WATCH: Scott and Bone claim first elite career wins at Ride for Sight

Benonian Bradley Scott and Lisa Bone clinched their first elite cycling victories when they walked away with the men’s and women’s 116km race titles during the 35th Dis-Chem Ride for Sight at Boksburg Stadium on February 18.
Scott clocked 02:33:22 to win the men’s race, and Bone won the women’s race after hitting the tape in 03:03:52.

Men
The 47-strong elite men got out of the blocks huddled together in a bunch, but 30km in, a group of eight broke away from the peloton. It was a move that allowed Scott and his team, Honeycom Pro-cycling from Northmead, to execute their strategy.

They stuck with the breakaway, and with 20km to the finish, Scott and experienced campaigner Kent Main cleared from the leading bunch to make it a two-horse race, which the former won with a sprint finish, punching his fist into the air while crossing the line for his first elite pro win.

“I sat on his wheel until the finish and was able to out-sprint him at the end. It’s a privilege to be here and take my first elite win. Thanks to my team at Procycling Honeycomb. It’s been a good break,” he said.

The Farrarmere Primary School alumnus attributed the win to his training in December and the provincial and national road and time-trial championships, saying it gave him good legs coming into the race.

He commended his teammates for doing the hard yards and sticking to their strategy to ensure he won, adding that once the strong men split from the peloton, there was less firepower from the bunch to close the gap.

“It’s a blessing that my teammates Jaco van Dyk, Casper Kruger and I were in the breakaway. From there, the strategy fell into place. I did less work in the breakaway, and the guys destroyed themselves for me to win. I’m very grateful,” Scott said.
Main got the second wheel after crossing the line a minute behind Scott, while Christiaan Klopper completed the top three in 02:33:50.

Women’s race
It was a clean sweep for Sandton City Cycle Nation in the women’s race as Bone, who only started racing last year, claimed top honours and her teammates, multiple national champions and Olympians Jo van de Winkel and Carla Oberholzer, came second and third, respectively.

After sticking with the peloton early in the race, Van de Winkel broke away from the bunch. With no one challenging her, Bone joined in, and they held a two-minute lead going into Heidelberg.

The second half of the race was a breeze for the duo when the flatness of the route allowed them to race unchallenged for large parts until Bone secured her first career win with a sprint finish to beat Van de Winkel by milliseconds.

Oberholzer took the third wheel in a time of 03:09:50.

“It was tough. I knew from the beginning there was pressure because my teammates were all working for me. Jo made a break in the beginning, which wasn’t actually the plan for her to keep it. But no one tried to bridge the gap until I went over, and the two of us just made the pace and kept it,” Bone said.

She thanked veteran racers Van de Winkel and Oberholzer for their mentorship and guidance, saying, “It’s an unbelievable feeling. I started racing with my teammates last year. Since then, I’ve grown and learnt so much from them”.

Van de Winkel, who represented SA in the 2012 London Olympics, said she was elated to see her protégé win.

“It was my turn to give back to other people. I’ve been in the sport for many years. I did the Olympics in 2012. Since then, I’ve become a mom. Now, my focus is to help and mentor some of the riders. It gives me great pleasure to do that,” she said.

Scott pleaded with the community to keep supporting Ride for Sight because of the good work done by Retina SA to fight retinal blindness.

“We are grateful people keep pitching for such races, raising the money, which goes a long way. We are grateful we can play a part in that, too,” he said.

For the full results, go to https://results.finishtime.co.za

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