No one has dominated cyclo-cross like Robin Seymour and he looks set to win the championship for the ninth time in a row at Lurgan Park tomorrow (12.0).
Seymour's expertise is further emphasised by the fact that he has also won the mountain bike title each year since the event was introduced in 1994. As a build-up to tomorrow's championship Wallace McNaul has run off a series of cyclo-cross handicap events at northern venues in recent weeks. With Seymour involved in the final Olympic qualifying races in the US, at Louisiana and Tennessee, Alastair Martin won the first two at Ballymoney and again at Giants Causeway.
Last Saturday, however, Seymour returned for the final event at Ballymena and won by a minute and 39 seconds from Martin.
Seymour won the title last year at Craigavon by over three minutes from Martin and, barring a mishap, he should make it nine in a row.
The other attractive end of the year promotion, the hamper race at Carrick-on-Suir, will be on December 19th. This year's event reverts to the old style handicap with no leisure run beforehand as in recent years. "It will be over five laps of the five miles Arrigan's Boreen circuit and then 10 times around the town centre," said Sean Kelly.
Kelly, still looking lean and fit, added that he expects to be let off with a good allowance this time: "An old veteran like me should have odds of at least five or six minutes on the present crop of good young racing men." Coaching Director Paddy Doran expects a good attendance at his coaching seminar tomorrow and Sunday at the Emmaus Conference Centre in Swords.
