Pollock takes dream win in Melbourne to Warrnambool Classic

Albury cyclist Rhys Pollock (Drapac Porsche Cycling) fulfilled an 11-year dream with a courageous victory in the Torq Melbourne to Warrnambool Classic.

Pollock first rode the classic in 1999 and was so struck by its status that he admitted he had dreamt of winning it ever since.

“For me, this is the ultimate dream,” Pollock said as he was mobbed by his Drapac team-mates immediately after the victory.

Pollock, 30, defeated Mark O’Brien (RACE Fenton Green) and young Tasmanian Tom Robinson (Genesys Wealth Advisers) in brutally-tough conditions which saw riders racing in nearly eight hours over the 262km slog.

The 212-rider field was battered by head and cross winds of up to 60km an hour and occasional driving rain.

The three major place-getters broke away from the main peloton at Lake Bullen Merri, Camperdown, after O’Brien won the Wyndham City Victorian 200km championship, held in conjunction with the classic.

The conditions took a huge toll on the riders with some 50 punctures recorded and the field spread out over 60kms. Only 93 competitors completed the course.

As he spurted clear of the unlucky O’Brien, who punctured at the 250km mark and then chased and regained the leaders, Pollock raised his arms in triumph and unleashed a jubilant scream upon crossing the finish line in Warrnambool’s Raglan Parade.

“This is the best one-day race in Australia and to win it is beyond my wildest dreams but it has been a goal for the past 11-years,” Pollock added.

The rangy Pollock mixes professional cycling with studing for a degree in building design at the Albury College of TAFE.

He has enjoyed an excellent 2010 road season, wearing the leader’s jerseys for extended periods in the five-day GMHBA Tour of Geelong in August and also in the six-day Caterpillar Undergrounding Mining Tour of Tasmania last month.

He won the snow and hail-pummelled Strahan to Rosebery stage of the Tassie tour.

“The Warrnambool” was a triumph for Pollock’s five-man Drapac team. Bendigo’s David Pell won the City Memorial Bowls Club king of the mountains championship and team-mate Thomas Palmer, of Canberra, took the SEW Eurodrive sprint title.

The classic, first held in 1895, started at Werribee Racecourse and passed through 28 towns and locations before ending at Warrnambool. 

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