1st Jenny Macpherson – TDT RACE, VIC
2nd Davina Summers – Plan B, WA
3rd Jo Hogan – Prime Estate, VIC
4th Chloe McConville – TDT RACE, VIC
Sprint Champion – Chloe McConville
Queen of the Mountain – Davina Summers
On the start line of the 115km race starting in Warrnambool were five TDT RACE team members - Jenny, Chloe, Kendelle, Bec and Felicity. Luckily the 8am start had been pushed back to 11.30am, and the wild wind was living up to expectations.
The small group of about 15 women rode off 1min after the men’s field. There were numerous attempts to get the bunch rolling turns, but the crosswinds kept pushing riders across the road and prevented riders from rolling through.
The first of eight intermediate sprints came at the 17km mark and the first move of the day was created. Rebecca Locke and Nicole Whitburn of Prime Estate attacked about 400m before the sprint, Kendelle bridged across to create a small break for about the next 40km.
With a tough headwind to battle into, the leading three were always kept in sight. The remainder of the bunch kept momentum, as there was no pressure to chase the break down that early into the race.
At the half way mark, the third member of Prime Estate, Jo Hogan, decided the break had been hanging out in front long enough. Jo got on the front, picked up the speed and soon the race was back to one group. This re-grouping was timed in TDT RACE’s favour, allowing Chloe to win the next intermediate sprint.
Having traveled along the great ocean road to Port Campbell, we turned inland towards the first climb of about 3km. Stephanie McGrath set a solid tempo up the climb, with only Jenny, Chloe, Davina and Jo able to stay on her wheel.
This lead five took advantage of the tailwind home and rolled solid turns to draw away from the peleton. Chloe continued to take wins and points in the remainder of the intermediate sprints, which allowed Jenny to save her legs for potential attacks and the finish.
The sprint finish was set up by an early lead out from Jo, allowing Jenny to follow her wheel and take the inaugural win of the Shipwreck Coast Classic, which doubled as the Victorian State Road Race Championships.
Honda Hybrid Womens Tour, 15-17 October 2009
TDT Race Women’s Team entered a modified team for the Honda Hybrid Women’s Tour, with the focus of developing our U19 riders (Natasha Langedyk and Stacy Hocking) and giving them the opportunity to experience racing at this level. Joining the U19 girls in her debut ride with the team was new member Rebecca Domange, U23 rider Danielle Nyikos, our favorite Kiwi Rosy McCall, as well as regulars Felicity Wilson and Chloe McConville.
Stage 1- 55km Road Race Anglesea-Anglesea
Stage 1 of the Honda Hybrid Womens Tour began under very overcast skies. 73 girls rolled off the start line under neutral conditions and as soon as the flag dropped the racing was on. An incident at a roundabout approx 1.5km into the race, saw our under 19 riders (Natasha Langedyke and Stacy Hocking) as well as Danielle Nyikos get caught up, however all 3 riders got back on their bikes and finished the race. The QOM climb came 3 km into the race and had an immediate effect of breaking the field in half with a bunch of 35 (including Chloe, Rosy and Rebecca) taking a 50m advantage over the top. Felicity was in the next group of about 10 girls and worked hard to rejoin the leading group a kilometer or so later. Jo Hogan (Prime Estate) made an attack over the false flat section at the end of the climb which saw her away, but always within sight, for a couple of km’s. With the tactical teams racing she was never going to be let go. Rosy counter attacked Jo and a NTID girl went with her, but again only a couple of k’s later they were reeled in. From then on the attacks came from everywhere, but with the strong team of MB cycles looking after team captain Kirsty Broun and the HP Pinarello girls keeping everyone in sight no one was able to get away. The two intermediate sprints had time bonuses up for grabs and Chloe placed 2nd in one to grab a 2sec bonus which proved to be very handy for GC rankings! The final 4 km of the race was pretty much suicide, the heavens had opened and the rain was falling hard while the main peloton of 45 girls were descending down Anglesea Hill (at almost 70km an hour.) The placings were pretty much decided by whoever hit the roundabout first and most likely who was the most insane. Rochelle Gilmore (HP Pinarello) took the win, ahead of Kirsty Broun (MB cycles) and Davina Summers (Felt/City Cycles) Chloe managed to get herself up there finishing 8th in the sprint and with the 2 second time bonus finished up the day 5th on GC. Flick, Rosy and Bec were all given the same time and were in the top 30 on GC.
