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Picked up a couple of new pre-race warm up tips that morning from Simon. Always learning, always improving – good. As I got off the rollers, it started raining. No turning back now.
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As I kicked out of the start, I quickly revved up to use the short little flat section before the climb started. A couple hundred metres into the climb, I spotted my carrot, Carolyn Fraser from HCC about 200m in front. Carolyn was well-known for her climbing abilities, and my goal was formed for the day ? I?d try my best to keep her within sight.
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The first couple of k?s was yo-yo pace. Every time Carolyn saw a rider within reach, she?d accelerate to get pass them. And I?d follow suit. Always maintaining the gap, always keeping her within sight. ?The rain didn?t really bother me now. We soon passed 3 riders in front , and it was now just the 2 of us. In between trying to breath I tried to do my math ? if I?d started at +2:30, we?ve passed 3, so that leaves just the 2 of us?.hang on?..umm..yeah, I think that?s right. Ah whatever, there?s not enough oxygen for my brain to do math right now, just keep Carolyn in sight!
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At about the 6.5km mark, the gap between us had started to grow. Carolyn was starting to put the pressure down. I?d lose sight of her around the bends, see her for a few seconds, then lose sight of her for periods of time again. I was determined not to let her off, and kept digging even harder. As the climb flattened out at around the 8km mark, I knew there was no easing off ? I just had to push on. Soon, I had her within sight again and this time, I tried to keep the gap within 200m. I didn?t have quite enough to close it down just yet, but it was near enough to keep my motivation up.
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By this point, the temperature had dropped significantly and my fingers were freezing. They were starting to hurt and soon I could no longer feel them. ?Surprisingly though, my legs were feeling better!! The deep heat oil was starting to do its wonders at this point, and I could get out of the saddle for much longer periods of time. With 7ks to go, I spotted Michael McRitchie with his trusty camera by the side and grinned as I rode pass him. ?Go..go..go! Come on?just keep goin!!? The cheers certainly sparked another level of drive and determination, and I worked hard to close down the gap.
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Kilometre by kilometre slipped by. Carolyn was really trying to shake me off and kept on accelerating out of the saddle. I followed suit. A few of the men rode pass. Finally within the last kilometre, I knew I had it within grasp. The gap was now down to 100m. I just needed to kick. Wait. 500m? 300m? I got out of the saddle and with every effort, sprinted pass Carolyn for the finish line.
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I ended up finishing 2nd, 47seconds behind Lisa Jackson in 1:08.02. It was certainly a pleasant surprise and I was stoked to finish on the podium for a hill climb. Riding behind Carolyn was a great learning experience, and I certainly did pick up a lot of skills and techniques from her that day. Looking back, I rode the race like a scratch, rather than a time trial. ?Had I known that there was another girl in front – could I have dug that bit deeper? I?ll leave that for another time. Thanks to Blackburn CC and the volunteers for putting on such a good race ? it was well organised and even without a transponder, timing was schmick! Climbing is certainly a mind game ? one that I?ve struggled with all along. Like Joe Friel says ? if you want to climb, work on what?s going on between your ears ? you gotta believe!!?
