Great racing, great company

So our women's B team took on the Mooloolaba criterium on Saturday, and the Mt Cotton Kermesse on Sunday.

Fantastic time was had by all, with a particularly successful Sunday, when the team managed 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place! (... as well as another first place for best cheer squad Corissa!)

Thanks to all the girls, you are terrific to train and race with!

Twenty four hours

Think smooth flowing lines Matt... and have a superb 24 hour race this weekend in NZ!

We are all there with you in spirit. :)

Spoilt for choice

Five races in 2 weeks… Murrarie, Crestmead, Lakeside, Murbah, Crestmead… there is such a huge variety of bike racing around SE Qld. And that’s just road… I haven’t even touched on the number of MTB events, Triathlon and Adventure races that start popping up at this time of the year.

They are invaluable in helping improve bike skills and gaining more experience.

Probably the highlights for me during the last 2 weeks were: (1) our team sprinter’s overall 4th place finish in the Crestmead series; and (2) my involvement in a 5 person breakaway at Murarrie! (Geez that hurt!)…

But then I also gained a lot from my DNF at Murbah last weekend too(a flat tyre from a thumbtack of all things!).

Sizzling races

Well race #2 at Crestmead certainly lived up to its name on Sunday.

It was a sizzling hot day... and the pace of all the races was pretty damn hot too!
I really enjoyed this series last year, but I believe that this year Logan Cycling Club have really done an even more superb job in their organisation of the race and facilities.

Looking forward to an even tougher race this coming weekend!

Enjoying the process

I can be so impatient at times.
I always have goals, and look forward to that final end result. The finish line. The end.
In doing this I seem to miss a lot along the way. Recently I have been learning to enjoy the whole process. Taking each training ride as it comes. Taking each day as it comes.

Last week was a great example of how well it can work...
I enjoyed our team's last preparation before the race, rather than anxiously wishing it was over.
I let the tension and the pre-race nerves just flow this time... and they seemed a lot less when I didn't actively fight them.
My goal was to simply enjoy each lap of the race rather than waiting desperately for the end.

And it was great!... working with the other girls, watching and bringing back the attacks, building up a fast pace... and to top it all off our teammate Jane did a fantastic job at the end to win!

But honestly, the connection with my teammates during the race was really the highlight.

Have goals, and be focused, but don't keep looking too far ahead that you miss what is right beside you.

Adversity and triumph

What a week of contrasts and extremes... of bad news and good news.
The Victorian fires, the Nth Qld floods.

Somehow the bad news outweighs the good news right now.
It seems weird on one hand to feel happy about some good racing results for people I know, at the same time as feeling sad and almost disbelieving that there are many people suffering and dying (or dead) in other parts of Australia.

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall."
- Confucius

Matt did so well in his 12 hour race on the weekend, along with Andrew Bell and Andrew Fellows.
It was a fun race.

Kirsty Broun has done amazingly well again and managed a 3rd place in the Women's Tour of Qatar.

Yet thousands of people are homeless in Victoria and Northern Qld from some of the worst natural disasters.
All we can do from a distance is offer our support... with thoughts and/or prayers, and by even the smallest of donations; and hope that together they can prevail through this very tough time.

Endurance and intensity

Not much blogging lately...
just too busy working and riding!
I am slowly finding all my 'lost' intensity and endurance again, and putting in as much effort as I can to be consistent with the training.
It must be 6 or 8 weeks of 'better' training now, and I am finally starting to feel like I am getting somewhere. Racing every week, getting out on the bike almost every day, and doing those darn hill repeats every week was difficult to start with because I knew how much slower I had become. Now I (almost) don't even think about it. I just concentrate on pedalling. Yep the hills hurt and the intensity hurts, but that's the point. Becoming 'comfortable' with the hurt. Plus hurt = improvements. Races are always going to hurt... so I better keep practising!