Iona at Peterborough Crit

Iona at Peterborough Crit

Monday 7 July 2014

Tour weekend racing!

So it's tour de France weekend!  What to do!?
a) head to Hawes to watch tour
b) go for spin then drive 3 hrs to race a TT and road race next day!
or
c) be indecisive, and do neither!
So I choose b!

So Sunday morning and awake at 5am!  Didn't need to be up till 5:45, oh well!
Early morning TT!  We had two GB Cycles teams entered for the 2 up TT, Sandra and Nicola and Me and Brit.  But no Brit this week, she was up in Ilkley with the tour going past her door, and also still recovering from illness keeping her off the bike!  Instead Sandra and Nic and I rode the TT.  Sandra and Nic riding the 2 up, with me riding it as an individual TT.  The rain began to pour, and I'm no idea how I did, 26:18, for 10.2 miles.  It was better than the last 10 tt I did, so I guess that's good enough!  I have no real comparison time to compare too, having only ever ridden 1, 10 mile tt in very windy conditions the day after returning from a training camp!

Anyway the road race was my main focus for the day.  No idea where it was the road race, but it was  Norfolk somewhere, it was down south anyway!  Luckily the rain had stopped, and it was a lovely sunny afternoon ahead.  The course was interesting, mainly flat, but the twisty narrow roads made it fun.

Sandra, Nic and myself we're riding.  There were no attacks first lap, I don't think!  Sandra allowing for a warm up lap for once!  Instead Hayley was straight to the front, and myself and a few others tried to keep the pace high in the first 1/2 lap, going through and off.

The race flew past with Sandra attacking plenty of times early on.  Lap 3, of 6 and there had been no prime whistle, but I found myself 2nd wheel, so sprinted just in case, up the drag past the HQ.  Next lap and I couldn't have been in worst place for prime, (boxed in, on inside, near back)  But up ahead I could see we had no worries as Nic crossed the line first to take the prime :) awesome stuff!  We all regrouped again, and I led us back up to the front.

Lap 4 or 5 and Sandra finally decides her legs are dead!  Haha as if!  Next lap and she's on front again, then she's off the front!  I try to slow things down.  All back together!  Nic attacks again down the decent!  Lap 5 and I know chances are, this is coming to bunch finish, so I say to Sandra, just let's chill out now, but I'm going to have one more go off front!  Nic was already moving round to go again off front, but I come round her, and I attack down decent.  But were all soon back together, and i'm wondering why on earth I just did that, as Nic flies past me yelling at me to get on the wheel!
All these attacks happen several times throughout race, and I've no real idea now, how, when where or what order or anything happened in!

Then last lap, Hayley attacks, like only Hayley does inside the last 1/2 lap.  There are 3 of us, so we had strength in numbers.  I wasn't prepared to, let's all sit and look around and hope someone else brings her back!  I knew we couldn't let her go!  I got to front and tried to bring her back, luckily a couple of others came around me and helped to close the gap further.  I managed to get back into the slip stream of riders.  Last left turn and down a hill into the up hill sprint for the line.  Harriet Owen was several riders forward and in the train on the left hand side.  Me, I was on the right hand side, with no wheels to follow, no idea where Sandra or Nic were, they weren't on the wheel that was all I thought I was sure of.  So I was biding my time, knowing that I had absolutely no wheels to come off.  I sprinted, we caught Hayley at bottom, or on hill for line.  Harriet Owen took the win, I started to fade, then Sandra came from know where flying past me!  Up hill finish, she came straight from back of bunch straight to the front to take 6th place!  Brilliant result Sandra, and well deserved!  Nic and I finished in 16th, 8th position, with Nic getting the prime prize too.  Overall a great fun race, and some awesome team work!

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