The heat and hills added to the already challenging bike course of the East End Road Race on Sunday morning. The Virgin Islands Cycling Federation opened the event at Cramer’s Park and finished with a hilltop climb up Point Udall.
The Elite group was faced with three laps around St. Croix’s east end (47 miles) and also a trip to the top of Point Udall on lap two. Also on lap two, a cash prime (pronounced ‘preem’) was awarded to the fastest to the top of Grassy Point. Stephen Swanton, the Elite cyclist with the most wins this season, reached the top of Grassy Point ahead of the rest of the field and won the prize sponsored by LNL Publishing.
In the short (hilly) distance from Grassy Point to Point Udall, Alex Betancourt overtook Swanton and came through the hilltop checkpoint over one minute ahead of the prime champ. Just about 45 seconds behind Swanton, Joey Swanson looked strong on the Point Udall climb on lap 2. The three top cyclists kept their racing order on lap 3, allowing Betancourt to cross the finish line uncontested in a time of 2:29:32. Swanton was second in 2:34:36; Swanson was third in 2:36:41.
Several cyclists had specific goals for the 29-mile Expert race. STX340 teammates Narian Gentius and Cumber Greaux worked together to command the group from the start. Although Gentius earned the cash prime up Grassy Point on the first lap, it was Greaux who won the two-lap race in a time of 1:40:57. Gentius was second in 1:42:04; Miguel Cruz was third in 1:45:13.
There was a “clean sweep” again from the Mango Tree Riders (MTR) in the Sport division. With just one lap around the east, the Sport riders had no time to relax. MTR Lucien Lake earned the Grassy Point prime and also won overall the 16-mile race in 58:46. MTR Teammate Ted Prosper was second in 58:48; Mario Butcher was third.
Starting with the Sport riders, three women tackled the hilly one-lap course as well. Catherine Seguin, who has taken some time off from training, dug deep to haul herself up Grassy Point to grab the cash prime. She remained ahead of Laverne Fredericksen and Amber Harhen, respectively, for the rest of the race and finished in first place in a time of 1:02:15.
The next races on the VICF schedule is the VI National Championship Time Trial on Saturday, Aug 14, and the VI National Championship Road Race on Sunday, Aug 15. Call 643-6420 for more information.
