The Castlemaine Cycling Club member started the fourth stage of the Bendigo District Cycling Club event with a 20-second buffer, but he knew the final leg was going to be tough as there was a strong contingent of riders in contention.

McKenna (6:02:53) secured the general classification victory from Ballarat brothers Liam (+8) and Nick White (+25).

Bendigo rising star Blake Agnoletto (1:25:47) won the final leg of the tour, securing three stage victories in total, and finished fifth in the general classification.

However, McKenna's effort in the previous stages was more than enough to secure the win.

"I couldn't be happier," McKenna said after the race.

"Taking out the hill climb yesterday was a big relief and set me up for today.

"It's certainly a thrill to win the club tour, especially to have my name on the same honour roll as riders such as Baden Cooke."

The win wasn't easy as the final 58km four-lap Kermesse through Harcourt provided plenty of challenges.

"It was a stressful race, but physically I felt really good," McKenna said.

"I thought Sam Eddy was going to be my biggest threat.

"I was complacent and thought all Liam would be after was a stage win, but then as soon as we got to the first bonus seconds hill climb he made it clear he was here to win the tour.

"Liam had his brother Nick and Blake helping him out which meant I had my work cut out for me.

"Luckily, 20 seconds was a good buffer to have and I knew Liam needed to win each sprint and hill climb without me getting any time at all, it was a tall order for him.

"Throughout the race I was keeping tabs on it and it was all a bit touch and go in the final lap

"I had to do a fair bit of chasing myself on the front over the last lap but it all came together and I knew all I had to do was sit in on the sprint and I'd be able to win the tour."

Merv Dean Memorial tour director Darren Casey was thrilled to see the event succeed after so much uncertainty due to COVID-19 restrictions.

"This really was a special event for the club, the riders, Merv Dean's family and everyone that was involved," he said.

"Riding throughout the Harcourt region just oozes quality bike races.

"And for Dylan McKenna to come away with the win was absolutely huge for him after a few recent ups and downs."

Creswick's Tilly Field won the women's general classification with a final time of 5:11:42 from Justine Barrow (+33) and Courtney Sherwell (+1:03).

Matthew Irons (Melbourne Uni CC) won the men's general classification from Isaac Fletcher and Adam Jackson.

Juniors competed on Sunday on a different track setup located at the Bendigo Livestock Exchange.

Under-13: 1st: Molly Jones, 2nd: Oscar Stoltz, 3rd: Ewan Walsh, Fastest Female: Maddi Douglas, Fastest Male: Tobias Jelbart.

Under-15/17: 1st: Alastair Taylor, 2nd: Lucy Hall, 3rd: James Tupper, Fastest Female: Lucy Hall, Fastest Male: Jamie Coles.

Under-11: 1st: Adam Gale, 2nd: Noah Brown, 3rd: Amelia McLean.

Under 13: 1st: Tobias Jelbart, 2nd: Jesper Wallace, 3rd: Maddi Douglas.

Under-15 Men: 1st: James Tupper, 2nd: Chase Hadden, 3rd: Archie Powell.

Under 15 Women: 1st: Hope Harnetty, 2nd: Maliha Dean.

Under-17 Men: 1st: Angus Gill, 2nd: Nate Hadden, 3rd: Jamie Coles.

Under-17 Women: 1st: Lilyth Jones, 2nd: Lucy Hall, 3rd: Milana Freer.

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