Randwick Wings continue to fly

Junior road racing season is in full swing! Randwick Wings and Juniors could be seen all over the eastern seaboard, from the Gold Coast, to Goulburn, Canberra, and at the Country and Metropolitan Junior Championships, and Southern Cross Junior Open. There are a few more tours to go before the NSW State Championships in Wagga Wagga in September. Thanks to our sponsors, Haralambis Property and SASTTI Joint Venture, for their support keeping the squad sustainable.

Congratulations to Izzy Newell (JWU17), who has been performing fantastically in the tours and is relatively new to competitive cycling. She's eager to participate in more races leading up to the NSW State Road Championships.

Our JMU17, Ray Shockair and Tom Malcolm, have shown great camaraderie and strategic planning before each race. Their commitment is impressive, as seen by their recent success in the Gold Coast Junior Tour. And in the past week achieved great results at the Country and Metropolitan Junior Championships and Southern Cross Junior Open. Keep up the good work, young men.

Jett Stokes, dominant in the JMU13 division, has been winning almost everything he races in the junior tours. He's in excellent form for the state championships after winning the overall GC in both Goulburn and Canberra, and making the podium at Waratah Park on the weekend.

In the JMU15 division, Bayley McGarry, Ruben Shepard, and Charlie Smith, are first-year riders in their age group and they’re all displaying keenness and competitiveness in the junior tours. Their performances are expected to improve, promising a bright future for next year's second-year U15s.

We're also proud of our younger Randwick Heffron Junior Cycling Academy riders, Georgia Smale, Hugo Sofiar, Christian Ellis, and Darcy Roberts, who have showcased fantastic riding in the Goulburn and Canberra Junior Tours, and in the Metropolitan Championships. They’re all prospects for the Wings Development Squad in the coming years, with Darcy winning all his races and GC at both tours. Chapeau, Darcy!

HEFFRON CX 2023 pics

Junior girls and boys, U13 years

Junior girls and boys, U17 years

Division 3 Women

Division 3 Men

Divisions 1 & 2 Women

HEFFRON CX is back

HEFFRON CX is back

Round 1 of the 2023 AusCycling NSW/ACT CX Series sees the return of Cyclocross to the mounds and sand of Heffron Park on SUNDAY, 14 May, with special prizes up for grabs for all mothers who race!

HEFFRON CX has quickly become one of the club's biggest racing events. I warmly invite you and your friends watch (and participate) in the fun of CX. We've got a DJ, beers, coffee, food, drones, fantastic photographers, plus lots of cyclocross.

Kids 'learn to ride' new program

Kids 'learn to ride' new program

A new national program, designed by AusCycling and proudly supported by the Australian Government, is being launched by our club at Heffron Park early next month. We are one of only two clubs in Sydney selected to participate in the pilot program.

AusBike gives kids the essential skills to experience the freedom, fun and adventure of life on a bike.

AusBikers are road safe & active kids!

Club Championships points update

The 2022 Club Champions of the one-lapper, Fiona Kwok and Jack Bennett. Will you be the champion in 2023?

The next round of our Club Championships will be held on Saturday, 13 May as an Individual Time Trial at Heffron Park - our traditional one-lapper. 

After the first round on 27 February with a reverse Heffron crit, all future rounds at Heffron will be open to Randwick Cycling members only. We've been fortunate to secure a second ITT round of our club championships at the International Regatta Centre, Penrith on Saturday, 22 July 2023, supported by Penrith Cycling Club.

In the meantime, here's our points results:

  • Alex CHUBB = 10

    Mathieu BRENAUD = 8

    Allan SMITH = 6

  • Robbie ALLEN = 10

    Tom HYDE = 8

    Dwain HESP = 6

    Dan VANOLINI = 4

    Sean BLOCK = 2

    Nick JOHNS = 1

    Michael PFEFFER = 1

    David DANG = 1

    Jessica MACKILLOP = 1 (also first femme)

    Tom MALCOLM = 1

    Alastair WYATT = 1

  • Simon GAUDIN = 10

    Jake EMBRY = 8

    James ELLIOTT = 6

    Adrian YAZBECK = 4

    Andrew YANG = 2

    Leeza FUZI = 1 (also = first femme)

    Darrin TUCKER = 1

    Aidan GREENWOOD = 1

    Lily FASAN = 1 (also = first femme)

  • Joachim BOURELY = 10

    Bayley McGARRY = 8

    Paul SEROV = 6

    Andy STEWART = 4

    Isabella NEWELL = 2 (also first femme)

  • Josh WESTMORELAND = 10

    Emily HONKE = 8

Brayden and Hugh in Europe

In February 2023, Randwick Cycling awarded grants to both Brayden Bloch and Hugh Harvey to further develop their cycling careers in Europe. These once-off grants follow on from the support that the club provided to Kaide Morrissey in 2022 to participate in the Team NovoNordisk Talent ID Camp in Florence, Italy; and Antoine Gizardin-Pradeau, who was supported to race in Belgium and France in 2018 and 2019.

