The time trial started at 6:30pm and looped around the centre of Vlissingen. I was off at 6:59pm and I have to admit it was a little off putting lining up against teams like Cervelo and Lotto Belisol fully kitted out with time trial bikes, disk wheels and aero helmets whilst I was tapping along on my little Cervelo road bike... but it was going to be a good test for me regardless of the end result on paper. Overall, I was please with my result, although on paper it looks pretty shocking (148th out of 183) I was happy with the way I rode and the feedback I got from my SRM – definitely a step in the right direction!
The next day was a 114km RR starting in Middleburg. Again, the race didn’t start until 6:30pm and so the morning was spent with a much needed sleep in, a bit of a spin to freshen up the legs and some quality time with Sophie Kinsella. I have never started a road race that late before but apparently it is quite common here as it doesn’t get dark until about 10:30pm!
I was feeling good when the SwABo Ladies rolled over to the start of the race, the wind was chilly and blowing a gail but I was keen get my first experience of Dutch racing. A very respected member of the cycling community and a mentor of mine places great emphasis on the importance of ‘position, position, position’ and if there was one thing I learnt from that race, it was that you could be the strongest person out there, but without good position the only place you’re going is straight out the back. In the neutral section, everyone was scrambling to get to the front and as a result I found myself at the tail end of the bunch before the race had even started. To make things more interesting, as soon as the flag was raised, Cervelo decided to get rid of some of the drift wood and put the pressure on. Needless to say it wasn’t long before I was in the cars and thinking to myself ‘what the hell am I doing here’, but I soon found my rhythm and kept plugging my way along in pursuit of the bunch. I caught up with a few other girls and we got a paceline going and made our way over to the finish. Half way during the race, I found myself wishing that a car would come and pick me up but then I started thinking that i’m not going to get better by giving up, and that the only way i was going to learn and get stronger was to keep going, so quickly ‘giving up’ was never an option. I made it to the finish at around 10pm, and it was only just starting to get dark. I was relieved to cross the line and was proud of myself for finishing the way I did.
Despite me finishing stage 2, I was just shy of the designated time cut and so learnt Saturday morning that I was not able to start the race and that my day would be spent following it from the car. I was disappointed not to start as I was keen to learn from my mistakes yesterday and try something new, but 20km into the race the wind picked up and it started raining heavily and it wasn’t long before I was quite enjoying the warmth and comfort of the car.
full results of te race can be found at http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/rabo-ster-zeeuwsche-eilanden-2-2
I also got to meet some of the team and the management staff for the first time at RaboSter. Hans and Edwin were our support staff for the few days and were in charge of yelling abuse – I mean encouragement – at me from the team car, equipped with novelty horn and everything! The girls riding apart from Sofie and myself was Natalie and Afke who both put on a very strong performance! My first impressions of the team were very good, everyone was very welcoming and more than happy to give their little Australian-tourist-with-no-clue-a-hand :) Although i’m still not convinced that croissants or bread with chocolate sprinkles is an ideal breakfast or pre-race meal... but i’m sure they have their own opinion about my vegemite :p
Now i’m back at the farm and our latest edition to the team Emily has just arrived from NZ! So we now have a full house full of cyclists!! My next race I think will be on Sunday – still not sure, but I am keen to redeem myself! Feeling stronger everyday so there is not much more I can ask for :) i’m being spoilt and enjoying the sunshine...life is good :)
Until next time
Take care xx
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