1. Rochelle Gilmore 1.27.53
2. Kirsty Broun same time
3. Davina Summers same time
8. Chloe McConville same time
20. Rosy McCall same time
27. Felicity Wilson same time
30. Rebecca Domange same time
62. Stacey Hocking 1.40.38
64. Natasha Langedyk 1.40.38
65. Danielle Nyikos 1.40.38
Stage 2 - 10km Individual Time Trial Geelong Waterfront
Again the skies were not promising for the start of the 10km IRTT, and the heavens well and truly opened up halfway through the start list, making the tight and technical corners of the course even more dangerous. All of the TDT Race girls managed to stay upright and posted some good times. With the likes of Vicki Whitelaw (HP Pinarello) who has not long returned from the World Championships, it was always going to be tough not losing too much time on GC. However Bec, Flick and Chloe all finished in the top 20, with Chloe’s 12th place (59sec back) the best result she has ever achieved in time trialling. At the end of the day GC reflected the TT results (due to the bunch finish in the RR) with our highest rider Chloe in 12th place 59.69 sec down on tour leader Vicki Whitelaw.
Stage 3- 45min + 3 lap Lygon St Criterium
Finally the sunny skies were shining and all of the girls were pretty nervous heading into the final stage. The chance for Chloe to move up on GC (and into the money) would rely on getting at least 4 seconds worth of time bonuses. After Stage 2 only 11seconds separated 12th from 5th. After a team meeting prior to the race it was decided the girls needed to get straight out of the blocks and be aggressive, with thoughts that a breakaway was probably the way the race was going to pan out. Chloe lead the attacks early and was off the front of the peloton solo for just over a lap before being chased down. Bec, Rosy and Flick also lead aggressive attacks but again the other teams were just too strong and no-one was getting away. The field was strung out for most of the race courtesy of the high speeds and hot dog corners and resulted in only 35 girls being left in the main peloton. Unfortunately for our younger riders they couldn’t quite hang in with the main bunch but dug deep to finish. Bec gave Chloe a great lead out for the first intermediate sprint, but unfortunately she finished just out of the time bonuses in 4th place. The 2nd intermediate sprint went the same way, with a drag race right to the line that again resulted in a 4th place and no extra seconds! The final 3 laps saw the pace increase even further and position was everything heading around the final hot dog corner. Chloe managed to sprint up into 8th place after just missing the HP Pinarello Steam train lead out off the corner. Bec, Flick and Rosy all raced extremely well to be up there in the main peloton of only 35.
Again sprinters dominated the top 3 positions with Rochelle Gilmore just sneaking in ahead of Kirsty Broun and Davina Summers.
1. Rochelle Gilmore 56.14
2. Kirsty Broun same time
3. Davina Summers same time
8. Chloe McConville same time
24 Rebecca Domange. same time
31. Felicity Wilson 56.29
34.Rosy McCall 56.50
62. Stacey Hocking 1.01.25
64.Danielle Nyikos 1.04.30
65 Natasha Langedyk 1.07.35
At the end of the tour, the top of GC hadn’t changed much with Vicki Whitelaw winning overall ahead of Amber Halliday (MB Cycles) and Carly Light (NTID).
Thank you to all of our sponsors, without your support we wouldn’t be able to continue racing in tours such as this. Also thank you to all of the people who lent our riders various equipment during the tour and for the cheering on the sidelines and to Kimbo for getting us every step of the way with our training. The girls look forward to getting more great results soon!
High Country Criterium and Road Race, September 19 & 20, 2009
Criterium Results:
1st Helen Kelly, VIS
2nd Jenny Macpherson, TDT RACE
3rd Chloe McConville, TDT RACE
4th Nicole Whitburn, TDT RACE
Chloe, Nicole, Jo Hogan (Prime Estate women’s team) and myself headed up to the 30min + 3 lap criterium was held on a short, tight circuit in the car park of Sam Miranda Winery, Oxley 15km South of Wangaratta on Saturday 19 September.
The off-camber uphill corner 20m before the finish line was a concern for the eight women on the start line as the overcast clouds blew over threatening rain. However, after Helen Kelly’s heart-starter attack from the start, quickly narrowed the field down to Helen, the three TDT girls and Jo.
The TDT girls continuously tried attacking to get a rider off the front, but Helen and Jo chased well to keep it all together. Coming into the final mintues, Nicole and Jenny took the lead in the hope of holding a good position for the sprint. Helen made the winning move attacking at the bell and Jenny was unable to make up any ground and came over the line in 2nd. Chole, Nicole and Jo came in close behind, with Chloe lunging for the third spot on the podium.
Road Race Results:
1st Jenny Macpherson, TDT RACE
2nd Jo Hogan, Prime Estate
3rd Helen Kelly, VIS
5th Chloe McConville, TDT RACE
8th Nicole Whitburn, TDT RACE
After a pleasant evening thanks to the hospitality of Chloe’s parents in Myrtleford, the girls headed to Mansfield for the 100km point to point race to Sam Miranda Winery.
