American cyclist, Brian Mussum brought his talents to Guyana and soloed to victory in the feature 30-lap race of the Fireworks 2 Pink Edition event yesterday around the breezy seawall bandstand.
Mussum rode tactically and intelligently for the exciting, sun-baked event which was hosted by the Kaieteur Racing Attack Cycle Club (KARCC).
Riding for the club in their crisp black, blue, red and white racing kit, Mussum stopped the clock in a brisk 1h:09m:14s, earning 19 of the 29 sprint prizes in the process.
He led club mate, Jamual John who out-sprinted the peloton as KARCC defied the odds to finish 1-2 in the fixture.
Briton John finished closely behind to complete the podium while Trinidad’s Enrique De Comamond, Curtis Dey, and Adam Alexander, also of Trinidad filled out the top six rewarding positions.
Mussum and De Comamond established a two-man break from the start of the race and enjoyed the lead which ballooned up to 30 seconds on the 28-man peloton.
De Comamond could not keep up with Mussum’s torrid pace and he eventually was caught by the chase pack with 18 laps to go.
Mussum meanwhile motored on spiritedly but was eventually caught by Guyana’s three best wheelsmen, Briton, Jamual and Dey with 10 laps for the finish.
The four riders rode together until Mussum rose from his saddle and changed gears again with three laps to go. In time-trial mode, he never relinquished the lead as his teammate Jamual was content to sit back and allow him to secure the victory in his debut race in the 592.
During the presentation, Mussum popped champagne on the podium and stated that he was elated to emerge victorious. The 34 year-old further stated that he is eager to return to compete for club.
Meanwhile, Robin Persaud (veteran’s U-50), Alex Leung (Junior), Sidwell Sandy (juvenile) and Abigail Jeffrey (female) triumphed in their respective categories.
The event which was the season finale, was dubbed a success by the brass of the KARCC who also stated that next year the goal is to make the race bigger and better and with a more international flavor.
