National Club Criterium Championships – 2^nd

Location: Mooloolaba, Queensland

Conditions: slight wind, sunny, 25C

Course: 800m technical anti-clockwise loop

I woke up feeling really tired and low in energy.  I was also more hungry than usual (if that’s possible) and ate a huge breakfast to try and fill up the empty spot.  I jumped on my bike after breakfast and rolled around the course to check out the tight corners.

The course was set up in the middle of the Mooloolaba Esplanade and was quite technical and fun to ride.  The home straight was situated closest to the cafes while the back straight was only metres from the beach.  The loop had a small roundabout about 100m after the start/finish line which caused many crashes and pedal scraps.  We rode through a closed off car park on the back straight, up a small little climb, into a sharp U turn and back into the home straight.

I did 30 minutes on the rollers and got the soreness out of my legs.  As I warmed up and started to feel better.  I ate a handful of jelly beans about 10 minutes before the start and hoped a bit of sugar would give me some quick energy.

I got a great start and was in second place behind N.Bates (NSW) going into the roundabout.  Bates continued to drive the pace for several laps so I sat comfortably behind her and enjoyed the ride.  After 5 laps, when Bates was starting to fatigue I attacked.  I got a 10 metre gap but after a lap the peloton caught me, so I sat back in about 5^th position and waited for another opportunity.

Lorian Graham (QLD) attacked next and everyone watched her develop a 40 metre lead.  The field was indecisive about chasing and soon her lead was out to 150 metres.  My teammate, Emma Rickards (Carnegie Caulfield) decided to chase with the rest of field quickly on Emma’s wheel.  NSW were happy to let Emma do the hard work and they didn’t come through and take a turn.  Lorian was continuing to put time into us and I decided this was the break I needed to join.  I attacked up the home straight and with Emma on the front and not reacting to my move, I immediately got a 30 metre gap.  The peloton was disorganised in their chase which helped me develop my lead.

With Lorian driving as hard as she could, it took me 3 or 4 laps to catch her.  She immediately waved me through to pull a turn but I told her I needed to sit on her wheel for a few seconds and recover.  With NSW now in hot pursuit, Graham and I needed to work hard together.  I worked up the back straight whilst Graham took charge on the home straight.  We retained a 10 second advantage for several laps and then gradually our lead stretched out to 15 seconds.  Emma continued to move to the front to disrupt NSW’s chase.

By the 20 minute mark of the race, our lead had stretched out to 25 seconds.  Graham and I continued to ride a consistent tempo, while numerous attacks from within the peloton were shut down by other riders.  I was wired up and Bob who was in the pits, was giving me feedback on what the peloton was doing and what our time split was.

Bob suggested I attack Graham with 3 laps to go and win solo, however I wasn’t sure I could stay away for 3 laps.  I had beaten Graham in yesterday’s road race, and knew I had a faster sprint, so I decided to go for the sprint in the final lap.  In hindsight, I should have attacked her on the back straight, however I waited until after the U turn, not realising I would run out of room.  I took the last corner really badly and Graham had 2 metres on me as we headed down the home straight.  I took a second to decide which side to sprint, chose the right side of the road and wound up.  I drew level with her as we hit the line, but she had edged over the line just 2cm in front of me.

I waited for her to finish her victory salute and then took her hand and graciously congratulated her.  After being interviewed by the commentator I struggled with mixed feelings of both disappointment and satisfaction.  I was happy that I was on the podium with a 2^nd place but the victory would have been so much sweeter.

Liz Williams (Carnegie Caulfield) rode quietly in the peloton and wasn’t seen until the final corner, when she lept out to claim 3^rd place.  Additionally, due to the combined efforts of all our Carnegie club riders, we won the Australian cycling club championship.

I am now off to the Gold Coast to train for a few days before heading to Grafton, NSW, to prepare for the Grafton to Inverell NRS race.  Knowing that I have some form at the moment, I am more determined than ever to finish off my season with a good result.  Lets see what happens.

Results:

1^st Lorian Graham     Astra cycling club, QLD
2^nd Helen Kelly          Carnegie Caulfield cycling club, VIC
3^rd Liz Williams         Carnegie Caulfield cycling club, VIC
8^th Emma Rickards    Carnegie Caulfield cycling club, VIC