Guyana Cycling Federation’s Annual 3-Stage Cycle Race: Team Foundation trio dominates first day action

Story and photos by Brandon Corlette

Team Foundation made a clean sweep of the first and second stages of the three-stage cycle race yesterday, with Raynauth “Obeah Man” Jeffrey, Akil Campbell and Jamual John being the top riders.

Jeffrey and Campbell stopped the clock at one hour, 47 minutes and 13 seconds in the opening stage of the race – from Corriverton to New Amsterdam, a total of 40 miles.
In the second stage: from the Berbice Bridge junction to Carifesta Avenue in Georgetown, John stopped the clock in two hours, 35 minutes and 35 seconds.

Obean Man Jeffrey, Campbell steal the show
A total of 56 riders, including a five-man team from Suriname and a lone rider from Trinidad and Tobago, contested for honours under cool cloudy conditions, but “Obeah Man” Jeffrey and pre-race favourite Campbell were showstoppers, riding together for most of the race.

The Corentyne Highway was transformed into a veritable stadium, with scores of raucous supporters positioning themselves at every corner to urge on their favourite racers. In approximately four minutes after Jeffrey and Campbell had completed that stage of the race, Deeraj Garbaran pipped Walter Grant-Stuart (fourth), Kemuel Moses (fifth) and Jason Cameron (sixth) to the line. That sprint saw the four riders stopping the clock at one hour, 51 minutes and 28 seconds.

Four minutes and five seconds later, young Arjoon Sookhai came in seventh, after edging away from the peloton. Berbician Mario Washington came in eighth, finishing ahead of second-placed veteran Alex Mendes, who finished ninth overall in the first stage. We Stand United junior rider Alexander Leung then came in tenth.
The race started with Jeffrey taking the lead from the get-go and setting the tone for the race. Eight miles into the race, Jeffrey’s Team Foundation partner Campbell joined him, and the duo left the competition in their wake.
Another Team Foundation rider, Jamual John, was marked throughout the race by Kaieteur Attack riders, while the KFC boys had an ordinary showing in the first stage.
At two hours 11 minutes and 38 seconds, Clevicia Spencer emerged as the top female rider, followed by Denise Jeffrey. Gary Benjamin was the top over-50 wheelsman, finishing the race in two hours and 38 minutes, same time as Jeffrey.

Jamual John shows class in second stage
Jamual John is arguably the most consistent rider in Guyana. After noting that everything went well for him in the first stage, although he failed to gain a top spot, he said his team got the results. However, in the second stage, he was at his best, despite being marked early by Andre “Padlock” Green.
Team Evolution’s Curtis Dey came in second in that second stage, while young Berbician junior rider David Hicks exceeded expectations to ride in third. Akil Campbell came in fourth, stopping the clock at two hours, 39 minutes, while Marus Keiler came in fifth, followed by the impressive differently-abled Walter Grant-Stuart.

Campbell and John stage multiple attacks
After leaving the Mahaica Bridge, John and Padlock broke away from the peloton to meet leaders David Hicks and Dey. The four riders kept firing together, until Padlock was dropped at Melanie, on the East Coast of Demerara. Hicks was then dropped five minutes away from the finish line, but John and Dey powered through.
In the end, John proved to be a better sprinter, outclassing Dey to win the second stage.
After the race, Campbell said Team Foundation had a plan, but did not execute well, although it worked out the best way for the team. Campbell said the second stage was a good race, and the aim was to get John up in the timings, a ploy which worked well. The full results with time of riders will be in the next publication.