Three Perth riders joined 19 members of Albany Cycling Club (ACC) for the 40 km Bridges Handicap Race on a very wet Saturday afternoon.

“The conditions weren’t dangerous,” ACC timer Greg Connell said.

“When we decide to race or not, we look at what the wind is doing and on Saturday it was starting to die off.

“Cycling is a winter sport in Australia and we’re quite reluctant to cancel a race if riders turn up for an event.”

Connell said since the club had introduced handicapping to all its races more riders were competing.

“We’ve been getting up to 30 people at a race, which gives riders who are not so fanatical about training more of a chance.”

Saturday’s winner was local Shaun Welch, who notched up his first win after having been a club member for the past seven years.