World Champs!

In early September I was selected to compete at the UCI Road World Cycling Champs in Geelong, Australia, along with a very strong team of; Cath Cheatley, Linda Villumsen, Serena Sheridan, Toni Bradshaw, Emma Crum and myself. When I first took up cycling I dreamt of competing at the World Champs at about the age of 30 and then to be selected at 19 years old I was totally overwhelmed and excited (and bloody nervous).

A week before Geelong (Worlds) was a race in Ballarat called the World Cycling Classic. This was basically the warm up race, where mostly everyone doing worlds would compete at. The race was insane, lining up with over 100 of the worlds best cyclists. I felt really good for most of the race, felt confident in the bunch and even went off the front for about 100m on one of the hills. It started off relatively slow, as everyone waited for someone to do something, then with about 2 laps to go the pressure went on with over half the field dropping. At the end I finished in the middle of the bunch (about 33rd out of the 100 odd riders). This race gave me a major confidence booster, I had an awesome time and it was pretty cool riding alongside the worlds best.

The next week everybody settled into the hotel in Geelong, where we rode, ate and slept. Emma, Serina and I had the perfect room looking over the tt course. We were not supposed to do much before the race so we would sit on the deck, watch them ride past then turn and watch it live on the TV.

I decided to get sick 4 days before the race. It got worse as the days went on, feeling terrible when riding and having no energy. I loaded up on as much Vitamin C as I could but think it was too late, although I stayed positive telling myself it would be gone the next day. On the morning of the race I temporarily lost my voice.. but I did feel better! Toni also managed to get sick with a chest infection, not the best start for the team. Other then that I was still very exited to race! Out for a training ride, trying to chase Mark Cavendish who was also out on a training ride 100 metres in front.

Riding out to the race was awesome, the atmosphere was incredible. Massive crowds were lining the streets already, with flags from all around the World. While in the riders area there were camera people everywhere, it felt so professional! We had the team presentation where we signed on and stood on the stage for photos, then had a little warm up and headed for the start line. Each country got called up individually, with New Zealand being toward the back.

Our names up on the start list.

Getting called up to the start.

The race consisted of 8 laps (127km), including 2 rather steep hills each lap. The first hill was just over a km, getting upto about 24% gradient. Then it descended for 2.5km and went straight into another steep, but short climb. On the first lap up the hill there was a small crash in front of Emma and I, I had to put the breaks on and go around it and then sprint to get back onto bunch in front. Luckily made it back up before the top of the hill, although was not feeling flash and HR was already about 5 above my maximum. The next couple of laps I felt comfortable in the bunch but as soon as we hit a hill I was suffering. Toward the end of the 4th lap I completely blew on the hill, the legs didn’t feel too bad but I was suffering to breath. I eventually pulled the pin. As gutted as I was to have to pull out I did have a great time and knew that there was nothing more I could have done. Linda and Cath had a great race finishing in the front bunch with Toni and Serina not far behind.

Overall the whole trip was an experience of a life time that I will never forget, and hope that one day I will be right up there with the top girls.

The Team before the start, me looking abit too serious. (photo from RoadCycling.co.nz)

Courteney

Koops Cycles

A couple of months ago I was fortunate enough to be sponsored an Avanti Chrono Time Trial bike from Phill at Koops Cycles. Koops was where I got my first proper road bike back in 2006. An Avanti Corsa. Since then Koops have been extremely supportive of me and my family. When I found out I was getting a time trial bike from them I was very excited! Had never had a proper tt bike before, and then to make it even better it was red!! (Red bikes go fast).

Initially I was too scared to take it out riding, in case it got scratched or got dirt on it.. Then on the first ride it started raining half way through, and I managed to both scratch and dirty it. It is such a nice bike to ride, so fast and smooth. I find myself constantly looking down to admire its good looks whilst riding.

I also have my mechanic Richard Bates to thank for putting the bike together and maintaining my other bikes. I don’t know what I would do without Richard, the minute I have a problem its straight to Richards, where he spends the rest of the day problem solving till it’s fixed!!

The generosity of these kinds of people is overwhelming. Without them I would not be where I am today.

This is the beautiful machine. All pimped out with Richard's 808's.

To find out more about Koops cycles visit;

http://www.avantiplus.co.nz/tauranga

Garmin

Would like to say thank you so much to Innovations In Motion and Garmin for sponsoring me an awesome new Garmin 500.

This little computer has made my rides a lot more entertaining!! It has so many interesting features including;
Heart Rate Monitor
Cadence
Speed
Distance
% Gradient
Total Ascent/Descent
Elevation
Power (Wattage)
Lap Time
Temperature
And much more!

