Lewis-Enright successfully defends title at nationals
He won the masters 50-54 102km race after finishing sixth in the time trial at the nationals in Oudtshoorn.
At the finish of the 34th Dis-Chem Ride for Sight on February 19, Paul Lewis-Enright still sported a huge smile despite finishing behind the bunch in 35th position in the masters 50-54 category.
He wasn’t bothered by the result because a week earlier in Oudtshoorn he successfully defended his title at the South African National Criterium, Road and Time Trial championships, winning the 102km road race in his category.
On a staggered field that included Gauteng Road Cycling champion Daniel Schutte and multiple South Africa champion Malcolm Lange, whose career spans over 24 years with over 400 elite wins, Lewis-Enright was under immense pressure to produce the goods after his remarkable win in Graskop last year.
He said the presence of Lange in particular, threw the spanner in the works but it also helped him as it took the pressure off him.
“We had a field of 70 talented riders. People were deflecting because of the big names on the list. That took the pressure off me.
“There were lots of people trying to get into my head in the days leading to the competition. But I kept to myself and I want to thank my team, TEG Actop, for rallying behind me. That certainly made things easy for me,” he said.
The 50-year from Rynfield, who admitted he doesn’t enjoy finishing in a sprint, deployed a similar strategy to the previous year when he pulled away from the peloton midway through the race.
He launched his attack on the latter stages of the three-lap 102km race, opening a three minutes gap to eventually win by miles.
“I’m a long range rider. I like to break away. I don’t like to come to the finish with a gallop,” he said. “It was a difficult first lap for me. The guys were watching me. Malcolm Lange had made a comeback so I could feel the pressure.
“The second lap felt a lot better. With 40km left on the last lap, I put in a hard attack. I looked back and couldn’t see the group. I opened up a gap and eventually won,” he said.
Gautier took the second wheel while Jaco Fouchè was third. Lewis-Enright finished sixth in the 20km time trial.
He’s got a staggered roster this season and has urged authorities to fix the potholes on the roads, saying they are a danger to cyclists.
“I’ve got lots of races this year. We hope the guys repair the roads. Some races have been cancelled because of the conditions of our roads.”
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