well organised rolling road closure. Thanks also to the marshalls, caterers and ambulance crew not forgetting those stuck in the Sag Wagon for five days.
For more race pics, click the gallery link below
VIEW FULL GALLERY
Final Stage result-
1 Richard Aldaheff Orchard Wheelers 75 miles in 2 hrs 59min 33sec
2 Gordon Murdoch Glenmarnock Whs same time
3 Greg Roche Fuji Bikes UK @12sec
4 Shane Baker Usher IRC
5 Matthew Ward Phoenix CC
6 Willie Hamilton East Antrim-Audi all same time
Final Overall Classification
1 Paul Helion Usher IRC 10hours 28min 2 sec
2 Mike Harrison Cyclestore.co.uk @36sec
3 Lewys Hobbs West Wales @ 1.07
4 Dale Appleby Fuji Bikes UK @ 1.10
5 Robert Wardell Scotland @ 1.14
6 Mark Greer Maryland Wheelers @1.15
7 Willie Hamilton East Antrim-Audi @1.37
8 Peter Hawkins Castlereagh CC Mattest @1.50
9 Peter Hey Cyclestore.co.uk @2.07
10 Matthew Ward Phoenix CC @2.18
AA King of the Hills
1 Glen Kinning Castlereagh CC-Mattest 13 points
2 Roger Aiken Banbridge CC 9
3 Ryan Connor Team DFL 8
4 Matthew Ward Phoenix CC 6
5 Brendan O`Brien CLassic Walls-Roe Valley 6
Report Tommy Lamb
Pics Marian Lamb
Return |
|
