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Ronde van Gelderland UCI 1.2 Apeldoorn, Holland. 137km’s.
Finally – I can write to you with a podium result… 3rd today, it was nice to get through a race without any bad luck! I can say, I was starting to feel all that Dutch racing, repetitive chasing and chaotic stress in my legs during today’s race… but the power was actually pretty ok in the sprint!
The race started with a hilly section until the 50km point, we all (Lotto Honda Team) rode near the front through the hills- Cherise had a mishap on one of the climbs (damaged rear wheel) but managed to rejoin the group after 5km’s of chasing.
Soon after the hilly section a break of 5 riders formed- we didn’t have anyone in the break as we were planning for a sprint finish. The break was well represented by the stronger teams- so when the break got out to 1 minute 45 seconds at the 85km mark we felt/were responsible to start chasing. Cherise and Vicki had some assistance from Cola-Vita (Team of current World Champ- Bronzini). They strung the bunch out and brought the group back together with 25km’s to go.
World Cup Holland
Hello All!
I write to you with an update from today’s World Cup.
Firstly, I raced a UCI 1.1 race two days ago called Drentse8. I had a great feeling in the race but unfortunately I punctured my front wheel with 10km to go; I was positioned in the top 10 and knew there was a short cobble section approaching 3km from the finish- so a wheel change would have been the end of my race. The lead out trains had started and the pace was very high.
I decided to try and hold position and ride carefully as the rim was only just hitting the road over the rough surfaces. There was a tight left hand corner 400m’s from the finish and it was impossible to hold position through the corner – as I couldn’t lean the bike, so I lost position and momentum. The acceleration on the pave was extremely difficult as I could only stay in the seat (due to the front wheel puncture)…. I just slogged it out to the line and finished 9th. Ninth looks very disappointing on paper but given the circumstances it was an ok effort- due to bike handling skills and determination.
Filming advertisements and racing in Europe again!!
House late March
Life has been a little busy since arriving home to Italy just over one week ago.
I enjoyed 4 days training at home and I must say it was absolutely gorgeous; I was riding under clear blue skies in 15 degrees, short sleeves with walls of snow lining the roads! It was so nice to be home, so sad to pack my bags again just after settling in!
It was a tough decision but I decided to drive my new CR-V to Belgium (13hr drive). I like to drive, not the smartest decision with races soon approaching but I had a new car, bikes to transport, lots of tools (love tools), rollers, a suitcase full of personal spare parts and a month on the road- so I wanted my Honda in Belgium 🙂
Moving to Europe
HDT
The time has come again, I’m packing my bags to head home to Europe and I’m looking forward to getting there!
I stayed in Australia a little longer this year to spend more time training in the nice weather and to compete at the Oceania Championships.
The Oceania Championships were held in Shepparton, Victoria yesterday (19th March). The race was a little as expected, pretty flat and not too aggressive. Shara Gillow was in a class of her own and it was as if no one else really existed, the only attacks that were threatening were those from Shara but it wasn’t until the last lap when she decided to continue riding away with one other rider- who she dropped on the final climb about 5km from the finish.
Top Start in Qatar
Yellow Jersey - Podium
The start to my international season of 2011 couldn’t have been much better! I won the first stage in Qatar and took the yellow leaders jersey, and to top off the day- I also held the points jersey!
I had mixed feelings of tiredness and excitement on the way to Qatar, I had just finished a demanding Australian summer season of racing and I was feeling physically and mentally exhausted from the travel and competition. On the other hand, I was on my way to the first international race of 2011 and I was about to meet up with my European team-mates for the first time this year.