With a few more women on the start line today, we headed off rolling solid turns until the start of the major climb. The climb was nearly 20km long, with the KOM at the 34km mark.
Jo made the first attack for the day at the start of the climb, taking Jenny along with her. With a hesitant bunch behind, Jo and Jenny were quickly able increase their lead and escape the site of the chasing bunch. The leaders reached the KOM together, with Jenny taking the prize and then prepared for the 20km or so decent and then the straight, flat 50km section to the finish.
By the time Jo and Jenny reached the intermediate sprint at the 80km mark, the chasers were still not in sight. Chloe had been doing a great job slowing down the chase from Helen and Belinda Goss, whilst the rest of the bunch had splintered on the climb behind them.
With half a dozen bottles of Sam Miranda wine up for grabs in the intermediate sprint, it was added incentive for Jenny to take the win and enjoy sharing with her teammates! Jenny and Jo continued the mental challenge of wondering how far the chasers were behind us, and how far it was until the finish! However, the gable of the early break succeeded and Jenny took the win in a sprint finish. Chloe’s bunch came in a few minutes later, but she was unable to match the leg speed of Helen and Belinda.
Celtic Country Classic de Femme - Glen Innes to Inverell NRS, September 12, 2009
On Thursday 10th September, Felicity and Chloe, along with the support of coach Kimbo and Delphine began the epic drive up to Glen Innes for the 5th round of the Women’s National Road Series.
After driving all day Thursday, the girls decided to stop in the small town of Forbes, about 2hrs north of Dubbo for the night. The next morning after an awesome ride in the sun and no wind, the journey continued. By 6pm Friday night the girls arrived in Glen Innes, with plenty of time for a home cooked spag bol and to register. Not to mention the de-bugging of the bikes after 1500km on top of the roof!
The heat set in early on race day, by the start of the race at 9.30am, no arm warmers, undershirts or vests were needed. The beginning of the race was a little less than ideal. Whilst on the start line Flick and Chloe were told that the new UCI wheel regulations would be enforced and unless they changed their Bouwmeester wheels to a set of approved wheels, they would be disqualified. As the support vehicle had already left to go out on the course, the girls were forced to get their training wheels out of the spares van, and race on those… definitely not ideal on a course like Glen Innes.
The race was hard and the profile (which made it look more downhill than up) definitely did not do it justice. The race broke up after the first KOM about 15km into the 95km race. The initial attack over the climb left 3 of the strongest riders dangling out the front for about 8km, the chase group of about 15 which included Chloe, worked hard to bring them back. Flick didn’t quite get onto the back of the chase group and ended up riding hard for the rest of the race with another couple of girls, unfortunately not being able to bridge the gap to get back on.
After pulling back the 3 riders out front, the race settled for a few k’s until the next attack came on a 500m stretch of gravel road. Chloe worked hard to bridge and got across but the rest of the bunch had followed and everything was back together again. Just as Flick had predicted, the race was determined over the 2nd KOM. A lead bunch of 6 broke away, with Chloe missing the break by about 10m and was left chasing in no man’s land for 3km. After not gaining any ground, Chloe sat up and waited for a chase group of 6 other riders and then worked hard with these girls into the finish, not able to bring back the lead bunch. Chloe ended up winning the bunch kick to finish 7th and Flick came in a few mins back to finish 20th. A pretty disappointing day considering the distance travelled and the fact that we drove for 20hours to race on training wheels, but at the end of the day if nothing else it was a good hard training session!
Shortly after the race the girls loaded up and drove straight back to Geelong.. a very very very long 20hrs non-stop in the car… please note: there are no 24hr Maccas between Dubbo and Shepparton!!
Thanks a bundle to the continued support of our sponsors and to Kim and Delphine for the race and driving assistance.
Results
1st Lauren Kitchen
2nd Sue Forsyth
3rd Loren Rooney
7th Chloe McConville
20th Felicity Wilson
Victorian State Championships, Geelong - August 14 - 16, 2009
28km Individual Time Trial
5th Jenny Macpherson, 43:46.48
13th Nicole Whitburn, 44:51.86
22nd Chloe McConville, 45:35.83
29th Felicity Wilson, 46:30.43
15 Lap Criterium (2.3km course)
1st Jenny Macpherson
4th Chloe McConville
10th Nicole Whitburn
24th Felicity Wilson
27th Rosy McCall
The girls were pumped for a good result today. With a team of five girls we had the numbers to take control of the whole race. Every lap we had one of our team members positioned at the front. We marked the hot favourites, whilst trying to making our own moves off the front in hope of a breakaway succeding. With intermediate sprints every 2nd lap, the pace was high and all attacks were short lived. Nicole positioned herself at the front of the bunch and Jenny close to her wheel coming into the last lap. Nicole kept the pace high allowing Jenny a clear line to take a narrow win over Peta Mullens.
