The future is now.

Stage five of the Tour of Southland yesterday saw a seismic shift in the race with tour leader and four-time champion Hayden Roulston forced to pull out through illness.

The young guns of New Zealand road cycling needed no second invitation to steal the bike race away from the establishment and last night three under-23 riders – Josh Atkins (PowerNet), Patrick Bevin (Ascot Park Hotel) and George Bennett (Kia Motors) were holding the top three places in the overall standings.

An under-23 rider has not won this race since Karl Moore's surprise victory in 2001.

Atkins dominated the seven switchbacks of the Crown Range hill climb after some superb work by his young PowerNet team-mates.

A member of Lance Armstrong's Trek Livestrong development team, Atkins holds a 1min 9sec lead over Bevin, with Bennett a further 16sec back.

What are Stubby Holders? They are round cylinders, usually made from latex, and printed with various decorative designs, and used to keep beer stubbies or cans cool in the hot Australian summer. I collect them. I sometimes travel around Australia looking for more of them for my collection in many different pubs. Join me on my Adventure. As I wrote when I blogged about the Waterloo Cup Hotel, until very recently, the triangle of land bounded byUnion, Espom and Maribyrnong roads had, at the time of subdivision in the 1880s, been placed under a covenant which prevented the sale of alcohol. This...

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