Brayden writes:

If you don’t know me, I’m Brayden Bloch. I'm a 19 year-old who has been cycling with Randwick Cycling since I was a kid. I went through the Heffron Park Junior Cycling Academy training program that Andrew Logan ran on a Saturday afternoon when I was younger. It was a great way for me to learn and start racing.

I’ve been racing on Saturdays ever since. I went from Heffron racing to doing Junior state-wide racing on to Nationals over the years to where I am today. 

“This year I have decided to take my cycling to the next level, so I have moved to Girona, in Spain and  I’m currently racing on a Spanish team called Equipo Oleka. ”

The team is a great team to be a part of because everyone is super friendly and has great atmosphere to be part of on and off the bike. This year, one of the team’s objectives is to support and develop U23 riders which means I get a lot of race days and the older riders are willing to teach me how to race in Europe. Being in Girona also gives me opportunities to train and spend time with many world tour riders as well. 

My first race was Vuelta Guadalentin which was a three-stage race, and it was great tour to start off my racing here in Spain. Last weekend I raced Trofeo LoLo Sanroma which was a two-stage race. This had several of the best Spanish teams which use the race to test their riders for the upcoming Spanish cup events. The first stage was 123km; I raced well trying to get away in the last couple kilometres, but the pace was too high so just finished in the bunch. The second stage was 166km, there was 20-km section of super narrow roads with mostly dirt and rocks. The hardest part was that every corner of that section we were doing 800-1000 watts out of them. At the end of that road, we got to the bottom of the KOM (7km at 6.8%) when I made a select group of 20 riders over the top of the climb. We then rode hard all the way to finish with only a few riders that were able to get back on after the KOM. I finished 8th on the stage and 3rd U23 so I was super happy with this result. 

Follow Brayden on Instagram

“If all goes well next year, I will make my way up the ladder into a bigger team and return to Europe. Thanks to Randwick for all their support in the past and currently giving me!
”

Hugh, aged 18, last week signed with Gepla-Watersley R+D Road Team, one of the leading amateur U19 development teams in Europe with a proven track record of developing fantastic riders on and off the bike.

Hugh arrived at the awesome Watersley Sports & Talentpark facility, located just outside of Sittard in The Netherlands, where they provide everything that a young sportsperson needs to develop and grow as an athlete and individual.

Whilst his racing program is not yet finalised, he expects to be busy. His first race is Omloop van Schijndel on March 5. Hugh shared that he’s looking at being one of the sprinters in the team, that are pictured above, second from right.

He plans to be overseas until October and is using this experience to develop his skills and experience as a bike racer.

Follow Hugh on Instagram

We wish both Brayden and Hugh the very best over the coming European summer and look forward to hearing news of their progress.

Supporting others

Dan Morrissey has always been a knock-around type of guy. For many years Dan and his wife, Kylie, have focused on the health of Kaide, his son, a promising MTB and Road cyclist, living with Type 1 Diabetes, and also gluten intolerant. Together with Kaide’s sister, Jacinta, the family have worked hard to try and provide opportunities for each other.

The Morrissey family were ‘super excited’ when Kaide was selected to participate in the 2020 Team NovoNordisk Talent ID Camp in Europe. TNN is unusual is that it is the only pro-cycling team that comprises entirely of athletes living with Type 1 Diabetes.

However, their excitement turned south when COVID hit and Kaide was unable to travel. Nevertheless, he applied again in 2021 and was selected, however Australian Government travel restrictions meant that there was no way that Kaide could be guaranteed return access to Australia. After a third year of trying, Kaide made the 2022 Talent ID camp and spent two weeks in Italy - training like a pro!

Click here to get an overview of the TNN TalentID program - and a few glimpses of Kaide.

Kaide, pumping it up on his MTB at Bare Creek, last week

In the lead up to sitting his Higher School Certificate last year, Kaide rode down to Wollongong to watch the UCI World Road Championships, together with Dan. And Dan and Kylie were ready to support Kaide as he sought out a pathway towards a professional cycling career.