Luckily the rest of the team managed to avoid the nasty crash in the sprint and were able to celebrate in a great team victory.
93.6km Road Race - Post-ponded due to bad weather
Melbourne to Ballarat - July 18, 2009
WHITBURN, Nicole TDT RACE 1st Female and 22nd overall.
Finish time 2:47.07, and only 1.25min behind winner.
This is the second year running that Nicole has won 1st Female in this event.
Victorian 100km Championships, Women's Criterium - July 12, 2009
The TDT RACE team took a clean sweep on the podium in the Women's Criterium as part of the Victorian 100km Championships.
Results;
WILSON, Felicity TDT RACE 1st 43min 35sec
HODGES, Kendelle TDT RACE 2nd at 1min 45sec
McCOOMBE, Carly TDT RACE 3rd same time
McCONVILLE, Chloe TDT RACE 4th same time
Canberra Women's Tour - July 3 - 5, 2009
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Race Report- Stage 4 Canberra Women’s Tour
Sunday morning’s stage 4 was always going to be tough. After
3 stages of racing in 2 days, everybody’s legs were feeling the hills they had
already climbed and this sensation wasn’t going to be leaving any time soon!
The 71km road stage started out at a pretty steady pace. It
wasn’t until about 9km in, that the first attack was made. 2 girls managed to
get themselves off the front, however the nasty climb after an even nastier
descent quickly brought them back to the bunch. This first major climb (and
QOM) immediately split the field into 2 groups. Kendelle, Nic, Delphine and
Chloe had managed to get down the descent towards the front end of the bunch
and up the other side with the front group. Flick got caught in no mans land after
the climb and worked with one other girl to try and bridge the gap to the front
bunch of about 35 girls. Unfortunately for Flick, the tail wind and the attacks
that followed once the race headed back towards Stromlo Park made bridging impossible.
Carly had also not quite made it over with the lead girls, but rode a very
solid race to the finish.
Just before the nasty descent back down the QOM hill, Nic
made an attack which saw her off the front with Chloe McIntosh
(Ballarat-Sebastopol). This gave her a handy lead up the climb on the other
side. The downhill for the main bunch was a sketchy one, Chloe found herself
caught behind some dodgy wheels and opted for the suicidal inside line that
could have resulted in serious damage, but luckily she managed to avoid any
collisions. Sally Robbins (NTID) on the other hand was not quite as lucky and
catapulted herself over the barrier of the bridge and into nearby scrub.
Reports are she walked away unscathed.
Over the course of the next 10km, the lead bunch of 35 had
whittled down to around 15 girls, courtesy of another QOM which unfortunately
saw Nic and Delphine just missing the break.
The lead bunch quickly realized that a gap had opened up and
with all the major contenders on GC keen to put more time into the rest, all
the girls in the group rolled solid turns. The lead group continued to stretch
their lead over the last 40km of the race, with a 2 min buffer on the chasing
pack (which included Nic) as they headed back out over the first part of the course
for the 2nd time.
Chloe and Kenny had managed to remain in the lead bunch and
stay with the girls over the last 2 QOMs, and by this stage of the race, only
13 girls were left. As the last 5km approached, tactics came into play and Jo
Hogan (Prime Estate) made a bold move that nearly saw her stay away until the
finish line. The bunch reeled her in as they entered the Stromlo Park Circuit,
around 1km from the finish.
The final 100m was pretty frantic. Chloe was last wheel
around the final bend but somehow carried some extra speed out of the corner
and sprinted up the outside to claim 3rd place behind Carly Light
(NTID) and Amy Cure (TIS). Kenny crossed the line in 11th place
after assisting World’s Team mate Megan Dunn in the sprint.
Nic crossed the line just off the back of the chasing bunch
and was happy with her result. The other girls followed in the 3rd
and 4th bunches and all in all, the team was pretty happy with
results from the final stage.
So at the end of the tour, Kenny finished up 12th
on GC, with thoughts of what could have been if her TT bike didn’t have a
mechanical. Chloe was 13th also wondering what might have been if
she could get her head around the concept of time trialling, Nic 20th,
Delphine 27th and Flick 29th. The team ended up with a 3rd,
4th, 5th, 7th, 8th and 3 other top
15 finishes over the 4 stages. Not bad for a tour with over 70 girls competing.
The next National Series round is on home turf
in Geelong in the middle of August so the team is now focusing on this event
with high hopes of more podium finishes.
