Malaysia Round 2!

August-Sept 2013: The past couple of weeks have been exciting times. Having been recently called upon to be part of the Malaysian National Women’s Road Team, it’s been a busy period trying to organise dates for camps, leave, flights and training.

Malaysian National Team Colours!!

First up – a national camp with the girls in the Cameron Highlands in central Malaysia. Flying from the 3 deg Melbourne winter to the 35 deg humidity of Malaysia was tough. I was sure glad to have the support of my mates at the MSN to ease into the first few days of riding – legs screaming with lactic, clothing drenched in sweat, fighting to stay awake on the bike – nonetheless, I was glad that for the next few weeks, all I had to do was just ride my bike!  

3 days later, bikes packed again and I was off to training camp. For the first time, I met 9 of my other team-mates. Having been brought up in Malaysia, conversing in the local Malay language wasn’t too hard and it didn’t take long for me to settle in with the girls. With tough, hilly training rides on the agenda, we were each competing for a spot at the upcoming SEA Games in Myanmar in December – only 6 out of the 10 of us would make the cut. Adapting to the living conditions proved to be a challenge – came down with a cold, struggled with lack of sleep, a bad bout of food poisoning and a cracked rib and skin off from a crash on a descend to top it off. Talk about luck!! Nonetheless, I managed to pull out some pretty good form on the tough rides and climbs – the previous months of training and racing was starting to bear fruit!

On a training ride! 

Cold water recovery session  in the river.

At the end of the week, it was more packing again and a 3.5hr trip to Bentong for the Grand Prix bike race. First up – a 157km road race where the first 22km was a rolling start. I balked at the distance! Juggling a full-time job with training, I lacked the mileage compared with the likes of the full-time athletes I was up against. It was nice to have mum and dad who drove up from KL to support – that certainly took away a lot of the nerves about finishing the bike race! Right after the rolling start, a break-away of 3 riders got away early with the peloton riding tempo. 3 loops of an undulating course, 2 intermediate sprints. By the end of Lap 1, the break-away had 4 mins on us. At the sight of the next kilometre-long hill, Jupha attacked taking Maziyaton along with her. I waited, then bridged across to the duo before we hit the top. Our next mission – to chase down the earlier break of 3, with a peloton of riders hot on our heels. We caught them at about the 80km mark – a series of attacks were launched and not long after, it was just Jupha, Maziya and I left leading the break. As we approached intermediate sprint 2, I led out early with Jupha narrowly winning the sprint. By this stage, the heat was almost unbearable as we pushed on – pouring water down our backs and getting in as much fluid as we could. The earlier break of 3 riders caught back onto us at the 125km mark and it was now 6 of us. From here on, it was attack, lull, attack, lull, attack, lull as we each tried to get a break in the remaining kilometres. I attempted to get a break on the final climb but to no avail. With 10ks to go, it was inevitably going to come down to a bunch sprint. My job now – wind up the pace and lead out the sprinter. Jupha proved too quick and won the sprint easily, followed by Maziya. I was stoked to hang on for 3^rd place!

The team pre-race 

Glad to have finished the race

Winner are grinners! 

Next day – a 19.7km ITT. Having recently won the National ITT – the pressure was on – could I repeat my performance at the nationals? I pulled on my new skin-suit that morning. The training was done – all I had to do was ride my bike! I managed to borrow a disc wheel from the Selangor state team, worked with the mechanic to make sure the bike was in order before I went through my usual warm-up routine. I was 2^nd last off the blocks, and quickly got up to speed. Just as I had settled into my aero bars, a car tried to overtake from the opposite side and I swerved in the knick of time to avoid it – phew!! That certainly got my HR up! In no time, the lead police-bike came to ensure a clear and safe route and I soon settled into rhythm. A couple of uphill sections and my legs were screaming from yesterday’s race. Just focus. Breathe. Pedal. The km’s ticked down. An unexpected left hand turn just before the finish into a small road – I very nearly crashed into the marshal! I somehow managed to slam on the brakes on time, stayed upright into the corner, and had to get up to sprint for the line. Done. My heart was still pounding and it was quite hilarious having dad who was following in the car behind, already whipping out his iPhone to calculate my average speed! Since watching my first bike race at the Nationals, my parents have started gaining interest in cycling – even staying up to watch a couple of the stages of the TdF. It certainly is great having them there to support my love for the sport. The results were out – I’d just won the ITT!! This one’s for mum and dad!  

