Christchurch Teenager Takes out Forrest Grape Ride

Christchurch teenager Josh Atkins surprised to take out the sprint to win the third round of the RaboPlus national road in Marlborough today.

Atkins out-sprinted a leading bunch of nine riders to claim the victory in The Forrest Graperide today, clocking 2hr 22 for the 101km race.

The event went from the Forrest Estate Winery in Renwick on the outskirts of Blenheim, north to Picton, Queen Charlotte and Pelorus Sounds and return.

A group of nine riders went clear in the men’s race including Atkins, top track rider Jason Allen and national time trial champion Gordon McCauley.

Atkins, a member of the New Zealand team to last year’s junior world championships and a former secondary school champion, scored the best win of his young career.

He held out Allen and McCauley to complete a Subway Avanti team trifecta. McCauley’s third placing took him to second overall in the series, only five points behind leader and fellow Subway Avanti team-mate Matthew Gorter, with Allen moving to sixth.

Nelson’s Karen Fulton, fifth at the New Zealand road championships, proved too strong to win the women’s race from Tracy Clark (Pegasus) and kiwi-based Danish adventure racer, Sia Svendsen.