Metro Championships - June 20, 2009
Saturday June 20th saw Nicole and Chloe make a rather quick drive to Newstead for the Metro Championships. After some guestimations of travel time, the girls were clearly not on schedule for an arrival which allowed an adequate warm-up, and so used the first 10km of the race to roll the legs over!
The race started off reasonably cruisy, the bunch of about 20 girls rolled turns and it wasn’t until about 15km in that Chloe had a half hearted attempt to get off the front just to see who would chase. She was reeled in by some of the stronger girls pretty quickly. The next move came on the steep climb 20km in. With Steph McGrath (TFM) climbing strongly, Chloe sat on her wheel and Peta Mullens (Jayco VIS) on hers. As they went over the top of the climb, a small gap had opened up to the main bunch, with Jo Hogan (Prime Estate) the only other girl to bridge to the first 3. Nicole had almost latched on but courtesy of another rider dropping the wheel, and with the 4 girls now on a small decent and picking up speed rapidly, she wasn’t able to get into the break.
The 4 girls in the break worked well together and rolled even turns, quickly opening up a gap that would only grow bigger for the remaining 70km of the race. By the end of the first lap (30km in) the break had put a minute into the next girls. Nic had dropped all but one other rider and they worked together in no-mans land to try and stay away.
The break stayed together until 10km to go, when the pressure on one of the sharp climbs caused Jo to pop and then there were only 3. Coming into the final 5km, Chloe held Peta’s wheel and Steph was made to lead into the finish straight. Chloe made the move early, perhaps a little too early and Peta rolled across the line just in front, with Steph not really being a sprinter taking out 3rd about 30m back.
Nic rode the last lap solo, keeping clear of the remaining riders, finishing in 6th position.
All in all, not a bad day in Newstead and things are looking promising for Canberra Women’s Tour in 2 weeks time.
Thanks to all of our sponsors for their continuing support, the girls look forward to bringing more great results in the next few weeks of hard racing.
Preston Mountain Classic - May 23, 2009
Jenny, Chloe and Delphine raced the Preston Mountain Classic last Saturday. It is a 76.5km handicap that starts and finishes in Broadford. The course goes along undulating roads and features the climb of Murchison gap in the last part of the race. Jenny and Chloe were with the 9 min bunch while Delphine rode with the limit bunch, 32 minutes ahead of scratch and 8 min ahead of 2nd limit. Delphine’s bunch was composed of women only and they worked really well together to stay away from the chasing bunches and after 30km of racing they still had a 6-minute advantage. After 50km of racing they had only lost another 2 minutes, and they knew they could hang on to the lead at least until the hill, if not until the finish line. Delphine was amongst the strongest in the bunch and had spent the first part of the race trying to save energy for the climb. As they passed through Kerrisdale they had only 4 minutes advantage and it was time to start working harder in order to hold the other bunches off. They lifted the pace up and rolled through at a higher pace until only six riders remained at Strath Creek. The next bunch didn’t gain any time on them during that time and was still 4 minutes behind. Soon after, Byron Davy from 2nd limit went flying past us on his way to victory on his solo breakaway that lasted the whole race.
At that stage Delphine could see that she had a chance of winning the women’s race. She climbed hard and got first woman up Murchison gap. There was no queen of the mountain prize for this, but it was still her aim to pass this KOM line first. At that stage only Jess Sloane was still with her, and in spite of all Delphine’s efforts to drop her on the last hills she could not manage it Jess responded to all attacks. It came down to a sprint for the line and Jess won by about half a wheel in the end.
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McDonalds Cup – Blue Lake - May 17, 2009
On Sunday it was the running of the McDonalds Cup around the Blue Lake of Mount Gambier, a closed circuit with picturesque scenery. And plenty of cash up for grabs for the women!
Chloe took off early attacking the bunch and putting the pressure on. There were two intermediate sprints so when the whistle blew the race was on! Ginger initiated the attack early with Peta Mullens chasing and Chloe taking third in the sprint. The field from this point on was split with five up the road and Felicity chasing hard to get back on. Eventually bridging the gap only to hear the whistle blow again and the bunch to be ripped apart up the climb. Chloe lost ground and found herself chasing hard, unfortunately no RACE girls placed in the next sprint.
It was cat and mouse tactics down to the last lap with the Prime Estate girls watching Peta and Felicity allowing Carly (S.A) to ride away up the last climb, Peta chased hard almost catching Carly whilst Carma followed in 3rd , Ginger 4th, Felicity 5th, Chloe 6th and Nicole 7th.
Thanks to TDT Australia and all of our other sponsors for their continuing support which allow us to travel and compete in interstate events.
