Sign up to receive regular team updates and results.


The possibility of becoming a State Road Champion or winning a National Road Series race… Which would you choose? It was unfortunate that this year both the Geelong Tour and the QLD State Road Championship were scheduled to be run over the same weekend which subsequently forced Team Sweet As to split their resources. Whilst Sally, Simone and Angie McClure were down South tackling the cold, wet hills of Geelong, Natalie and I (Angie. P) Were up in our home state fighting for a State medal.

The line up for the Elite Women 2010 State Road race championships was solid with some well known riders wanting to see if they had what it takes to become a State Champion. The obvious omission from the start list was the complete formidable Team Sweat As, and more importantly our very own defending QLD Road Champion Simone. It is unfortunate that Simone was unable to defend her Title due to the scheduling of concurrent events.

bike_141 bike_142

The State Road race was held over 120km (!!) which proved to be challenging. Over the course of the race, the main bunch remained relatively constant in numbers despite challenges from numerous riders including both Natalie and I. Natalie was often found on the front helping maintain a solid pace throughout the race. By the 6th and final lap it was clear the race would be decided by a sprint finish. We both did what we needed leading into the final 5km to set ourselves up for a credible finish. Natalie did an awesome job at maintaining a high pace in the final kilometres which allowed me to gain perfect position leading into the final corner. There was a flurry of tired bodies to the finishing line with the final result being Natalie 8th and me 6th. Well done to up-and-coming gold coast rider Brittany Lindores for taking out the gold medal. Despite, wanting to come home with a State medal, we both were pleased with our solid performances considering our compromised training preparation. We both felt strong in the race indicating our training is paying off leading into the September State Teams Time Trial, and Glen Innes to Inverell in late October.

Angie

 

The Geelong tour my first ride with the Bundaberg Sugar team, and they were even sweeter then my introduction to black rice pudding!

GeelongTour2

Read more...

 

The Cunningham Classic is an annual road race event that’s been running in Queensland since 1982. I remember when I started racing three years ago of people telling me stories of The Range, The Crosswinds and something about tree roots at the end of the ride.  This race is great for all these things and more - it has a bit of everything.

The Cunningham Classic starts out on the flat farmlands of the Lockyer Valley and steadily climbs through the foothills of the range to the KOM (King of the Mountain) at the top, where it meets the winds off the Darling Downs.  It then heads over big rollers to the New England Highway where it heads south before a turn off to Allora and further south to the finish at Warwick. 

CC10_profile

The first year I did this legendary race, in 2008, the 40m tall trees in the park at Gatton were all but sideways.  The kind of wind that makes the hair on your arms stand up because you know it'll be a hard day on the bike.  It wasn't like I hadn't been warned.  I started my 3rd Cunningham Classic last Saturday and like last year, the weather was actually pleasant.  Really cold but not much wind - so "pleasant".  Two years outta three ain't bad. 

Read more...

 
Due to some recent injuries (get well soon Simone!) and other commitments, a slightly smaller-than-normal, but eager and determined Bundaberg Sugar "Sweet As" Team took on the challenge of this winter tour in Canberra. Sal Robbins, Nik Orlic and myself (Nat Langer) flew down early on Thursday morning to help get ourselves acclimatized to the frosty conditions. We were met by our ever-enthusiastic team soigneur Wayne, with his brand new white "Team Bundy Sugar" Mazda 6, complete with 4 bike racks on the roof, spacious trailer, and custom-designed artwork applied to the front doors. Awesome. We were already pretty motivated for the tour by our group ‘pep-talk’ on the flight down, and seeing the car was a bit like the icing on the cake. Thanks Wayne. So after some routine post-travel unpacking and settling into our motel, we went for a preview ride of the TT (time trial) course that afternoon. The sun was out and we warmed up pretty quickly despite the cooler-than-brisbane-temperatures (I think it was about 10 degrees that afternoon). So then after some warm showers, a good dinner, and some more motivating words from Wayne (and some motivating texts from Ang, Brielle and Sim), we were ready to face the first stage on Friday afternoon.

Stage 1 – TT Friday 1st July.

