Newcastle Hunter Cycling Club

Volunteers wanted!

NHCC is hosting the 2026 Junior Road State Championships on the 15 and 16 of August at HEZ

We are looking for volunteers to help with cleaning the track on Friday and assist with the running of the event on the weekend. AusCycling are in charge of coordinating the event with assistance from NHCC.

We are looking for volunteers to assist with the following:
- Friday 14 August (2.30-4.00pm) blow and sweep the course, general tidy up. The course was looking pretty good on Saturday 8th August, and if we don't get any rain the track clean up will be pretty quick.
- Saturday and Sunday - Set up NHCC marquee, and sign on desk from 8.00am, final course clean up, assistance with marshalling (all day)
- Friday, Saturday and Sunday pick up toilets from Rutherford, and delivery to HEZ on Saturday and Sunday, take home to storage and return to hire company on Monday (will need car with tow ball)

If you are available to assist please send a message to the club and we will allocate roles.

Thanks,
(Justin Sauvage)

2026 AusCycling Juniors & Masters Road State Championships - NSW | AusCycling The AusCycling Juniors & Masters Road Championships for New South Wales is the pinnacle junior and masters road event

Huge congratulations to NHCC rider Lucie Fityus - Lucie more than survived last nights epic queen stage to Mont Ventoux. All the best for the final two stages from all your supporters at NHCC

Handicapper’s Report

Congratulations to Gibson Jerusalem who is now in A Grade. This is a great effort given the current size and strength of B Grade. Gibson has worked very hard for his promotion.

The Handicapping Committee has considered those riders in C grade who have enough points to move up or are otherwise placing regularly. Given the smaller numbers in C Grade, the Committee will not immediately regrade these riders. If you do wish to be regraded, speak to anyone on the Committee.

Finally, the Handicapping Committee is trying to provide more flexibility than in previous years. However, if you have elected to race in a lower grade for whatever reason and you place in your first race in the lower grade then you will really raise the ire of the Committee. Let’s not do that.

Newcastle Hunter Cycling Club
Scratch Races HEZ 01/08/2026

Race report and results

Forty-Five riders assembled to race graded scratch races with the Newcastle Hunter Cycling Club on Saturday 01/08/2026. Whilst it was raining cats and dog on the coast in the morning, the weather gods were kind inland, allowing the riders to race under clear blue skies. A steadily building North Easterly wind made for tough racing.

Thanks go to Commissaire Chris Groves, First Aid officer James Crew and Lauretta Mellow and her able assistant doing the sign in and lap counting duties. As the bringer of the stuff, I will be writing out a hundred time “I promise to be on time next time”.

Whilst the racing was hard, a highlight of the afternoon was the encouragement riders gave to each other across the grades.

In A grade, after four neutral laps, triathlete Michael Picken decided to go up the road with Tom Burton in tow. Behind Grant Soutar, Boston Gillanders and Sebastian Chalhoud attempted a chase. The rest of the field succumbed. Matthew Johns showed dogged determination to finish the race in fifth position.

The realignment of the B and C grades appeared to work. In B grade Derrin Lee and Paul Amidy were the most combative, going off the front, several times. In the end it came down to a bunch sprint, and the man who possesses a classic sprint and the most legal variations of his name, Nikos Xipteras, took the win.

Several B graders generously elected to race in the C grade Bunch. This had the desired effect of increasing the size of the bunch and the pace. Club Captain and Handicapper, Grant Beattie rode with panache. The old War horse Bryan Atkins rode a powerful race and although he is loaved to return to B grade he could not help but get third place. The star of the Grade was Sam Welbourne who broke away several times and deserved his strong first place.

In D grade the stalwarts of the club were left to ride a coordinated three-man time trial as Ethan Graber, a strapping young man decided he would ride away into C grade next week. David Bowen never gave up.

Last but not least junior Lim Harrison rode with determination and style to compete his assigned laps.

Thanks go to everyone for a great afternoon of club racing.

Results as recorded
A Grade
1st Michael Picken 2nd Tom Burton 3rd Boston Gillanders
B Grade
1st Nikos Xipteras 2nd Trevor Eggins 3rd Gibson Herusalem
C Grade
1st Sam Welbourne 2nd Nathan Johns 3rd Bryan Atkins
D Grade
1st Ethan Graber 2nd Ross Murdoch 3rd Alan Bradley

Around the Traps

Congratulations of Jonathan Farley who won the Sydney and Country Road titles at the Lansdowne Criterium centre today. Farley covered 90.21 km and climbed 931m, at an average speed of 41km/hour before unloading a blistering sprint to take the win.

Good news! At last the club kit that members have ordered will be available for collection at Saturday’s race. Yet another reason to get your entry in.

Weather is looking perfect for racing on Saturday, get your entry in online to make sign-on easier and save a few $$.
Anyone able to help at the sign-on desk and count laps would be welcome.

Fantastic to see Lucie Fityus lining up again at the Tour de Femmes - from everyone locally all the best - we know you’ll do yourself and all your supporters proud

Team Picnic PostNL reveal Tour de France Femmes squad - Team Picnic PostNL With the Vuelta and Giro behind them, the Women’s peloton head to Switzerland for the Grand Départ of this year’s final Grand Tour showdown at the Tour de France Femmes. A race the team has fond memories from, with multiple stage wins and the white jersey classification, they head to the 2026 e...

Entries open for racing this Saturday. ENTER NOW
https://www.buncheur.com/newcastle-hunter-cc-nhcc-hez-road-race-18-9

Not racing but available to assist. We need assistance taking entries and counting laps. Let us know.

2026 AusCycling Masters Men Esports Championships.

Congratulations to all of our riders who qualified to race in the 2026 AusCycling Masters Men Esport Championship. To qualify riders had to complete at least two races of the AusCycling esports club series competition. It should be noted that the Newcastle Hunter Cycling club’s online team came 2nd to the Vikings cycling club in the recent series. Well done.

The Masters Championship race was two laps of the Mywhoosh’s City Reef circuit -a total of 27.7km. There is no freewheeling online – it is a full gas effort from the gun to the finish. Hence 27km is a worthy Championship distance. The age categories were given different coloured jerseys. The mass start was like an Ethiopian marathon training run, executed by colourful lean Teletubbies on bicycles racing into the acid trip landscape of the Mywhoosh virtual reality. However, the pain and suffering was real.

Jason English proved he is our club’s online champion coming in fifth overall and first in his 45-49 age category. Luke Kendall came in second. Scott Coxon rode strongly to get the national masters esport championships bronze medal in the 50-54 age division.

Abdel Elshiekh won the gold medal outriding the Darryl Cram in the masters men 70-74 age category. Fantastic result Adbel.

Online racing is still in its infancy and will going get better and better. Have crack at the esports Masters championships race next year.

Arthur Snow
Club President