Mt Gambier 100 mile Cycle Classic - May 16, 2009
Peta Mullens was the fastest female at the WIN Television Alex Roberts 100 mile Cycling Classic on the weekend at Mount Gambier. But three members of the TDT R.A.C.E. team performed well to finish well up in the overall field and rounded out the top 5 placings for the women’s division.
Felicity Wilson rode off the 44min bunch, Chloe McConville 34min bunch, and Nicole Whitburn the 29min bunch.
The three groups the girls were in started out fast, with the average speeds over the undulating course at around 40km/h, making early casualties from the bunches inevitable.
The first intermediate sprint was taken out by Felicity Wilson at Millecent , around 50km into the 155km race. By this stage, Felicity’s 44min bunch had already caught all of the riders ahead and was headed back towards Mt Gambier. The 34 and 39 min bunches which contained Chloe had grouped together and were closing the gap. Nicole’s bunch at 29 mins, at this point, had made up little time on the 34min group.
As the hill sprint approached at 70km, Felicity and two other male riders from the 44min bunch broke away to take out the KOM at the crest of Range Hill. The 44min bunch was now in pieces. Over the undulating section just after the top of the climb, Chloe’s 34min bunch caught Felicity’s bunch and the pace cranked up as the group of 25 or so riders rolled solid turns to hold off the back markers. Chloe and Felicity were now together which was great to keep morale high as the pain started to set in.
Nicole who started in the ‘scratch women’ group had a tough time in the wind, she managed to roll turns with the guys for the first 70km but unfortunately fell victim to the climb. After almost getting back onto the bunch over the top undulating section, she blew and then worked with a small bunch of guys into the finish, passing all of the other females in the field to finish in 5th place, a strong effort after some time off the bike in the last month.
The 100km mark came around pretty quickly for Flick and Chloe, and doubled as a feed station and the remaining sprint. As Chloe and Felicity were the only 2 girls remaining in the leading bunch, the sprint didn’t need to be contested and Chloe rolled through in front attempting to grab a fresh drink, which she dropped anyway!
For Felicity, it was a matter of survival having never raced this distance before. Her strong efforts of rolling more turns than half of the guys in the bunch didn’t go un-noticed, but unfortunately an attack at the 126km caused her legs to blow and she rolled into town to take out 4th woman. (And was the 2nd person home from her original group)
Chloe remained strong throughout the race, rolling turns with the remaining 8 guys from her bunch in the final 30km. After keeping the back markers at bay for 145km, they rolled past at probably the worst point they could have, halfway up a rise. Unfortunately for Chloe, the pace was too quick and she was unable to latch on. Peta Mullens and Ginger Kidd had been able to get into the scratch group a few km’s earlier and flew past. Chloe worked into the finish with one other guy to hold onto 3rd position in the women’s field. (finishing 2nd out of her original group)
The girls all had a solid day and were the only female team to have all competitors complete the 155km.
Phillip Island Womens Kermesse - May 9, 2009
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Chloe, Nicole, Felicity, Delphine and Jenny of the TDT RACE team ventured down to Phillip Island to take part in the women’s race yesterday.
It was only 13 degrees when we arrived at the GP track, and it seemed that we had left the rain behind in Melbourne, thankfully. Also, the wind didn’t even seem to be as bad as everyone was expecting.
At midday, the field of 24 women lined up representing various teams and clubs including the VIS, SASI, and PrimeEstate. However, TDT had the advantage with more girls than any other team, we almost felt a little guilty. Especially considering there were so many individual girls racing.
It was an aggressive race; all teams were trying to get riders off the front at various stages. However, they were no match for TDT. We continuously counter-attacked the field, and we always had one rider represented in each breakaway.
At the halfway mark, Tess Downing (VIS), Radele Berriman and Jenny had a small lead on the bunch leading into the QOM sprint. With the men’s bunch closing in on the women’s field, the gap was closed at the bottom of the climb. Which meant for a dangerous sprint between the men, the lead car and marshalling motorbike! Luckily for Jenny, she was able to pick a clear line to win the QOM sprint.
Peta Mullens attacked over the top of the climb, which strung the field out. Amber Halliday (SASI) took over the lead and maintained a break over the field for the next couple of laps. Nicole, Felicity, Chloe and Delphine all put in big efforts to either bridge across and/or help bring her back in. With the men still hovering around us, we didn’t have much room to make up ground on Amber. Peta did a sold turn and Jenny followed reeling the leader in just before they called ‘3 to go’.