It’s got a nice big screen where you can view up to 8 data fields at one time, and then after your ride transfer it all onto the computer and review it. I have had absolutely no problems with this computer at all, absolutely love it!

For more information on the Garmin 500 or other Garmin computers follow the links bellow;

http://www.innovationsinmotion.co.nz/ or
http://www.garmin.com/garmin/cms/site/us

Auckland 1000

The Auckland 1000 is part of the National Point series and is around the Karaka circuit in Auckland, where the 2007 National Champs were held. The elite women had a 78km road race which was 3 laps of the rolling circuit. The race started off slowly, with every one gradually pulling through. The first time up the hill (a reasonable hill, half way around the circuit) I did a small attack with the aim of tiring any slow ones and hoping they would drop off. Paula McCoy and I got a little break which lasted a few km’s, we then got caught by a slightly smaller bunch and worked well together. Half way through the second lap I did another decent attack on the hill and this time Mesh Holt and Jeannie Kuhajek came with me, we worked hard together and got some good distance on the rest of the field.

Our little break away

On the same hill, but the last lap I did another attack, getting away by myself. I went as hard as I could over the climb and kept going, looking behind I noticed Mesh had droped Jeannie and was chasing me by herself. I felt pretty good but knowing the 3 times elite time trial champion was chasing me down was a little daunting. With about 1 km to go Mesh caught me, and then attacked, I managed to get on her wheel (just) and pass her at the line. Was very happy with the race, legs felt fresh and fast! Now they just need to stay like that for the rest of the year..!

At the finish line, my lovely/relieved facial expression.

Tour of Chongming Island

In early April I got selected to represent NZ at the Tour of Chongming Island and the World Cup. The team consisted of; Emma Peterson, Toni Bradshaw, Cath Cheatley, Meshy Holt and Rachel Mercer.

As soon as I crossed the finish line at nationals I jumped straight in the car and drove for about 5 hours to Auckland (From Hastings). Arriving at about 10pm, I packed my bike (well Dad packed my bike, I directed) and then got to sleep at about 11. Three hours later I was up and off to the airport.

The racing consisted of a three stage flat tour called ‘the Tour of Chongming Island’ and the UCI World Cup road race, which took place in Chongming Island - about an hours drive from Shanghai. This was my first proper overseas race with the elite women and I was both exited and nervous.

The first stage was called the “Shanghai Fusheng Cup” and was 72.5km long. We woke up to rain, cold and wind, which slightly lowered my excitement levels. The whole race I was concentrating on positioning near the front and keeping out of trouble, which was highly likely with the rain and narrow roads. There were many attacks with some people dropping off in the first km. At times the bunch would be strung out, single file and other times we would be cruising along all bunched up. The sprint started very early, just before the last corner 4 girls came off right in front of me and I managed to bunny hop over one of their back wheels, only just staying on my bike. The last km seemed very long as I tried to chase back up to the front part of the peleton, along with 40 others. Cath Cheatley was the best placed rider in 10th place with Emma and Rachel in 14th and 15th.

Finish of Stage 1, when it rains in Chongming, you get quit muddy.

The second stage was called the “Industrial Zone Cup” and was 80km long. The weather was a lot kinder to us with sun and warmth. Today I felt a lot more confident in the bunch; I started off near the front, feeling good. However when it got to the more narrow roads I spent a bit of time in the last half of the bunch, here I need to be more aggressive and push my way into gaps.. One thing I learnt is that cyclists are not polite when racing, you don’t let people in where you want to go (unless they are your team mate). Once again there were many attacks and surging but the bunch managed to stay relatively together (dropping a few). In the last 20 km I got to the front of the bunch thanks to Meshy Holt helping me out, she blocked the wind for me and sat in a position that no-body could push me around. She was basically teaching me how to hold my place and how important it is to stay at the front when coming close to the finish. On the last corner the speed went up dramatically, there was a big head wind to the finish and everyone took off, I went as hard as I could finishing about mid bunch. Cath was best placed Kiwi again finishing in 18th.

The third and last stage was called the “Chongming Xincheng Cup” which was again 80km long. This was a circuit race where we did laps of the city. The weather was again nice to us with some sun. It started off pretty fast, with lots of corners and attacks, luckily only one minor crash which the team managed to miss. Throughout the race I attempted a few attacks, one I got a small lead on the field with a few coming with me, but then no-body pulled through so the bunch caught us pretty fast, the other times also being unsuccessful. In the last 5km the pace was on, with the Cervelo team and HTC Columbia driving at the front (Ina Teutenberg from HTC Columbia and Kirsten Wild from Cervelo were almost on identical points so this was the deciding sprint to see which one would win the tour). I again finished in the bunch with Cath finishing 10th and Ina winning overall.

