National junior cyclist, Jyme Bridges Jr. recorded his third straight victory in as many starts thus far in the 2010 cycling season when he captured the J&J Auto Service Centre and Frank B. Armstrong (Lucozade) 16-mile Individual Time Trial put on by the Antigua and Barbuda Cycling Association (ABCA) on Sunday.
Competing in the A Class of the event where he staved off challenges from some of the country’s top riders to include veteran Robert Marsh, Bridges crossed the finish line in a time of 35 minutes and 51 seconds to shatter the previous record of 36 minutes and 19 seconds and walk away with his third consecutive medal.
Last season’s Cyclist of the Year, finished ahead of Marsh who clocked a time of 36 minutes and 35 seconds to finish second while Dale Richardson was third in a time of 37 minutes and seven seconds. Cosmos Richardson and Marvin Spencer were fourth and fifth respectively in the A Class.
In the B Class, veteran Timothy Thomas produced a time of 39 minutes and 14 seconds to pedal away with top honours ahead of Wayne Henry who had a time of 40 minutes and 47 seconds.
Alvin Merrick captured the bronze medal in the B Class when he clocked a time of 41 minutes and 14 seconds.
The lone female competing in the time-trial, Dorothy Graham, finished her required eight miles of riding in a time of 26 minutes and 28 seconds.
President of the ABCA, Cliff Williams, said the event was a huge success as the public turned out in numbers to support the athletes and the association alike.
“The event showed that the sport is rapidly gaining popularity as we saw a much larger turnout of supporters who just keep growing bigger with every meet. The athletes themselves were very eager to get out there and compete and delivered in the end so it was a good meet,” he said.
The race started at the Police Recreation Grounds (PRG) and headed up the Factory Road and to the Pares roundabout. The riders followed the same route back to the ARG before repeating it to complete the race and finishing back at PRG.
The individual time trial is recently becoming one of the most popular type of races amongst the cyclist, as it measures the individual strength and speed over a distance for a rider.
