Tropical Power Coast 2 Coast 2008

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Within Sight of Tobago

Clay Abney / 19.10.2008

Racers from over 10 countries made their way to the start line on Saturday, October 18 for the 4th annual Tropical Power Coast to Coast Race.



Keep in mind as you read this report that June-December is the rainy season and that October is reported to be one of the hottest months. The heat combined with the high level of humidity here makes even summers in the southern United States seem mild.



The race began at 6am near the Toco lighthouse for a 2km rainy, pre-dawn run to where the bikes were located. From there, the racers set out on their \'road bikes\' for a 40km ride along the northeastern coast of the island (Tobago is visible from this vantage point). I use the term \'road\' loosely as the surface in some areas was more representative of what I might call off-road and better suited for a mountain bike (or at the very least-cyclocross). I positioned myself on the last downhill slope heading into the TA. From here, I was able to ascertain how the riders had fared on the ride (i.e. pot holes, wet roads, etc...). It was obvious that a number of the riders had gone down on at least one occasion as evidenced by the appearance of some \'battle scars\'.



I spoke to Jessica Koelsch (USA) as she apprached the TA. I knew she was a much faster rider than this as she was at the back of the pack. \"I had two spills on my bike on replaced two tubes due to punctures,\" said Koelsch. \"One of the punctures occured no more than 100 meters from the start of the bike leg.\"



\"I have never had 3 punctures on a ride until here,\" stated Neil Gellately (New Zealand).



The top 3 into the TA were Richard Ussher (NZ), Linford Blackwood (Trinidad) and Martin Flinta (Sweden). Neil Gellately (NZ) was 27th heading into the TA (3 punctured tubes). He was approximately 25 minutes behind the leaders. This will be revisited before the end of Day 1.



From here the bikers transitioned to the trail running portion of the race. This is a 32km section taking the runners from Matelot to Blanchisseuse. The road leading into the TA (from bike to trail running) was the terminal end and would therefore require the support crews to drive more than 3 hours to get to the finish line for Day 1 (Stage 2).See All Event Posts