LOCAL cyclists will be very active this weekend as two cycling programmes are planned for Saturday and Sunday in two different areas of Guyana.The first event will be an 11-race programme billed for the National Park in Georgetown and organised by national cycle coach Hassan Mohamed.
The second programme is a 50-mile road race planned for the Corentyne Coast, Berbice, on Sunday and this race is being organised by the Flying Ace Cycle Club.
The feature event on Saturday will be a 35-lap race which is open to schoolboys, novices and invitational riders and this promises much excitement, as most of the country’s top riders are already back on their saddles and are expected to face the starter. They include Geron `The Lone Soldier’ Williams, Marlon `Fishy’ Williams, Raynauth `Obeahman’ Jeffrey, Raul Leal, Romelo Crawford and Andrew Hicks among others.
While Saturday’s activity will be Mohamed’s first programme for the year, it is not the opening of the 2016 cycling season event since the Flying Ace Club has already staged two 40-mile road races. Both were staged on the Corentyne Coast and both were won by Berbician Romelo Crawford.
However, Mohamed who organised more than 40 National Park and road race programmes last year is the leading cycle race organiser in Guyana and has been for over two decades.
On Saturday also, races are on the cards for BMX boys and girls cyclists ranging from six to 12 years old, two five-lap events for veterans under and over 50 years of age as well as 10-lap race for juveniles and a three-lap race for boys and girls 12-14 years of age.
Meanwhile, Romelo Crawford currently heads the Guyana Cycle News points standing in both the senior and junior categories with 20 and 10 points respectively.
He is followed by Alonzo Ambrose (13), Jeban Crawford (8), Junior Niles (8), Marlon Williams (7), Paul DeNobrega (6) and Andrew Hicks (4) in the senior category.
In the junior category, Hicks is second with six points while Deeraj Garbarran is placed third with four points.