THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 6, 1995 TAG: 9508050081
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MICHAEL KESTNER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
The precise whirr of chains sliding quickly past cogs and gears was challenged by the sound of labored breathing as lungs strained for a share of the humid Isle of Wight air on a recent Sunday morning. More than 40 cyclists, many from Virginia Beach, representing 10 area cycling teams, were competing for a share of the Tour of Tidewater points.
Traveling to the rural outskirts of Hampton Roads for the event, the brightly clad cyclists and often odd-looking bicycles were scattered in the parking lot at Smithfield High School and over more than 15 miles of adjoining county roads that made up the time-trials course. That day, Carrollton-Nike Park and the sparsely traveled roads surrounding it became the fifth and final stage of the race.
Tucked virtually unnoticed among the ranks of sweating cyclists were five members of the Ukraine National team. The riders had incorporated little or no English in their Russian dialect, but they had no trouble communicating with the two-wheeled vehicles they rode with devastating efficiency.
Ukrainian Anatoli Tohoubar won the five-part race.
The Isle of Wight Sheriff's Department directed traffic in congested areas of the course. Otherwise, the lack of traffic and the county's rural beauty have attracted thousands of leisure and competitive cyclists to the area. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by MICHAEL KESTNER
Joshua Goyet becomes something of a blur as he finishes the last few
yards of the time trial.
Megan Bartuli relaxes on a blanket while cyclists line up behind her
for their chance on the time-trial course.
by CNB