A win for mum and dad! :) 

 With the GP done, we stayed for another 2 days training in Bentong before the flurry of travels, packing and unpacking begun. Travelling to KL on the Tuesday afternoon, I managed to spend a night at my parent’s in KL before flying off to Jakarta with 4 of my other team-mates for a tour. We met some other State riders from Malaysia before a 15 hour bus journey to Purbalingga, a small little town in Central Java. I was absolutely stuffed by the time I arrived. Luckily the accommodation was pretty nice! Getting food was a little tricky in the small town with limited restaurants around, and I was rather hesitant on eating at the stalls on the street. Bread, instant noodles and tuna would have to do the job for the next couple of days!

The team at KL airport 

Our accommodation in Indonesia 

A local food store selling 'Bak So' - noodles with beef balls in soup 

First up, a 9.7km ITT, climbing approximately 300m. Things just didn’t quite work out that day.  I couldn’t get anyone to take me out to see the course till 30mins before the start and my nerves were already starting to get the better of me. With one set of rollers amongst the five of us, I had neglected a proper warm-up – definitely not ideal!  With the first part of the course being flat, I made a last minute change and opted for the TT bike with the disc wheel in the rear. Within the first km, my legs were already filled with lactic and I wasn’t able to capitalise on the flat section. As I hit the second part of the course, I watched in agony as the speed on my Garmin kept reducing. I kept pushing but was getting deeper and deeper into the red. The 3km long false flat section was 6-7% - a lot steeper than expected – and the disc felt like a full sack of bricks as I hauled it uphill. It didn’t get any better with some sharp 10% pinches at the end. I was absolutely stuffed by the time I’d cross the line. I was really disappointed. My nerves had gotten the better of me that day – nerves, equipment choice, lack of warm up. These things all add up.  Lesson well learnt.

Next day was a 120km road race, 3 laps of the course, with a small, sharp climb in the middle. The atmosphere was awesome – the small little township was filled with people who had come to watch the race, young and old – music was pumping and there were just people everywhere! Kids asking for our signatures, people wanting to take photos with us – my first real taste of being like the pros! It was good fun but it did get pretty tiring too! The start was delayed for 2 hours, and we didn’t kick off till 11.30am by which time, the heat was almost unbearable. The Indonesian team attacked us in the first few hundred metres, and my team-mate Wadah managed to jump on their wheel. The first few kms were rather technical and each time we turned a corner, there were motorbikes whizzing in and out in our lane, with on-coming traffic on the other side too! Talk about scary!! A break of 4 managed to get away – with 3 Indonesians and Wadah. By the time we got to an open bit of road, the break had already gained 1:30 on us - and just as we tried to get another Malaysian rider across, the wind had picked up significantly.  3 of us – Wana, Carol and myself would attack the field – one after another in our attempt to bridge across. Nonetheless, it was certainly kudos to the other Indonesian riders who were hot on our heels ensuring that the break stayed away. Once we had climbed the 3km long hill with a couple of sharp 18% pinches, the bunch had watered down leaving 5 of us chasing – myself and Wana, and 3 other riders. It was obvious that they weren’t keen on working with us to close the gap, and despite our efforts, we couldn’t get anything going. By the time we got to lap 3, we heard that Wadah was still with the break and received instructions to stop working and to just finish off the bike race. Wadah held on for 2^nd place - a podium position for the team – job done! Much to Wana’s and my disappointment though, we overheard news that the girls in the break were actually sitting on the Junior Men’s race all along!!

The next day was a 24 lap Points Score style crit – with sprints every 3 laps of a 1.2km course.  The closed roads were awesome – a few corners to juggle but nothing too technical. Wadah and myself managed to score some early points and eventually Wana got herself into a breakaway of 3 riders in the later half of the race. With Wadah on higher points, I worked to move her up the ladder – securing each remaining 1 point the peloton was contesting for. We eventually secured Wadah a 3^rd place position on the podium! Racing done, job done!!  Racing aside, it was awesome to have the opportunity to experience this part of the world – the people, the culture and the lifestyle. And to be able to travel and ride my bike at the same time – couldn’t ask for more!

The team post race

The things we get up to with too much sugar in our system 

Wana, myself and Wadah with Fairoz the coach 

Looking back now, the camp and races were a huge learning experience – understanding the body’s adaptation to different climates and dealing with the reality of travelling (sleep/food/lifestyle/time differences) – certainly points to take and improve on at future events. Like the pros say – it’s the aggregation of marginal gains that we are constantly looking for to up our game!! Back in Melbourne and back to reality now – juggling full-time work and training. Another camp to look forward to later next month!!