RUSSELL ELCOCK looks ready to take on the rest of the Caribbean.
Cycling’s time trial record holder set another record yesterday, leading from start to finish while blowing away a 20-man field on the way to victory in an 83-kilometre road race on the Gun Hill, St George circuit.
It was the season’s final event on the road ahead of next month’s much awaited Caribbean Elite Road Championships in Curacao.
And Elcock wasted no time in signalling his intent to the selectors, sprinting away from the peloton on the initial climb up Taitt Hill and Gun Hill before opening a five-minute gap on the descent through Market Hill.
“That was the plan, to attack from the start and hold my own pace,” said the Illugen Graphic Fugen rider.
But without the likes of national champions Jamol Eastmond, Darren Matthews, Jason Perryman and Philip Clarke, the peloton just didn’t have the star power to chase down the freewheeling Elcock, who pushed the lead to ten minutes by the end of the second lap.
“My main competitor Darren Matthews wasn’t here, so I knew I would have gotten the win. I just didn’t know by how much,” said Elcock.
With the members of the chase group clearly content with battling for second place, Elcock eventually finished some 15 minutes ahead of the evergreen Greg Downie and South African Team Excel rider Adam Cripwell, who finished second and third, respectively, in the seniors division.
“I decided to maintain the pace and not to make it such an easy race so I could push myself for the Caribbean Championships,” Elcock explained.
Earlier, G4S Team Swift’s Tremaine Forde-Catwell continued his fine run of form by winning the tiny mite category while Darius Ramsammy of A-Class Batteries Golden Wheelers beat out Excel’s Jacob Kelly for the juvenile crown.
Kelly’s older brother Joshua got the better of Kristin Vanderpool to win the juniors and Edward Julien beat Gregory Austin in the over-35s. John Proverbs was the first over-50 rider to cross the line.
