Griffiths, competing in the junior men 17A category, will head into the final round in second place overall on 102 points, just 34 points behind leader Max Goold of Blackburn Cycling Club (136).
The winner of both the road race and time trial will not only claim a state title, but a valuable 25 points towards the road series tally, meaning a maximum of 50 points can be scooped across the weekend.
Griffiths, who is boarding at Ballarat Grammar in a bid to further his cycling career, has had a strong season up to this point, with a number of impressive finishes.
Eighth and seventh place finishes in the general classification at the Alpe de Buffalo and Eildon Junior Tour respectively have bookended overall wins at the Ararat Junior Tour and Broadford GP.
He also recorded a stage victory in each of his GC wins, netting eight bonus points for each.
Griffiths has shown great potential in both the road race and time trial stages throughout the season, and will loom as a big threat in each of the disciplines when racing gets under way on the weekend.
Saturday will see competitors tackle a hilly time trial course, covering 15km on the out and back loop.
The road race is set to be contested over a distance of 63km on Sunday, with three laps of the tough ‘Taminick Loop’ course set to determine the winner.
There is no doubting Griffiths will be highly motivated by the prize of a state title and a potential overall win in the VJRS, but there are also higher honours up for grabs.
The selection of the Victorian team to compete at the national championships will be informed by results across the weekend, meaning a good result will see Griffiths pull on the ‘Big V’ in September in Shepparton.
Lenny’s younger brother George will also be in action, as he looks to consolidate his current standing of fifth place in the junior men 15A category.
Local connection to Cycling World Championships
Echuca-born cyclist Pat Eddy will be representing Australia at the UCI World Cycling Championships in Scotland this week.
Eddy, who raced for Echuca Moama Cycling Club as a junior before moving to Bendigo, will form part of a five-man squad to race in both the under-23 time trial and road race.
The rising star will compete in the 36.2km individual time trial on Wednesday night in Stirling, roughly 40km north-east of Glasgow, which features a punchy uphill finish to Stirling Castle at an average gradient of 6 per cent.
Saturday will see Eddy join his teammates for the road race, which starts in Loch Lomond.
Riders will cover 60km before entering Glasgow, where they will complete seven laps of a technical 14.5km circuit, featuring short but steep climbs and over 40 turns per lap.
The road race covers 168.4km, but the hilly nature of the course will see the riders endure 2436m of elevation.
Both of Eddy’s races will be broadcast on SBS channel 31, with the time trial from 11.15pm AEST on Wednesday, and the road race from 9pm AEST on Saturday.
Hone stars again in Rob Vernon Memorial Handicap
Levi Hone has recorded yet another great result, finishing 10th in the Rob Vernon Memorial Handicap.
The race, hosted by Bendigo and District Cycling Club, attracted 114 entrants from all over the state, with $10,000 up for grabs for the first rider across the line.
Hone was joined by EMCC teammates Jack Arnold, John Brian, Nick McNair, Kevin Laffy and Max Trewhella, as seven groups were sent off at handicaps across 32 minutes.
Hone started off three minutes, just ahead of the final scratch group, and raced well to maintain contact once the final group chased him down.
Things came together near the end, with a 50-strong group passing lone leader James Werner (Hawthorn Cycling Club) with 800 metres to go.
Hone unleashed his sprint, but was unable to match the effort of Ballarat Sebastopol rider Liam White, who took the win after starting from the scratch group in a time of 1:39.07, covering the 75km at an average speed of 45.6km/h.
Hone’s 10th place was the best of the EMCC contingent, with Jack Arnold next across the line in 49th, 19 seconds back.
Max Trewhella placed 68th, John Brian 82nd, Nick McNair 87th and Kevin Laffy 91st, all extremely solid results considering the depth of the field.