The PrimeEstate girls monitored the front of the group leading into the finish and on the last lap, Chloe took over lead out position with 600m to go. With a slightly downhill sprint, Jenny knew it would be hard for anyone to pass her. She didn’t have an 11 cog, but was able to hold off Tess to take the win by half a wheel. Rebecca Domange followed wheels to come in 3rd.
After the race, the team celebrated the win together. Our team was also excited by receiving our new Spiuk sunglasses and bike shoes from the guys from Tredleyworks. The girls are now looking good, riding well together and racking up the wins!
Kendell Hodges wins U-19 National Championships - April 30-May 2, 2009
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Time Trial
After being stung on the face by a bee less than an hour before my start time while on a warm up ride, I was extremely nervous and starting to panic that I would not be ready in time for my start as I was running round trying to get ice to help with the swelling. With the assistance of my coach Kim I got my bike ready and checked with the officials and then began my warm up on the wind trainer.
It then came time to make my way down to the start line ready for my 12.20 start. Standing in the starting order line where we started at one minute intervals Kim asked if my computer was working. I replied “yes, I think so” but to be 100% sure bent down and checked it to find that the speed magnet was not aligned with the sensor and therefore not reading a speed. With just over a minute to my start I pulled the magnet up the spoke only to accidently rip it off! Kim ran to the nearest person asking for a screw driver so as we could put the magnet back on while I got the one minute to go count down from the official. It was out of my hands what happened now I was seated on my bike on the start line while Kim was fiddling with the magnet. She couldn’t get it to stay on the spoke and so as the officials counted down 30 seconds to go she said “ you will have to go without it (my Speedo) just ride hard go fast!” and with those words I got 10, 9,8... And before I knew it I was on my way and heading down Pottsville road for the 14k time trial. I knew the course from the previous day where I had ridden over it several times and so knew to start out steady in anticipation for the undulations before the main climb to the turn around. I got to the beginning of the climb to the turn around and knew I had to put everything in here because if I was going to gain time on the others this would be the place it would happen. Nearing the top I could see the rider who started in front of me and so knew I had to be riding a reasonable time and that now only had the second part of the race to go. With the rider in front of me insight I focused on trying to catch her which I came within 10m of doing so as we crossed the finish line. Out of breath and extremely exhausted I rolled up the road and then slowly made my way back to where we were set up. Now came the worst part about a time trial, agonisingly waiting for the results to be posted. With a can of coke and banana I rolled my legs over on a set of rollers and it was here while Kim was standing next to me my very excited mother came and told us the good news that I had won. I was shocked, relieved and extremely happy.
Road Race
After having had a day’s rest after the time trial it was an early start for the road race with the start scheduled for 8.10am. I had raced the same course in last year’s championships and so was familiar with the course. As we headed out from the start line I knew what we were in for. I had also raced with most of the girls prior to this race including the Mersley valley tour just two weeks earlier. So was aware of who would be strong on the hills and aggressive. One of those being Megan Dunn from N.S.W. Before even completing one lap of the four we were to ride Megan was attacking of the front of the bunch up the first main hill. I saw this as a great opportunity to form an early break and so went with her. We continued to attack up the next couple of hills and then found ourselves in a break of five including one girl form New-Zealand. After another lap we dropped Amy cure and Melissa Hosking to leave three of us in the break. We stayed away for the remainder of the race and the finish came down to a sprint between the three of us where I ended up second.
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Mersey Valley Tour Race Report – April 10-13, 2009 - Report By Chloe
Easter time for most normal people involves holidaying, relaxing and eating mounds of chocolate, however for the girls in TDT R.A.C.E. it involved a long boat ride to Tassie, lots of hills and maybe just a little bit of chocolate…
Stage 1: Saturday morning was the 15km individual time trial held on a relatively flat out and back course running along the banks of the Mersey River. With the Mersey Valley tour doubling as the U19 selection race for the World Junior Championships, the younger girls were going to be in form and this was certainly reflected in the results. Kendelle showed some fine form placing 3rd in the U19 Category and 6th overall, Jenny also finished up there despite only having clip on bars placing 7th in the elite women, and 17th overall. Felicity wasn’t completely satisfied with her race, however was only 20sec back on Jenny, placing 9th in elite women and 21st overall. Delphine had a solid race finishing 15th in elite women and 30th overall. I can’t say that time trialling is really my forte at the moment and my lack of experience shined through placing 12th in the elite women and 25th overall with hopes of a better day tomorrow. Kathy Watt finished the day in yellow, and in 2nd place was Amy Cure.
Stage 2: Sunday’s stage was a 78km road stage, involving a 2 loops of a circuit in which the first half was undulating uphill, followed by a sketchy descent with off camber corners and a fast undulating downhill section for about 10km.