However, just a few weeks later, Dan was not feeling the best and was in and out hospital, undergoing tests before his challenging news, shared to many both privately and publicly:

“I’ve been diagnosed with stage four cancer - in a scary amount of places.”
— Dan Morrissey, 1 January 2023

In the brief six weeks since he was shocked with the news and the extent of the cancer, Dan was amazed with the support of Kylie, Jacinta and Kaide. Dan commented that a caring family is so important in times likes these, and he loves and appreciates their never-ending support.

Russell ‘Rusty’ Menzies, Randwick’s Directeur Sportiff, was on the phone within 24 hours and along with his great wife, and weeks of valuable time were picked up by referring Dan to a leading specialist.

Initially, Dan was unsure if he could be treated at all. He spent many weeks laying down or sleeping, feeling sick and tired, plus hardly eating. Within a month Dan started on a clinical trial with regular immunotherapy treatment, and then changing to targeted tablet therapy, that, in Dan’s words “appears to be working….. I’m now on another 12 tablets every day on top of the other 11 tablets I already take daily… I believe this is ground-breaking therapy with a very high success rate. So far, my doctors are positive with my results.”

Dan is very grateful for the care provided by clinicians, nurses, case managers - everyone. Yet he is also mindful that as difficult as his journey is, in a large majority of cases, cancer is able to be successfully treated and managed. For Kaide, that’s unlikely to be the case as he continues to live with T1D.

Dan is determined to end 2023 in a much better place than it started. His specialist said ‘no outdoor cycling’; and only light rides on an indoor trainer. However, by late January, Dan took Kaide’s MTB for an easy 8-km ride and found that it helped both his mind - and hopefully his body. His treatment appeared to be working and showing positive signs, and Dan started to get back on the bike for very easy cruise rides.

By the Australia Day long-weekend, Kaide was participating in the Randwick Wings Development Squad training camp in Canberra. Dan and Kylie supported Kaide, taking some down time to walk through the Australian Botanic Gardens.

Nick Johns, well known in the Sydney cycling community and beyond, is Captain of our Randwick Racing Men’s Team. Nick was previously the driving force behind Apres Velo Racing. With strong connections to bicycle and accessory suppliers, Nick was the ‘go to’ man, when something wasn’t quite working right on the bike for Kaide - and for Dan, too!

Nick heard about Dan’s journey and recognised how important cycling is to Dan - to help him with both his physical and mental health. Nick connected Dan and Kaide with Norco Australia and did an amazing deal for both Dan and Kaide via 99 Bikes. Dan now has a Norco Sight e-mountain bike for local path rides plus hopefully some easy fire trails with Kaide.

Nick, Dan and Kaide, with Dan’s new Norco Sight e-MTB

“Hopefully, my treatment continues to work, my health continues to improve, and I can get in some nice rides and smile.”

PS: Dan does not recommend ignoring medical advice, unless it is good for your mental and physical health.

Road Nationals 2023 achievements

Over 15 members of Randwick Cycling represented the club at the recent Road Nationals.

Without doubt, the biggest achievers were our women. In the Women’s Masters 120 Team Time Trial, Fiona Kwok led the team of Audrey Braun, Renee Heinrich, and Anna Murray to victory 🥇, blitzing the opposition by a margin of 2:35:95 with a sub-60min result at an average speed of 33.51 km/h. In the Women's Masters 120 Criterium (Club Teams), Fiona, Renee and Anna combined to claim another victory 🥇 in very blustery conditions.

Meanwhile, the men also made the podium. In the Men's Masters 150 Criterium (Club Teams) of Russell Menzies, Chris Ling, Danielle Vanolini and Matt Glanville were 2nd 🥈in a hotly contested event. In the Man’s Masters 150 TTT, the team of Daniele, Sean Bloch, Russell (injured a few days earlier), and Chris came in 3rd 🥉 in a time of 48:27.51.

Individual gold medals were awarded to both Fiona Kwok 🥇 and Chris Ling 🥇 for their outstanding performances in the Individual Time Trials. Fiona, racing in the WMAS4 division, claimed victory at an average speed of 34.69km/h. And Chris, racing in the MMAS5 division, also won at an average speed of 44.13km/h over the course, faster than the MMAS4, 3, 2 & 1 divisions!

In the Elite division, Steve Mayers competed in the road race, and Jack Bennett and Phil Lucas were in the crit - both supporting Caleb Ewan (Lotto DSTNY). Steve rode well; however, to keep the track clear for the exciting finish, won by Luke Plapp (INEOS Grenadiers), Steve and others were pulled from the course towards the last few laps. A good effort, Steve.

