With the UCI Grand Fondo World Championship in Perth next weekend, the Peel Districts Cycling Club race at Serpentine on Saturday attracted riders from New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Israel wanting a final hit out before the big race next Sunday.
The visitors and locals alike faced typical winter racing conditions, light showers and a howling westerly wind that made racing challenging.
A-grade broke apart in the crosswinds, with riders spread over the course on the seventh of eight laps, with seven of 16 starters retired and five individual riders chasing the four man leading group.
Matt Peterson attacked the leading group, the three chasers worked hard to bring Peterson back in the final stages.
In the sprint it was Peterson taking the win from Paul Miller second and Luke Banham third.
As usual, the largest bunch was B-grade and they stayed together, chasing down every attack until the fifth lap, when Paul Prottey and Nick Churchill got away.
The pair worked hard and managed to stay away, with Prottey taking the win from Churchill.
Martin Albtrecht took the bunch sprint to claim third.
Without the usual visitors from Midland Cycling Club, who were running their own race at Pickering Brook on Sunday, the numbers were down in the lower grades.
With only a single rider in D and E-grade, they started with C-grade.
E-grade’s Cameron Hvala struggled on the first section with the headwind up the narrow and bumpy Gull Road.
He quickly got separated from the group. Hvala showed determination and finished the four-lap race alone.
Ashton Sime, the sole D-grade rider, held C-grade down Gull Road and then through the challenging crosswinds of Rapids Road only to lose contact as the bunch accelerated away along Karnup Road with a tailwind.
Sime did not complete his five laps as he was racing the next day at Pickering Brook.
C-grade was a race of attrition, with only four riders contesting the finish it was Tim Watson first, Nick Cowie second and Oliver Bleddyn third.
For the full results or details of next week’s race at Casuarina visit pdcc.asn.au