By Arnon adams
You might think that that having dedicated 25 years of his life to the demands of being a cycling coach, Randolph Roberts may just be contemplating slipping quietly into the retirement lane.
Not so.
He expresses his desire to soldier on, to take his own career and those of his charges to even greater heights.
As far as Roberts is concerned those 25 years mark a phase of his coaching career and is a pedestal from which to reach for greater things.
The passion and commitment of the man to the sport, which he says has been his life, is reflected not only in his utterances but in what he has demonstrably given. Currently the Coach of the 20-member Berbice Flying Ace Cycle Club, the only cycling club in the region, Roberts has taken it upon himself to raise the standard of the game in all of the Ancient County; to bring it to a point where it seriously rivals the traditional dominance of the country’s capital. His charges are scattered far and wide along the towns and villages that extend themselves across Region Six. New Amsterdam, Rose Hall, Port Mourant and Corriverton are all home to cyclists who look to Roberts to help them raise their game. There are charges in parts of West Berbice too.
All of his efforts come without official compensation. Such support – moral and material – as he receives comes from civic-minded members of the business community who extend their commitment of corporate social responsibility to sport. He names a few of his most ardent backers. John Lewis, a former Chief Executive Officer of the now defunct Berbice Mining Enterprise whose Waterchris Hotel in Georgetown offers room and board to cyclists travelling to the city for competition, free of cost. Lewis is known both for his work in the bauxite industry and for his commitment to the development of aspiring Guyanese youths and is President of the Flying Ace Club.
There is also A. Ally & Sons, one of the many successful businesses in Berbice. The enterprise serves as sponsor to one of the region’s riders.
Then there is Errol Alphonso, a former Mayor of New Amsterdam and an institution in the community.
Before immersing himself in coaching, Roberts practiced the sport. His name is still remembered from the days of Guymine Games though he readily admits that these days the level is higher. “In those days there were no coaches. We had to do it on our own,” he says.
The challenges are many but Roberts is evidently enjoying an interlude of high spirits. Selected as Coach to the six-member cycling team that participated in the recent Inter Guyana Games in Suriname, Roberts reaped a hatful of rewards, surpassing the accomplishments of his predecessors.
Neil Reece, whom he believes is among the top 10 cyclists in Guyana, won gold in the Time Trials and silver in the 40-mile road race. Marica Dick, one of two females comprising the Guyana cycling team, won silver in the female road race and bronze in the female time trials. In the male time trial Guyana swept the board, occupying the first four spots in the race.
The two Berbicians and a third member of the team, Reginald Jeffrey, were, he says, the outstanding local riders in Suriname.
In 2009, Roberts served as coach to a local team competing in Aruba which returned with three bronze medals. The 2011 Inter Guyana Games, however, has been the crowning success of his career. And he makes no secret of the fact that the accomplishment ought to mark a turning point in his coaching career. He seeks compensation not only for himself but for his riders. Having heard it said so many times that he is arguably the best cycling coach in Guyana today, Randolph wants those accolades to be matched by recognition.
“I believe that I have done more than enough to be made a national coach,” he says. There is a sincerity in his tone, not underpinned by the ‘sour grapes’ disposition of a forgotten man but by the intensity of an individual who is confident that he has more to give.
Beyond that, Roberts believes that such recognition will serve as an incentive to the cycling community, the riders and the growing number of fans alike whom, as is the case in most, if not all other sports, feel that they are poor step-children, the privileged ones enjoying the greater opportunities in Georgetown.
Roberts wants more, much more for cycling. “We have been talking about a banked track for years. We do not have one yet. The standard of our cycling cannot match riders in countries where banked tracks exist.
I have seen local riders become intimidated by the sight of banked tracks. They have to pluck up the courage even to ride on such tracks and must practice constantly before competition. Then there are the dangers of using the roads. Just a few weeks ago Neil Reece was knocked down and injured whilst training on the road in the Berbice.”
Guyana, Roberts says, needs two such tracks. He makes the point that if Georgetown usually gets first preference as far as facilities are concerned, Berbice has more than made a case for a banked track of its own. “If that is not possible we would accept a facility like the National Park in Georgetown for the time being,” he says.
He talks about the recent Suriname experience whenever he gets an opportunity. The team spirit, he says, was tremendous.
After Guyana’s heavy early loss to Suriname in the first football encounter, the entire Guyana squad appeared to slip into a mood of depression. “That is where the coach comes in,” Roberts says.
“I know my riders and I was confident that if I could get the best out of them, they could be the best team on show. I worked hard to motivate them and they performed like champions, all of them.”
Roberts sums up his state of mind.
“I have spent all of my life in cycling and I have given freely without official help. Cycling is my life. I do nothing else. I am doing it for the youngsters in Berbice and I want to do it for other youngsters elsewhere in the country. All I want is an opportunity to give more to the game.”
You get the feeling that the long-suffering cycling coach has more than made his case.
