6 May 2012: Donna Buang ITT. 17km Hill climb…plus time
trial….. a zillion excuses had crossed my mind about not riding that morning. Woke
up with a bugger of a sore throat, nose was leaking like a tap, it was cold,
had to study for an exam on Tuesday….yada yada yada…Well, I had entered, no
pulling out now, just see how I go.
Picked up a couple of new pre-race warm up tips that morning
from Simon. Always learning, always improving - good. As I got off the rollers,
it started raining. No turning back now.
As I kicked out of the start, I quickly revved up to use the
short little flat section before the climb started. A couple hundred metres
into the climb, I spotted my carrot, Carolyn Fraser from HCC about 200m in
front. Carolyn was well-known for her climbing abilities, and my goal was
formed for the day – I’d try my best to keep her within sight.
The first couple of k’s was yo-yo pace. Every time Carolyn
saw a rider within reach, she’d accelerate to get pass them. And I’d follow
suit. Always maintaining the gap, always keeping her within sight. The rain didn’t really bother me now. We soon
passed 3 riders in front , and it was now just the 2 of us. In between trying
to breath I tried to do my math – if I’d started at +2:30, we’ve passed 3, so
that leaves just the 2 of us….hang on…..umm..yeah, I think that’s right. Ah
whatever, there’s not enough oxygen for my brain to do math right now, just
keep Carolyn in sight!
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| Couldn't help grinning with Michael cheering (Photo by MMcRitchie) |
At about the 6.5km mark, the gap between us had started to
grow. Carolyn was starting to put the pressure down. I’d lose sight of her
around the bends, see her for a few seconds, then lose sight of her for periods
of time again. I was determined not to let her off, and kept digging even
harder. As the climb flattened out at around the 8km mark, I knew there was no
easing off – I just had to push on. Soon, I had her within sight again and this
time, I tried to keep the gap within 200m. I didn’t have quite enough to close
it down just yet, but it was near enough to keep my motivation up.
By this point, the temperature had dropped significantly and
my fingers were freezing. They were starting to hurt and soon I could no longer
feel them. Surprisingly though, my legs
were feeling better!! The deep heat oil was starting to do its wonders at this
point, and I could get out of the saddle for much longer periods of time. With
7ks to go, I spotted Michael McRitchie with his trusty camera by the side and
grinned as I rode pass him. “Go..go..go! Come on…just keep goin!!” The cheers
certainly sparked another level of drive and determination, and I worked hard
to close down the gap.
Kilometre by kilometre slipped by. Carolyn was really trying
to shake me off and kept on accelerating out of the saddle. I followed suit. A
few of the men rode pass. Finally within the last kilometre, I knew I had it
within grasp. The gap was now down to 100m. I just needed to kick. Wait. 500m…
300m… I got out of the saddle and with every effort, sprinted pass Carolyn for
the finish line.
I ended up finishing 2nd, 47seconds behind Lisa
Jackson in 1:08.02. It was certainly a pleasant surprise and I was stoked to
finish on the podium for a hill climb. Riding behind Carolyn was a great
learning experience, and I certainly did pick up a lot of skills and techniques
from her that day. Looking back, I rode the race like a scratch, rather than a
time trial. Had I known that there was
another girl in front - could I have dug that bit deeper? I’ll leave that for
another time. Thanks to Blackburn CC and the volunteers for putting on such a
good race – it was well organised and even without a transponder, timing was
schmick! Climbing is certainly a mind game – one that I’ve struggled with all
along. Like Joe Friel says – if you want to climb, work on what’s going on
between your ears – you gotta believe!!
