It was a good Saturday for the Wanganui Cycling Club's sponsor Cyclesport NZ, as active company employees picked up two wins and a third placing.
Stefan Bourke, who is the company IT administrator, broke through for a deserved maiden win in the C grade race, while national sales manager Bevan Cheatley added to his fine record with victory in the 42km combined A-B grade handicap.
Company mechanic Shaun Tucker finished close up in third place behind Cheatley, while Dave Collins and Graeme Cox both long time Cyclesport staff members also put in strong efforts in the main race.
Company boss Ron Cheatley could afford to be well pleased with the turnout and efforts of his team, as they were all riding Trek bikes for which Cyclesport is the New Zealand distributor.
There were seven riders contesting the mass start 30km C-grade race from Durie Hill School out to a 15km turnaround past Fordell with return.
A stiff easterly headwind made life difficult on the outward leg.
Shortly after the halfway point Bourke, Debbie Cain and Dean Blackwell had gone clear of their rivals and with the wind behind them they were never going to be pegged back.
At the line Bourke, the youngest of the leading trio, unleashed an impressive burst of speed which saw him win.
Cain, as determined as ever, fought on strongly for her second placing just ahead of the ultra-consistent Blackwell in third.
After a gap, Joseph Loveridge-Mills and Damien Hussey came home fourth and fifth respectively.
Twenty-eight riders fronted up for the A and B-grade event to race out beyond Fordell to the top of Reid's Hill and back, with a deviation down Warrengate Rd on the return journey.
Cheatley's scratch group handled the windy conditions better than the opposition and made some serious in-roads in the gap to those ahead of them as they charged out towards the turnaround.
Meantime, Tucker's break group had reeled in the second break before the turn as the field started to fragment under pressure.
The scratch riders then picked up Tucker and company on the first part of Warrengate Rd and began to look threatening.
Up front, the limit group had worked fairly cohesively on the way out, but was down to four by the top of the climb just after the turn.
The leaders Michael Wright, Dan Richards, Marty Hewson and Marcia Goode stayed together until the turning point on Warrengate Rd, when Wright and Richards went clear until they in turn were picked up by Cheatley and company as they rounded the corner back on to No2 Line for the homeward run.
With good riders such as Cheatley, Brent Bismark, Adrian Pettit, Adam Gosney and Pat Johnstone forcing the pace, the main group had done some serious damage on the undulating return along Warrengate Rd and there were dropped riders strung out in ones and twos behind them.
Back on No2 Line with a tailwind and plenty of willing workers, the new lead group settled in for a swift return to the finish.
Along the way Tucker who is the fittest he has been since his days as a top junior attacked several times without getting away while teenagers Boaz Darby and Lewis Bunker also had a crack, though they too were soon brought to heel.
Approaching the finish, Cheatley had things under control his final sprint once again too good for his rivals.
Bismark has quickly come back to good form and chased Cheatley all the way for second.
Tucker was right alongside in third spot after putting in a great ride and will win one soon.
Gosney battled on well for fourth with Darby doing well for fifth.
Cassie Cameron building up for a summer campaign showed she has come back well with a handy sixth.