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Darren Allen humbles rivals
By Franklin Wilson
Darren Allen recorded his first win of the 2009 cycling season in grand style when he pedaled to victory all alone in the Forbes Burnham 85th birth anniversary 36-mile road race yesterday from Carifesta Avenue to Belfield and back. His winning time was one hour 13 minutes 17 seconds.
Roraima Bikers Club Darren Allen with outstretched arms as he about to cross the finish line unchallenged yesterday. (Franklin Wilson photo)
The short and exciting race saw the Roraima Bikers Club member, who also copped seven (7) of the ten (10) prime prizes, opening an unbeatable lead on the downward journey as his colleagues who were trailing played cat and mouse among themselves.
Trailing Allen to the line was veteran Raymond Newton, Warren Mc Kay, junior rider Christopher Holder, Albert Philander and Junior Niles in that order. Mc Kay took two primes while Talim Shaw got the other.
Holder and Philander at one point during the return leg seemed as if they were not going to be in the top six but dug in deep to place among the front runners. The 16 year-old Holder continued his fine form so far this season by winning the junior category ahead of Geron Williams while Newton won the veteran division ahead of Niles and Kennard Lovell.
Riders faced very heavy winds on the upward journey after being sent on their way by Vincent Alexander, a member of the Forbes Burnham Foundation, sponsors of the event.
The heavy wind curtailed early breakaways by riders but as the journey matured that began to change.
Mc Kay aka ‘Forty’ decided that it was time to go on a break all alone at Le Ressouvenir with Allen and Lovell joining him soon after. This move saw the competitors split into three packs.
Alonzo Greaves, who has found the going tough of late and Robin Persaud broke off from the second pack but not for long. Soon after the turn around point at the Belfield car park, the leaders, Allen, Lovell and Mc Kay were sucked in by the second pack.
The top performers at the Forbes Burnham 85th birth anniversary 36 mile road race pose with Mayor Hamilton Green (5th left), Vincent Alexander (2nd right) and President of the Guyana Cycling Federation Hector Edwards (left) following the presentation of prizes.
The final 18 miles, was expected to produce a ding dong battle among the big guns but that did not materialize.
Allen though, was intent on using the wind which was now behind his back to maximum advantage and it paid the required dividends.
He decided to break off again from Enmore leaving his colleagues to play the cat and mouse game as they watched each other. While they did that, Allen consolidated at the front leaving them to battle for the second to sixth place positions.
At the presentation ceremony which was done by Alexander, Mayor Hamilton Green and President of the Guyana Cycling Federation Hector Edwards, Alexander thanked the riders for taking part reminding the athletes that in Burnham’s lifetime he did a lot for sports and its development.
“The Forbes Burnham Foundation which is trying to keep Burnham’s name and ideals alive will see what little we can do as well in sponsoring this event among others on an annual basis.”
Mayor Green in his comments shared that in the ensuing months, the Foundation will seek to get the corporate and private community involved so that next year the winner can be rewarded with a four figure prize.
Green said he has always followed this sport among others very closely and publicly thanked National Coach Hassan Mohamed for his monumental contribution to its development in Guyana.
“Sometimes we wait to put a man in the coffin to say good things about him but he is one of the few men over the 20 years that has been trying to promote cycling in this country. My dream, my hope is that by the next Burnham Foundation event we’ll have the start of a cycling track which he has been after for years so that that our cyclists can be able to have a track so that when they go abroad they can compete.”
Green recalled being at the Pan American Games where Guyana was represented in Cuba back in 1991 and felt for our riders who were at a disadvantage having to ride on a track they had never rode on before.
“The problem is that in Guyana we have a flat surface so cyclists don’t get the exposure they need and I hope that when we get that cycling track, if I’m around and I know that I’ll be around, I will tell the powers that be it should be named after this man (Hassan Mohamed).”
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