The Virgin Islands Cycling Federation held its first race of 2023 on Sunday, Feb. 5, on St Croix’s South Shore Road. The Season prologue was held in an individual time trial format in which cyclists are sent off to complete the course at one-minute intervals. Twenty-nine cyclists competed on the 9-mile course, which started at the Divi Hotel and finished at the entrance pillars to Ha’ penny Beach.
Alex Betancourt, an Elite cyclist, posted the fastest overall time (21:56), which was 21 seconds ahead of the second-place finishers. Stephen Swanton and David Parris, also riders in the Elite category, tied for second place.
After taking off a year from competition due to a knee injury, David Morales nudged out Norbert Prospere by 8 seconds for the win in the Expert category. Morales’ time was 23:20; Mario Peters was third in 24:05.
Brian Otis, Mario Butcher and Justin Johnson were the top three finishers in the Sport category, respectively. Roger Hatfield, Renwich Lynch Sr. and Yves Abraham were the top three finishers in the Masters category, respectively.
The VI Cycling Federation is delighted to have women compete in their races, and five women showed up to ride the same course as the men. Julie Sommer’s time of 26:10 was faster than all cyclists in the Sport and Masters categories. Laverne Fredericksen was second in 30:07; Jody Goodrich was third in 30:36.
Randy Williams, a 13-year-old student at Central High School, competed in his first-ever bike race. With his grandfather trailing behind at a distance, Randy climbed the hills of the south and crossed the finish line in 32:38.
The next VICF race is scheduled for 7 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 19.
For more information about cycling in the Virgin Islands, call 643-5050.