End of stage 3, last stage.

After the race we rode back to the Hotel and Cath managed to get hit by one of the crazy drivers. (I don’t know how the rest of us managed to stay on our bikes, the driving from China was insane). At the time she was by herself and ended up in the bush, luckily she was ok though, except for being knocked.

Just before start of World Cup, was freezing!! Getting some warm stuff rubbed on from Justin.

The next day was the UCI World Cup which was a 140km out and back race over this massive bridge. The majority of the race was pretty flat, until half way where we climbed just over 2 km on the bridge, then descended, turned at the bottom of the decent and went back up. The conditions were terrible, it was freezing, pouring down and windy. The whole race was extremely dodgy, I couldn’t see a thing through my glasses, they were covered in dirt, but I could not take them off because I would be able to see less. So I spent the whole race following outlines of people, I’m not too sure how I didn’t fall off. There were again many attacks and a few breakaways. Mesh got in a break away on the way back where she stayed away for a very long time, the bunch got caught with about 20km to go and from there the pace went on. At the finish Emma and Mesh got an awesome 8th and 9th place, with the rest of us finishing safely in the bunch.

Freezing cold after the race, sheltering infront of the van from the wind with about 20 layers on.

The next day we went for a trip to Shanghai, where we had a look around the shops and Rachel went up to the top of the tallest tower (it was a bit high for me). We then came back to the Hotel, packed our stuff and drove to the airport to come home.

Another amazing experience to add to my 2010 year, and a lot more learning completed.

Until next time

Courteney

Rotorua Tour

The next weekend was the Rotorua Tour, another fun weekend which included 2 road races, a Time Trial and a Criterium.

Stage 1
This stage included a 60km road race. It was a relatively fast paced race with a few attacks, none being successful though. Was pretty much a full peleton sprinting for the line, I got boxed in with 300m to go, then did a bit of cross country over the grass and managed to push to the front to take the win.

Stage 2
This stage was a 10km Time Trial which started at the top of a relatively hard hill (about 1km long). Was very hard, going full gas for 10km and then crossing the line having used every last bit of energy. I got the fastest time at 13 minutes 39 with Ashleigh Neave a close 6 seconds behind.

Stage 3
Stage 3 included a 20 minute plus 3 lap criterium. It started off hard, with attack after attack. I got a few points throughout the race and then somebody hit my wheel with one lap to go which knocked my derailier and I got stuck in my hardest gear for the rest of the lap. Then coming around the last corner I was too far back and finished 4th.

Stage 4
The final stage included 5 laps of a 15km, relatively hilly circuit. This was a pretty negative race with no body pulling through. A group of about 5 of us did most of the pacing and attempted many attacks which people chased, then sat on. So getting away was pretty hard. We dropped about one third of the bunch and then Georgia Williams did an amazing sprint finish to win the stage, with me getting third.

Overall I won the tour by a close 13 seconds with Georgia Williams 2nd and Ashleigh Neave 3rd. Another fun and hard weekend of racing.

Untill next time =)

Courteney

Te Awamutu Tour

The Te Awamutu Tour is the first tour I had ever completed back in 2006. It is a great few days of racing with the top junior riders from around the country. Usually I would be doing it with the hope of being selected for the junior team to race in Canberra and Adelaide, but because I’m not a junior anymore it was just a good blow out before nationals. It involved 2 road races and a time trial with an overall Queen of the mountain and Sprint Ace winner.

The first stage was a typical women’s race with everybody ‘saving’ their legs and sitting on. A few of us had a go at getting away but were not successful. I managed to take out all of the QOM’s (Queen of the mountain) and a few points in the Sprint Ace, and then just managed to outsprint Courtney Grenfell for the overall (was very close).

The second stage was a bit more exiting as it had a few longer hills out Wharepapa South ways. Haley Mercer did a solid attack on the first climb which broke the field up. I then counter attacked her and a group of 7 of us got away. For the next 2 laps the 6 of us (we dropped one) worked well together, gaining about 7 minutes on the next group of riders. I also managed to take out all of the QOM points and most of the Sprint Ace points throughout the race and then outsprinted the bunch at the finish, which gave me a 5 second overall lead.

Finish of stage 2.

The next day was the Time Trial which was a 15 km out and back course. I put all I had into it and finished 2nd to a very strong Kerri-Anne Torckler. This putting me in second place. Overall it was a fun few days of racing, coming away with the QOM and Sprint Ace jerseys and a 2nd overall.

Sisterly bonding right before the start of tt, probly telling

me how bad my glasses look and that I should give them to her..

While dad gives me a leg massage.

Till next time,

Courteney