The Footscray Cycling Club’s Legends Criteriums were held on Sunday on the fast and furious Drake Boulevard circuit in Altona.
The annual event, held in honour of the late Harry Jones and Hugh Cram, as well as club living legend Frank Zanatta, is hotly contested due to the immense respect club members have for the three club legends and their dedication to cycling in general and the Footscray Cycling Club.
Adding drama to the racing, riders contested two races in one – a single point was awarded to the first rider to finish each lap, the rider with the most points at the end of the races taking the points race prize, while the coveted memorial sash went to the overall winner.
The A-grade race was dominated by incessant breakaways that broke up the bunch, with club criterium and road champion Dom Dudkiewicz taking both the points race and the criterium wins.
But it wasn’t easy, the 32-year-old Melton resident being challenged by Matthias Kiernan and Nick Leonard at every point.
“You don’t often get the pleasure of winning a memorial in the presence of one of the living legends in Frankie Zanatta, so it was a real pleasure,” Dudkiewicz said.
The B-grade race was dominated by a masterful one-man breakaway from Joe Bury, who crushed the point score race, only to be denied the race win by a small margin by 32-year-old Sunbury resident Daniel Standen.
In C grade, veteran FCC racer Bob Shannon rode a measured, strategic race to take the sprint win, with Phil Tehan taking the points race. In D grade, Doug Page secured a win in the points race, with veteran time trial expert Tommy Gray nailing the race victory with a masterful solo break.
