It’s always a worry when you get of the bike after 232km of suffering, recording an average 15th and say “Right, 364 days til the next one!” I have been looking forward to this race all year and hoping to garner a good result after really quiet an average season with family problems, illness and just not doing races. After a good road trip with a Bathurst mate on the Thursday leading into the Grafton, where we stayed in Inverell with Aussie Hotel Inverell team mate Brendan Jones and then a trip back along the race route on the Friday, all was looking good for Saturday until we hit the range and copious quantities of smoke met us on the decent. Further along we were stopped for nearly 2 hours by the Rural Fire Service who were doing some controlled back burning (which looked like it had got away a little), with fire lapping the edge of the road. Thankfully we got going without having to turn around and do the long trip the Brendan had to do who left only half an hour behind us. This made me hit the panic stations, asthma and smoke do not mix well, at all. After a nice lunch with my Great Aunt when I got to Grafton, it was chill time for the evening until everyone else turned up. Brendan had accumulated a great team going into the event, with himself, countless times in the top ten including a frustrating 4th a few years ago, defending champion and race record holder, Commonwealth Games gold medalist, Olympian, world and Australian champion Mark Jameson, Geoff Straub who had done several stints in Europe, Mal Rudolph, former winner and Drapac rider and then myself? Well I was under no illusions, it could well be a day of domestic duties to support some stellar guys.
The day dawned cool and slightly overcast, pockets laden with Torq products and time to hit the road. With some good chin wagging on the start line with plenty of people, including former team mate Brenton Jones, 8-o’clock loomed and the start. 232km to go.After an easy neutral section that is really neutral compared to races like the Goulburn, we hit the 100km/h sigh on the edge of town and the racing began. With plenty of attacks, never getting far for the first bit, the pace was on and it wasn’t until over Cattle Creek KOM where a break went with out team mate Straub went up the road and very quickly established a good gap over 5min. The pressure went off the bunch, and after a well timed pisso, we got back moving and headed further and further into the smoke and hit the range. Straight away the pace went up, Budget setting a huge tempo that very quickly distanced a lot of people. I was holding onto by the coat tails but had to say good bye and the smoke was making it feel like I was breathing through a straw. Damn, that I thought was the end of my Grafton. I said good bye to my team mates in the bunch Mal and Brendan. Luckily between the escape of Mark-O and Hertzo from the main bunch, indecision by Genesys who had lost Pat Shaw saw an easing of the bunch and the higher we went, the smoke cleared, so the 150m gap was slowly closed, helped by Pat Shaw who was trying to drag himself back into contention, I got back onto the bunch in between the two hair pins. Went straight to the front half of the bunch and continued to chew some bar tape. Over the top, the air cleared, got some food down my throat and realised I had made it over the Gibraltar and was still in this race. With a solid break up the road, well represented by Budget and GPM and Genesys not happy with it’s make up, the boys in Orange hit the front and had a long sway off into the head wind across the top, through the Prison Farm feed station and then the draining drags to Glen Innes. Just before Glen, the main break was caught, but now with two Budget riders up the road it was a shift on the front. Budget were again sitting on (and fair enough) right behind the teams timetrial being completed by both GPM and Genesys in an attempt to bring back the pair of Hertzig and Cupit from Budget who had over 5min on the bunch. I tell you I was pleased I was in neither of those teams today. And another thing in my favour was that while I was in the fluro Aussie Hotels kit, my team mate also up with me, Mal was racing in his normal Drapac kit meaning that people didn’t realise we had two of us up there.
Out of Glen and the pace was steady, I had been through my bad patch on the false flats into Glen and was starting to find some legs, a rolling pisso of the side of the bike and I was starting to realise we would either be fighting it out for 1st if the break came back in a bunch kick or else a podium place. On the approach to Inverell there are some nasty lumps in the highway that normally you wouldn’t think twice about, but with over 200k’s in your legs it was a bit different. Mal was the first person to spice things up but it all came back together and GPM and Genesys train resumed until Wire Gully, previously the final climb of the day, but since last year was the second to last. This time it was Chris Jory of GPM who lit it up and splintered the bunch, leaving half of it behind and me making the cut. Down along the flats towards the last climb of the day it turned into a scratch race having realised that the Budget two were not coming back so between Mal and I attacking, along with everyone else it was a leg sappping experience. But it held together to the base of the last climb, when people started blowing out the back. I found myself halfway up the bunch on the climb and there I stayed until we crested the top. On the decent into Inverell I put the plan that Mal and I had hatched earlier on the road into action, stetting up a leadout and a sprint for 3rd place. With Mal glued nicely to my wheel, and moving our way to the front of the bunch, covering attacks from everyone and Budget trying to make it a 1-2-3. Going through the roundabout at 300m to go a Genesys rider tried to make a move on my right? he got a big lean from me and disappeared. I was glued onto Teddy Windsor’s wheel as he opened out the sprint, gave me a big lead out, which opened the door for Mal on the left of the road to turn on the afterburners and take 3rd. As Mal was going up my inside, I quickly realised if I had the legs I could hold on for 4th place, and in the throw for the line got it over Jory. That night there were plenty of celebrations at the sponsors watering hole, plenty of stories with plenty of people. It was a double celebration for me, my last uni exam was on the Tuesday before plus essentially the end of the season too. Then onto moving house to start a new life post uni. A move to Cooma, starting my Pharmacy Internship in January and my girlfriend, Jen, starting work this week (hence why it has taken so long to get this penned) A big thanks to Brendan Jones, the Joneys Boys and the Aussie Hotel Inverell and his crew that supported us on the day. A race like that wouldn’t happen without drivers and feeders. Top work guys! Also thanks to Dean and Gen at Torq Australia for supporting the Torq team this year on the road. It has been a hit and miss year but still heaps of fun. Thanks for the brilliant product that is second to none and kept me fueled like no ones business on the day. And thanks also for letting me guest with another team for my favourite race. Thanks to Fenz at FTP Training for great coaching and advice this year. Thanks to Monza, Cube, SRAM and ENVE. It makes for a brilliant all round package. Works well, light to get up a nasty big 18km berg with the bunch, aero wheels for the rest of the race and stiff enough to take 2nd in the bunch kick!
