April 10/16 22:19 pm - Tour of Pelham Report (Ontario)

Posted by Editoress on 04/10/16
 

Ninety riders took to the start of the 2016 Tour of Pelham on Sunday, April 10th, under mostly sunny skies and a cold wind in Thorold, Ontario. Frozen trails were quickly thawing into a slick surface, promising to provide a challenging 33.5 kilometre course for the riders.

Entering the Steve Bauer rail trail almost immediately after a short 1.3 kilometres on pavement, a select group quickly formed including favourites Nathan Chown (Team CF), Erik Box (Cycles Devinci), Gaelen Merritt (Wheels of Bloor/Graywood Developments) and Lance Johnson from Orchard Park, NY.

By the mid-way point, after many riders suffered flat tires and other mishaps in the trails along the Niagara escarpment, Chown and Box had more than 30 seconds lead over solo chaser Nick Friesen, followed by others in small groups, including Johnson and Grahame Rivers (OCTTO Cycling Team).

The riders entered a cyclocross-style section in Mathias Farms, where Chown opened a small lead over Box. Others in the field described this section with both enthusiasm and disdain, as it proved extremely tough with many climbs through the farm property that had most off their bikes.

Heading to the final off-road section - the McSherry Lane "chute" which riders rode (or walked) up, rather than the traditional downhill direction - Box was closing in, but was unable to bring back Chown before the finish, which follows soon after.

Nathan Chown finished in a time of 1:08.25, for an average speed of 29.4 km/h, with the overall podium completed by Erik Box in second and Nick Friesen third. Ruby West (Centurion Next Wave) was the first Under 19 woman, in a time of 1:26.11, and Lindsay Sferazza (Kallisto-FCV p/b Toyo Tires) was the first 19+ woman, in a time of 1:32.24.

905 Racing would like to thank all who supported the event, including Merrittville Speedway, AutoFX, County Cycle, Honeymaxx, CLIF Bar, Ontario Power Generation, Niagara Regional Police, City of Throld and the Town of Pelham. Plans are already underway for the 2017 edition, along with new course sections and perhaps a finish on the Merrittville Speedway track akin to the well known Roubaix velodrome finish to Paris-Roubaix.

Detailed results (by category)