In a first for our club, Trevor Murphy, competed in the ParaMB road race, piloted by Hugh Harvey on a tandem. Trevor and Hugh beat the winning time of last year, however, it was not enough to make the podium of this year - and just missed out with 4th place. Trevor said,

“Hugh and I make a great team on the tandem and I’m really proud of our results. We made some significant gains from 2022, but the competition was fierce this year. Another year of training, with more tandem race experience and we’ll be back on the start line in 2024, both stronger and faster."

Brayden Bloch (racing in Rauland colours) and Will Heffernan (in his first outing with NRS team, CCache Par Küp) both competed in the 139km road race. Will finished in 19th place and Bayden in 22nd. Showing good signs for the future, Will and Brayden finished 2nd and 3rd respectively, both in their first year of the U23 division. Brayden finished 33rd in the U23 ITT and was 'super happy' with his overall performance. Brayden will soon be heading to Europe and hopes to continue his fine form.

In the Junior U19 Women's Road Race, on the 70km circuit around Mount Buninyong, in her first time at the Nationals, Alex Field scored a very respectable 14th place. In the Junior U19 Men's Road Race, on the 104km circuit and also his first time at the Nationals, Hugh Harvey was 20th, winning a 13-man bunch sprint the line, after the large breakaway. Hugh also competed in the Junior ITT and came in 14th, a little over 2mins off the winning time, as well as piloting for Trevor.

In the five-lap Gran Fondo, Chris Ling repeated his outstanding performance from 2022, and not only won 🥇 his 50-54yo Men's Race, yet with a time of 1:31:46, was the fastest rider across all age divisions (45-49, 40-44, 35-39, and 19-34yo)!! Also competing in the Gran Fondo were Daniele Vanolini, placed 9th in the 55-59yo division; Aécio Segundo, who was ‘very happy’ with his 16th place, in the 19-34yo division this year; and Sean Bloch, 18th in 50-54yo division, that was won by Chris.

Congratulations to EVERYONE who competed at the RoadNats23 and thanks to those who supported each member as they worked towards their goals. You have all done our club proud.

Photo credits: Randwick Cycling and RCPix

Festive 500: two days: two rides ✅

Macquarie Pass switchback, photo courtesy of Ian

Randwick Cycling member, Ian Morrison, shares details of his unsupported ride from Sydney to Canberra - and back - in just two days!

The December Festive 500 coincided conveniently with the peak of some endurance training I was deep into. I'd worked the first few days of it so had some catching up to do and Sydney to Canberra was a ride I'd been interested in. With a bad habit of making hard things more difficult, a there-and-back sounded like a good way to tick a few boxes.

I saw a window of opportunity, threw caution to the wind, and threw some plans together on Boxing Day. The weather had looked agreeable but the wind threw back at me in the form of mostly head winds both ways.

Day one was hot and we all know what happens when you don't sunscreen under a lightweight jersey (rookie!). Macquarie Pass was a ride I hadn't done and it was a highlight, with the Robertson Pie Shop being the cherry on top. And yes, I did have a cherry pie.

The route took me through Marulan, Tarago and Bungendore for other snack and water stops and the least favourite part came in the form of 30km of unforeseen choppy dirt road, which I routed around on the way back. Every mm more than 28c would have made an improvement.

I visited Capital Brewing in Canberra for some seasonal sports drinks and carbing up. If I'm honest, there was some time spent looking for an easier way home but I convinced myself that if I rode halfway, there was a train if I still wanted it, in Bundanoon.

I slept like a log and set off in the dark again. The sit bones only protested for the first few minutes but my bike complained noisily like a backpacker's hostel bed all day. The temp was way colder (11 degrees) than originally forecast and a little bit of drizzle had me questioning why I hadn't thrown even a gilet into my saddle bag. Another example of the pitfalls of haphazard ideas/planning.

Fortunately, it didn't get any worse and a T-shirt stuffed down my lightweight jersey did enough. A rain shower came through as I was finishing my Robertson Pie Shop encore and it got cold again really fast. Fortunately the temperature down the escarpment in Wollongong was showing 6 degrees warmer with a southerly to push me home. So I bit the bullet and shivered my way down the pass and enjoyed the familiar roads and tailwinds from there.

I was really glad to log the back-to-back 300km days with no mechanicals of the body or bike.

I'm hoping to make it to the start line of the Atlas Mountain Race in Morocco on 3 February. It's 1,302km [editor: +20K elevation], fixed route, unsupported, single-stage cycling race and follows gravel, single and double track and old colonial pistes that have long been forgotten and fallen into disrepair. Though I'll need to be doing bigger efforts, over more days with less sleep, this Canberra ride gave me just a little more confidence.

