Cycling: Lily keen to put pedal to metal with adult riders

NO SWEAT: Lily Stephens has no qualms about racing against adults in the Tour of the Bay this Sunday. Photo / Paul Taylor

"You work so hard and the sprint at the end is a thrill." Lily Stephens, Ramblers Cycling Club rider

Lily Stephens may be small in stature, but has a big dose of determination.

The 11-year-old will be unfazed when she lines up against hundreds of men and women this weekend. In fact, she quite likes beating riders older than her.

Lily will be one of the youngest to compete in the 20km race at the annual Strata Group Tour of the Bay this Sunday.

Hundreds of cyclists have entered the 100km and 50km road races around the Tukituki Valley, with more than 40 cyclists from Wellington travelling up for the event.

There are also shorter 20km and 10km rides around Havelock North.

It will be the third time Lily has competed in the event.

At just 5 years old, she was riding to Haumoana School. She soon got involved with the school cycling club run by teacher and step-dad David Barclay.

He has watched her enthusiasm for cycling grow.

Lily has now been racing competitively for a few years.

Earlier this year, she was part of the Havelock Intermediate team that raced in the Hawke's Bay Schools Road Cycling Championship and won the girls under-13 grade.

Last month she was second in the Year 7 girls at the North Island Intermediate Schools Road Cycling Champs at Taupo.

Lily likes to get out in her bike a couple of times a week and races F grade at the Ramblers Club races most weekend. So she is used to racing people of all ages.

She states simply: "I'm not the sort of person that likes to sit around."

Cycling is "exciting" - especially when she beats riders a lot older than her.

However, that's not her main motivation, she likes keeping fit and having fun - "sometimes winning" is an added bonus.

"You work so hard and the sprint at the end is a thrill," she said.

In addition to the road and fun races on Sunday, there will be a BMX demonstration at the new track in Havelock North, on Saturday at 11am. There will also be a timed mountain bike event at Te Mata Peak at 1pm for people to "give it a go", event director Jo Munialo said. The new events would be great "family fun" with lots of spot prizes, Munialo said.

The starting times for the Sunday races had been pushed back till 10.15am so people could watch the All Blacks match.