BHBC SPORT - Blackwood Hills Baptist Church

MUD, SWEAT & GEARS
TEARS & JOY
BY MATT BAKER
In 2012 Mud, Sweat and Gears mourns the loss of John Williams. John was a popular and well
liked member of the cycling club. He had successfully competed in two King of the Mountain
events (KOM). We remember John with fond memories; we were blessed to share rides, stories
and coffee with him.
KOM 9 was held on March the 12 th this year. Amazingly God gave us yet another wet and
muddy day. Officials were certainly forced to run the event in trying circumstances. Despite the
rain there was a strong field present, with several athletes in the form of their life. In the end,
times were lost due to mud getting in the recording devices. However line honors were clear.
Kyan Chaplin, a previous KOM champion, finished in third place and James Beck, another
young gun, took out second place. However, despite the talented youth and the pressure they
put on the whole field it was the old boys who celebrated yet another win. Adrian Otte took out
the blue ribbon event.
In between races this year it all went down! Whilst training in the Adelaide Hills I was hit by a car.
I managed to pull over at the last minute to avoid a more serious crash. In the end I escaped
with shock and bruising to my right arm. The car raced off dangerously, and I was unable to get
the number plate. At least I was able to report the hit and run to the police.
Also this year, three cyclists managed to have three separate accidents on their way down to
McLaren Vale. Three out of three found their way to hospital! Praise God that Peter Johnson,
Mary Marston and Adrian Otte all survived and made it out of hospital to tell the story!
You could not have had a bigger build up to KOM 10. Form was good for a lot of riders. As usual
predicting a winner was almost impossible. Do you back the youth, who have proved they can
win, or do you look to the old boys for yet another champion. I don’t think anyone was looking to
the faster back runners, but then stranger things have happened in KOM history. In race 8, Brandon
Chaplin managed to get second place, and in race 6, Scott Inveldt also grabbed second
place. Equally as impressive however was Gavin Blieschke’s effort. He also achieved second
place in race 1. So although these talented riders had not yet grabbed a win, I guess you could
never count them out.