A ride to remember!

OCBC Cycle Singapore pulls out all stops to hold Singapore’s first-ever mass cycling event.

“Bicycle! Bicycle! I want to ride my bicycle!” Queen’s Bicycle Race was playing through my mind as I headed to cover the OCBC Cycle Singapore, the republic’s first mass participation cycling event on public roads. Though I was not participating in any of the events for the fear of numb bum cheeks, 5,400 riders had no such fear as all they wanted to do was ride their bicycles.

The F1 pit building was the venue for this inaugural event with “peddle power” instead of horse power being the name of the game. Seasoned and skilled participants pushed themselves by racing in the 50km or 40km challenges while the 20km and 5km events allowed others to enjoy a relaxing ride on a beautiful Sunday morning with their families.

Speaking to the thrilled mother of the Wan family who participated in the Mighty Savers Kid Ride (5km race) along with their son, Hanafi, she said: “The event allows for great family bonding. Another good thing was that they separated the children into different age groups and this ensured the safety of the kids.”

Another happy participant of the 40km challenge, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “It was a great event with minimal problems. It was lovely being able to ride on closed roads for once and the route brought us past iconic landmarks like the Fullerton Hotel, the Singapore Flyer and F1 Pit Building. You can see loads of families bonding together. The only drawback was the heat that started to build up later on.”



Indeed the heat prompted the organizers to reduce the distance on the 5km event in view of the safety of the large numbers of children participating. These young and exuberant cyclists probably thought they were in the Tour de France as they peddled away furiously under the scorching sun. The ‘intense competition’ certainly added onto the heat factor.

The big boys came out to play after the 5km race for the “Criterium Events”. Participants from neighboring countries like Malaysia to international juggernauts such as Italy and the United Kingdom made their way here to stamp their mark in Singapore’s cycling history. Singapore’s Daniel Loy joined the star-studded spectacle in the bid to win up to $5000 in prize money.

I grabbed the chance at interviewing the winner of the Masters’ Criterium, which is open to males above the age of 40. Winner Kevin Burns from the United States of America said: “It was an open track with not many sharp turns. I would have preferred a longer course. It would have allowed riders to test how opponents react when someone chooses to break away from the pack. Speed is the key to winning in this course.”

And just to prove that age was no barrier to the 44 year-old man, he hopped back on his bike ten minutes after the Masters’ Criterium to compete in the Open’s Criterium.

The weather threatened to cast a dark cloud on the last but most anticipated Elite Criterium as it started to drizzle. However, even the rain could not dampen the high spirits of the spectators as they continued to gather to take pictures with the who’s who in the cycling scene. The cycling team from Japan, decked out in pink, had drawn much attention from many female fans, which just goes to show that maybe, real man do wear pink.

The brains behind this successful event, was Chris Robb, Managing Director of Spectrum Worldwide. The jubilant man said: “The reason for this is to give Singapore an opportunity to cycle on closed roads as well as to grow the cycling scene by bringing in the top class, elite cyclists. In fact the response from overseas teams was overwhelming and sadly we had to reject some teams.”

He added: “It has been 18 months of hard work to make this happen.”

With a plethora of races, participants and plenty of entertainment, Mustafa, who took part in the 20km race, summed up the entire day quite aptly.
“It’s the wide appeal of the event. There’s something for everyone regardless of age and skill. Beginners do not feel out of place joining the races even when there are so many professionals around.”

Overall, it was a commendable effort by the organizers to give the cycling scene in Singapore a major boost. Perhaps the only complaint from participants and spectators alike would be, “Where’s Armstrong?”

Maybe next year…