Ian Morrison, preparing for the 2023 Atlas Mountain Race, covering 1,302km and over 20,000m from 3-11 February, in Morocco.

Tour of Sydney 2023

In partnership with Manly-Warringah and Waratah Masters cycle clubs, we're pleased to announce the return of the Tour of Sydney. The Tour will be held over three days on:

  • Friday evening, 17/2 = HART, St Ives

  • Saturday afternoon, 18/2 = Heffron Park, Maroubra

  • Sunday morning, 19/2 = Sydney Dragway, Eastern Creek

Each club will award prize money for each round, with equal prize money for women and men,. In addition, points will be awarded in each grade towards overall female and male winners with over $2,000 up for grabs over the weekend. In addition, you will have the opportunity to be crowned as the winner of the 2023 Tour of Sydney!

Entries for Round 2 at Heffron are now open and we encourage you to register at buncheur.cc/randwick-cc You will need to register on Buncheur separately for Round 1 & register on the day at Eastern Creek for Round 3. Please contact both Manly Warringah CC and Waratah Masters CC for details. Due to capacity restrictions at HART, the points series will apply for Divisions 1 to 3 only. Randwick Cycling is pleased to announce that we will run Division 4 & 5 races at Heffron, and Waratah Masters will run Grades D & E at Eastern Creek, however they will not contribute to the overall points series. Separate races for femmes will be run, subject to starting numbers and capacity limits at each venue.

Will you be the 2023 winner of the Tour of Sydney?

  • The Tour of Sydney will comprise three criterium events held over three consecutive days.

    Each club will host Division 1, 2 and 3 races for both femmes and men. The format of those races is at the discretion of each club (e.g., stand-alone races/divisions; combined races/divisions).

  • Each hosting club reserves the right to assess each rider’s handicap and allocate a rider to compete in the allocated division / grade.

  • Points will be allocated for femmes and men in each grade as follows:

    • 1st place = 9 points

    • 2nd place = 6 points

    • 3rd place = 4 points

    • 4th place = 3 points

    • 5th place = 2 points

    • All other starters = 1 point

    To qualify for series points, riders must compete in all three rounds. Clubs reserve the right to allocate series winners in the event that individual races cannot be held.

    In addition, clubs may allocate BONUS points for Primes - giving you the opportunity to earn wildcard points!

    • Division 1 Femmes and Men (each): 1st = $300; 2nd = $150; 3rd = $75

    • Division 2 Femmes and Men (each): 1st = $200; 2nd = $100; 3rd = $50

    • Division 3 Femmes and Men (each): 1st = $100; 2nd = $50; 3rd = $25

    All prizes will be paid by EFT/PayID. It is the responsibility of the prize winners to make themselves known to club officials in order to claim prizes.

  • Will be at the discretion of each club.

  • All events will be conducted in accordance with AusCycling guidelines and regulations. Any additional regulations will be detailed on Buncheur for Rounds 1 & 2. Riders enter each event at their own risk. All riders are encouraged to read the following:

Welcome from our President, Shane Mattiske

 

Club President, Shane Mattiske

 

We are a club with a long and proud history. Over the past five years, driven by a passionate and experienced committee, we have regenerated our club whilst retaining our long-held traditions.

We’re known as Randwick Cycling. We comprise a good mix of world champions in the velodrome, world and national campions on the road, and a developing competitive CX stream, plus a very healthy, dynamic, and diverse mix of competitive and recreational riders.

Our members value support to achieve personal and team performance goals within a friendly, social and supportive club.

Put simply, Randwick helps social and competitive riders, ride better. 

Ride better captures what we stand for and what we want to be known for. All initiatives are focussed on delivering this simple promise. And this promise is delivered by the values that bind us together:

  • Inspiring – we will develop initiatives to inspire participation and improve performance. 

  • Safety – riding safely is paramount. We must ride within the law and respect our ride captains. 

  • Friendly – we’re here to enjoy our cycling. We should be open and welcoming and encourage and support each other to achieve individual and team goals. 

  • Sportsmanship – we have no wish to ride better at any cost. We must compete fairly, ethically and with respect for fellow riders, volunteers and officials. 

I’m excited about the future. We continue to encourage all our next generation of cyclists – we support our teens to pursue their passion for cycling, and we encourage our juniors and teens to ride better.

Welcome to Randwick Cycling. With a history spanning 120 years, I sincerely believe we will continue to be a major force in amateur cycling in Australia.

Ride better with Randwick