CHARLESTOWN, Nevis – THE second annual St. Kitts and Nevis National Cycling Championship was successfully completed last weekend and saw Reggie Douglas and Katherine Bertine retaining their titles as the nation’s top male and female, respectively.
While last year’s event was held exclusively in Nevis, the 2010 hosting was split between the twin islands, with the 21km (13 miles) Individual Time Trial being held in St. Kitts on the West Basseterre Bypass road and the 65km (40 miles) Road Race in Nevis.
Saturday (June 19) in St. Kitts saw a heated race between the Elite males, as Douglas barely fended off a challenge from James Weekes to retain his 2009 title. The two men were in tight competition through the final lap, but Douglas maintained good form and was able to finish a mere two seconds ahead of Weekes.
Also claiming titles at the Individual Time Trials were Bertine in the Elite females, Assim Chapman and Sasha Lloyd in the Junior category, Kurtis Huggins for the Cadets and 76-year-old Gordon ‘Doc’ Avery in the Masters category.
The following day the racers returned to Nevis for the grueling Road Race course, which began at the Best Buy supermarket in Gingerland and took them up Ponds Hill, back down to Maddens and then up the daunting Zion Hill before coming back to Best Buy for one lap.
During the four laps undertaken by the Elite riders, Douglas was challenged by George Varhola, who was visiting from the United States. Varhola broke off early and took the lead, which caused Douglas, Weekes and other top local riders to choose between giving chase or falling out of contention from the start.
The 32-year-old Douglas was eventually able to overtake Varhola and then shake Weekes in the latter half of the race to win back-to-back double titles at the National Championship.
Bertine also saw a challenge in the Elite females coming from Monica Ceccon, but she maintained her composure throughout the race and was able to finish with her double championship.
In the Junior and Cadet categories, Chapman, Lloyd and Huggins all gained their respective double titles, while Jaime Holmes proved too much for Avery and prevented his Masters double.
Following the races, the SKN Cycling Federation issued its congratulations to all of the participating riders and to the Traffic Department for its “invaluable help” in making the competition safe for everyone.
Special thanks were also given to “Collette, Penny and Marecia” for timing the races.
