Cyclists from near and far are looking forward to the seventh annual Raymond Jarratt Handicap, to be held on Sunday, February 26.
The event is part of the Riverina Points Score series of five races.
Wagga Wagga, Cobram-Barooga, Albury-Wodonga, Tolland and Griffith cycling clubs will all host an event at their home venues.
This year will see a new course being used, with the addition of the Yarrawonga Berrigan Rd.
It is an out and back course of 54km on an ideal surface for cycle racing. Permits are issued by councils enabling these events to be held.
The event is named in honour of golden haired local “Postie” Raymond Jarratt.
He has dedicated his life to the sport, having raced at a very high level for many years, but owing to a health issue is no longer able to compete, and has now taken on a role as a commissaire.
He has been Cobram Barooga Cycling president for more than 20 years, and hopes to remain in the sport for quite a while yet.
Several locals have won the event, with Numurkah’s Dermot Nichols a dual winner. Not to be outdone, his brother Robert took out last year’s staging, with now retired Cobram rider Bevan Humphries victorious in 2021.
He achieved a lot, racing over a period of 40 years, and has won such prestigious races as the Wagga to Albury and the Syd Demmery Handicap at Wagga. He also had victories overseas.
In 1995 he took out the VVCC Aggregate as the best performed rider in the state, winning many Victorian and South Pacific titles, as well as innumerable club championships.
He has most likely ridden a bicycle more than a million kilometres, training, racing and in his job as a postman. A few years ago he claimed to have ridden 30,000km in a calendar year.
Winning a Cobram Courier/Sporties Sportstar of the Year award a few years ago was a highlight.
It is seen by all who follow cycle racing as a fitting reward for all the time the humble champion has invested in the sport, to have a race named in his honour.