The race started off fast with the U19 girls driving the bunch. The couple of early attacks on the tops of the steeper climbs were quickly shut down and it seemed no one would be able to get away easily. The first time down the descent, the roads were dry and the bunch managed to get down unscathed. I attacked on the down and managed to get a small break with Jo Hogan (Prime Estate) but again the girls in the bunch were not going to let anyone get off the front.
The end of the first lap which coincided with the top of the KOM, resulted in the bunch being reduced to about 20. Delphine and Flick unfortunately had fallen victim to the attack over the top of the climb and were unable to get back onto the bunch. Jenny, Kendelle and I managed to position ourselves well and got through the 2nd lot of hills without too much trouble. Then came the rain. During the warm up Jenny and I had been talking about the likelihood of rain and I was certain it was going to hold off. How wrong I was. The rain came down at probably the worst point in time of the race, about 10min before we were to hit the descent. The downhill was sketchy before it was covered with water and basically it was a matter of who had the most guts and who was able to stay upright. At the start of the descent I was about 10th wheel back, following Kenny, which gave me perfect viewing of the stack that happened right in front. One of the National Talent ID girls who was in front of Kendelle locked up her back wheel and went sliding across the road, poor Kenny had nowhere to go and unfortunately came down as well. I also locked up my back wheel but somehow remained upright, a case of good luck more than anything I think. There were a number of other girls who came down in 2 separate stacks, including tour leader Kathy Watt. The descent resulted in the bunch being thinned considerably with 6 girls out the front including Jenny, and 4 of us working our butts off about 100m back to get back on. Kenny had gotten herself up quickly and worked with Tour of Coleraine winner Ginger Kidd to minimise too much time damage, however with 10 of us up the road working to put time into Kathy she was unable to bridge the gap. The final 10km was pretty solid with all the girls in our bunch rolling turns and hitting up the last KOM at a good pace.
The finish came down to an uphill bunch sprint. The plan was for me to lead Jenny out and I was out the front early. With 100m to go I was drag racing with Amy Cure with Jenny right on my wheel. Then all of a sudden the line(which was hard to see) was underneath me and I had just won my first stage at a national road series! Jenny was too strong in the last couple of metres for Amy and crossed the line in 2nd place. So an extremely successful day for R.A.C.E. in Tasmania! Kendelle did a great job to only finish 1min 30sec down on the leading bunch, 10th overall and 4th in U19, knowing had she not crashed she definitely would have been up there contesting the sprint. Felicity and Delphine worked hard all day and finished in one piece. Hopefully tomorrow is just as successful!!
Stage 3: After the second stage Kendelle knew she had to ride an aggressive race in order to make up for some time lost in the crash. We were all ready to do our very best to help her achieve this goal and the third stage of the tour was therefore dedicated to team work. We worked together from the gun, and the pace was on very early. Only 5km into the race I heard a loud noise behind me and realised a very nasty crash had just taken place at the back of the bunch. Felicity and Delphine immediately checked that Kendelle was still with us and after making sure that everybody from the team was safe we resumed the hard work. 8 girls went down in the crash, 3 of which had to be sent to hospital with quite serious head and spine injuries. The TDT RACE team kept attacking and counter-attacking continuously for the first 30km of the race. Chloe eventually managed to break away with Isabella King (South Australia). After this intense start of the race, the bunch took advantage of the flat section of the course to rest and save some energy before Heart Break Hill, a 3km climb with sections over 14%. The climb starts after 60.4km of racing and the course outline reads “ ‘Heart Break Hill’ – max climb of the day 14% - good luck”. Kendelle and Jenny climbed exceptionally well and opened a gap from the main bunch along with four U19 girls. 3 women were up the road at this stage, and the group kept working hard so Jenny would maintain a good position in the General Classification at the end of the day. Felicity and Delphine were the victims of the hard tempo set at the start of the race and we didn’t manage to hang on, but we stayed together until the finish. After the quick descent another sharp hill was awaiting our race leaders and Kendelle and Jenny’s group caught up to Chloe on the “Cowshed Hill” climb. With 15km to go the race was still not over as yet another hard climb was going to test the legs of the riders. Kendelle was feeling strong and opened a gap on her opponents before the top of the second KOM. She was only 9km away from the finish and she kept working on her own to take the stage win in the U19 category. Jenny was in fine form as well, her bunch caught the GC leader for the women in front of her and she won the bunch sprint to the line; finishing 4th of the women and securing a 3rd place in the General Classification. Chloe came in only a little bit behind and took 7th place (Women).
Final General Classification: Kendelle Hodges 2nd Under 19
Final General Classification Elite women: Jenny 3rd, Chloe 7th, Delphine 12th, Felicity 13th
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