Sunday September 20 saw the 2009 Pengana 2009 Goulburn to Citi Cycle Classic run and won. The weather was great and atmosphere exciting as the cycling event rolled through. This year there were 176 entrants and 20 teams.
The race was preceded by a charity ride of 120 riders led by Simon Poidevin, with the hope of raising $200,000. This year the ride included an 80km start at Mittagong for women.
The charity ride heading out of Picton towards Razorback set a cracking pace
As the race proper rolled through Picton in 3 separate packs, a group of us offered water bottles to the riders, so they could rehydrate before tackling Razorback. After the race had passed we headed across to Camden to see the finish.
Camden main street was in festival mode with a street fair run by the Lions Club. The main street was closed to traffic and the street was lined with stalls. Circus performers, clowns and many children’s favourite characters entertained the crowd. (Photos at end of post )
The barriers along the finish straight were lined with people and, as the lead bunch thundered across the line the crowd went wild.
The clock was stopped at 3:45:31 (a 21 minute race record!) by Richard Lang from the Budget Forklift Team, 2nd was Jonathon Cantwell and 3rd Bernard salzberger, both from team Fly V Australia.
NSW Premier Nathan Rees and the Member for Wollondilly, Phil Costa were among the VIP’s on hand to present the winners with their prizes. Mr. Rees also presented a cheque to the race organising committee on behalf of the NSW State Govt. for $20,000 as official sponsors.
A poor photo of Richard Lang about to cross the finish line
2nd and 3rd across the line
Nathan Rees has a chat with Phil Costa
Winner of Division 2 Benjamin Harvey
KOM Winner, Peter McDonald of Team Drapac Porsche is presented by Nathan Rees and Lauren
Richard Lang, Jonathon Cantwell and Bernard Salzberger on the podium
The winning team Budget Fork Lifts
Children's characters and circus performers created a festive mood while the crowd waited to see the final dash for the line.
