Final SKCC Open Criterium of the season.... I've been looking for a win for a while. It's been 1 month since I've started my bike training with my coach. Time to discover, time to start pushing boundaries! And with Giant sponsoring some extra prize money for the race, the crowd being bigger than usual, my mates all giving me their full support - I had to give it my best shot.
The race nerves had already started building up from the moment I woke up. I was carrying a little fatigue from the last few days of pool training and jumped straight into the shower to wake my body up. Trying to stomach down some fruit toast with a few butterflies in my tummy at 7am was a bit of a struggle. I checked...and rechecked my bike (see last post)... all was good.. and I was finally on my way to the crit course.
After bidding my g'day's to some of my mates, and registering from my race number, I went off for a couple of warm up laps. My HR was a little higher than normal, probably due to the race nerves, but legs were feeling pretty good. Alright - it's race time!!
The first lap is usually taken as a neutral lap (where the pace is easier, and riders are not allowed to attack) and I positioned myself to stay at the front of the bunch. There was a pretty decent headwind out on the back straight, and I knew it was going to be a different race today. Going into the 2nd lap, the 2 other sprinters that would normally sit behind in the bunch launch for a breakaway - the pace was driven up right from the get go. I immediately counter-attacked, and held onto their wheels. I surely was determined not to get dropped.
Being out with the 2 other girls meant we were going to be working together - each taking turns out on the front of the bunch. Different to previous weeks where the usual sprinters would sit on the back till the final few laps, this time it was 3 of us sprinters on the front - each pushing each other, each testing each others limits.
Each time I took my turn out on the front, I tried to push the speed just 1 km/h higher. And the whole bunch were still on my wheel. I knew that surely wasn't enough and attempted to break. Attack 1 - I managed to break 2 bike lengths, and they would bridge. Attack 2 - same thing.
Women's racing is all about opportunities - you have to look for them, and you have to go for them. With 25 mins into the race, a rider in front was rolling a turn at a slower pace - I knew this was it. I attacked.... and attacked hard. This time, I managed to breakaway - I was finally out on my own. "Come on Grace.. just spin those legs!" I was pushing hard and managed to hold the bunch off for about 1/3 of the lap. I was on a high. As I got around to the back of the course, the headwind was already picking up, and I hit a wall. Damn. With the determined bunch behind me, they managed to bridge my break. Oh well, at least I tried.
I got back into the top bunch, and managed to quickly spin out the lactic acid. Ok, I was all good again. With less than 5 mins of race time to go, Marlena, one of my mates moved up to the front of the bunch and gave me a slight nudge to launch another attack. My brain was saying "Are you kidding - another one?", but my heart was saying "Come on, give it one more shot!". And I launched. I pedalled as fast as I could, heard someone in the crowd screamed at me to go faster - I stood up on a corner, and bham... my left calf crammed up. Oh crap!! And the bunch bridged again. "Spin, spin, spin.. get that lactic acid out" That was all that was going on in my head.
I didn't see the sign for the 3 laps to go - and only realised it was the last lap when I heard the bell. By now, the front bunch had grown and there were quite a few of us jostling for position. I got caught behind some riders but I had worked hard, and no, I wasn't going to let it go on the final lap. I pulled back a little and managed to find some free space. Again, I spotted Marlena, she gave me a wheel, and the adrenaline was really kicking in.... I practically screamed at her to push the pace higher.
Coming out of the last corner, I spotted the other sprinter attack. I grabbed her wheel, and launched as well. On an adrenaline high - I chased..I got up...I sprinted. Alas, we got to the finish line, and I missed by 100s of a second. I had run out of road for the sprint. 2nd place it was.
"Battling it out on the final sprint." (Photo by RobM)
Sure, I was disappointed at missing by a fraction of a second. Especially, cause I had run out of room, rather than power. I had come out for the win, but conceded to 2nd place. Nevertheless, I received the "Most Aggressive Rider" award, won my first piece of Giant clothing and was happy with my overall performance today, having worked hard on every attack.
And yet again, I have discovered new things. Today, I came out to explore, to learn new things about my bike and my body. And I pushed my boundaries. There's this thing called adrenaline that can overcome anything - it's stronger than what your mind is telling your body when the feeling of pain tries to break them apart. And today - I found it. I was on a Giant adrenaline rush..
Awesome!
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