As the third Casey-Cardinia Cycling Festival blew into life at the Casey Fields precinct in Cranbourne, Ex-Pats took the overall victory whilst Weeroona College won almost every other category!

A crack field of 55 vehicles started the event, with a strong showing in Primary, Secondary and Community categories.

"We've had a strong female contingent, which should show good signs for the popularity of the new All Female category in Maryborough." said Assistant Chief Marshall, Dan Mills.
The sky was clear, but the wind blew strong all day - making jackets essential and racing a bit tricky for larger faired vehicles on the 2.2km circuit.

And now for the HPV Racing…

As the field assembled on the grid some 15 minutes late, the front of the field was jumbled to have Bendigo Youth Racing (BYR) and Von Hoff Racing's 'Zebra', on the front row, with the Trisled duo, Ex-Pats and Deakin Uni all tucked in behind them on the second and third rows.

Michael Micallef started in BYR and with Steele Von Hoff - formerly of Peninsula School - it was a drag race for the first series of corners. The Trisleds, Ex-Pats and Deakin all rode at a smooth pace further behind. For the next 3 laps, Micallef formed a small break, but Von Hoff caught him at the ten minute mark and proceeded to put a gap over BYR and the rest of the field. This was also the stage where Trisled pitted with rear wheel issues.

At the 45 minute mark, Micallef pitted - complaining of major understeer on the fast circuit due to the poor quality front tyres. Von Hoff came in at the 1 hour mark and  Trisled's Sorcerer took over the lead - but when the Ex-Pats cruised by three laps later on lap 58 they were looking good and never headed. The advantage appeared to be in favour of smaller vehicles who could cut through the cross wind and maintain high speeds.

"It's fair to say that BYR's change of tyres, Zebra's chain problems and Trisled rear wheel malfunction early in the race cost them all the chance to win. This highlights the cut-throat nature of 6-hr racing, where reliability is everything." - Nigel Preston, Bendigo Youth Racing and RACV Energy Breakthrough Planning Committee

The tight downhill second turn claimed many casualties throughout the event - and Weeroona College's Silver Bullet even smashed through a star picket (see the scratches in the image above) and a number of others made their way into the barbed wire fence. Barriers were eventually put up to cover the fence, but only after a number of significant incidents.

The Weeroona crew and Berwick Secondary College went off the road a number of times, as their riders come to grips with fast cornering in racing conditions.

Trisled (shown top right) enjoyed a strong showing at what could be considered their 'home track'. Ben Goodall was in good spirits, "It's so good that you can see the vehicles the whole way around here - I now time the gaps between competitors rather than their lap times - it's easier that way." The crew finished third and were only one lap behind second placed BYR.

Deakin Uni (below right), on the other hand, failed to enjoy the competitiveness that saw them finish a close second in Adelaide the previous weekend. They ran incident free and finished fourth and ninth, however the Casey Fields track is probably too straight to give their fast cornering abilities a real advantage.

During the middle of the event, the Zebra was struck with chain issues and Trisled and Ex-Pats continued to cruise in spectacular style. The Zebra ended up finishing in fifth place overall.

The Ex-Pats crew are now looking to sell their vehicle in order to raise funds for their 2007 Energy Breakthrough campaign.

For the final 90 minutes it was all Ex-Pats at the front. The riders keeping it on the straight and narrow throughout the challenge. Despite a final surge by the BYR guys, the crew from Ex-Pats Racing had all the answers, lapping in the 2 minute 50 second bracket throughout the event. Even when BYR's final rider, Callan Ridge clocked the fastest lap of the race they were still down by over a lap, and the Ex-Pats had finally joined the winners circle.

Another excellent offering from the Casey Cardinia Cycling Club and John Perrin, David Jagar, Bill Hanks and John & Dan Mills should be congratulated.

About Casey-Fields:
As mentioned in an earlier news story, the Casey Fields precinct is a major undertaking between the Victorian State Government and the City of Casey. The area will be developed over an eight year period, with football, rugby, soccer, tennis, athletics and netball all accommodated alongside cycling. The construction of the cycling circuit has been brought forward and can now be enjoyed by HPV teams and cyclists alike.

Photos and article written by Nigel Preston, Bendigo Youth Racing and RACV Energy Breakthrough Planning Committee.