We knew it would be cold that afternoon, and with a small chance of rain, the group decision was to ride the 15km from our accommodation to the TT course at Stromlo, to help us get a better warm up. We left our motel in slightly overcast to sunny conditions, with minimal traffic on the roads. Roads in Canberra are pretty much built for cyclists; wide shoulders, good road conditions, courteous drivers. What we didn’t anticipate were the local wildlife hazards! In single file, Nik, Sal and myself were gently riding past a flock of about 60 cockatoos when, without warning, they took flight and in a panic, went straight for our bikes. I am still not sure how they avoided me, but unfortunately a large number of birds hit both Nik’s and Sal’s bikes. The end result was carnage. Nik’s rear derailleur was bent and a few of her rear wheel spokes were ripped out by one bird, while enough birds managed to impact with Sal that they threw her off her bike, and ripped multiple spokes out from her front wheel as well. Unfortunately the fall re-aggravated Sal’s previous back and hip injuries. However, in true Sal style, she toughed it out, and rode the remainder of the way to the TT course with me, after changing her front wheel over. Wayne had been driving the support vehicle behind us at the time of the incident, and quickly took Nik and her bike to the local bike shop for some immediate repairs (thanks guys – you were awesome to repair it so quickly!). After this daunting freak incident, it was difficult for Nik, Sal and myself to get ourselves into a good head space for the TT. To add to the intimidation, the weather turned on us as well, just before the start of the Elite Women’s TT, and the cold hard rain set in. In roughly alphabetical order, the girls headed out in the much-less-than-ideal conditions. I was first up, but somehow managed to miss my start time by 3 minutes, then Sal and then Nik. Our TT times were certainly not outstanding, but mentally overcoming the earlier cockatoo incident and the freezing rain to simply get out there and complete the TT was a huge accomplishment in itself. Sal came roughly 16th in the Elite Women A category, with Nik in 21st spot. Surely this would be the "worst" day to come and things would only get better from here?

 canberra_tour_014_copy

Stage 2 – Road Race Saturday 2nd July.

A "typical" Canberra day which started with some thick fog over Stromlo, and frost on the ground. The 38km road race this day was due to take us down towards Uriarra and then up, down, up, and back through Coppins Crossing. The bunch was quite twitchy in the fog on the way out to Uriarra, but nothing dramatic happened until the turn-around point. The difficulty at this part of the course was getting 60-70 riders to turn a tight 180 degrees within a short space of time. As we had been warned, the riders at the front would have it easy for the climb back out, but the riders at the back would find themselves chasing for dear life. Sal managed to position herself well at the front before the turn-around point, while unfortunately Nik and myself got caught at the back, and from there it was chase, chase, chase. Sal stayed with the lead bunch until the final pinch out of Coppins, while Nik almost got back on before the short descent into Stromlo. Even for the lead girls, it was a bit of a "bad luck" day, with both Jo Hogan and Amy Cure being turned left by a marshall just before the finish, when they should have turned right. That’s racing I guess. In the end, Sarah Cure won the stage, with Sal 22nd in the Elite Women A category, Nik in 25th and myself in 28th spot.

canberra_tour_012

Stage 3 – Criterium Saturday 2nd July.

After a solid morning of racing, the team was motivated to give the criterium at Stromlo our very best. Again, this 40 min + 3 lap race was not without incident. At least we had clear skies and sunshine for once. We were starting to think that anything above 5 degrees was warm! Even on the opening lap, one of the competitors had difficulty clipping into her pedals and managed to bring a few other girls down with her. Some fierce attacks from VIS, ACTAS, NTID and NZ kept the pace high for most of the race. Another crash involving three girls about midway through the race (at a part of the course known as "Collarbone Corner") made for some interesting race maneuvers also. Our own Nik Orlic lead the bunch out for a lap before being quickly reeled in again. The course was way too fast and flowing for any breakaways to stay clear. With less than ten minutes left on the clock, nature was at it again when two kangaroos decided to hop across the track, which again interrupted the smooth flow of racing; but not long after that, the 3 laps-to-go sign came out. Kendall Hodges won the tight bunch finish, with Sal 10th in the Elite Women A category, and Nik (22nd) and I in the remainder of the bunch. With Wayne’s steadfast support, we had survived the first two days! So with the comfort of lots of "good-luck-for-the-last-day" texts from friends and family, we were soon soundly asleep after another early dinner in town.

canberra_tour_011

Stage 4 – Road Race Sunday 3rd July.

So if Saturday was cold, then Sunday was freezing. We packed up and left our accommodation in minus two degrees temperatures. Warming up was challenging, but I think that each of us was determined to finish this last, icy 72km race. Thick fog once again played havoc with the start of the race (it was difficult to see even 3-4 bike lengths in front of you at some points). This time we had to descend into the depths of Uriarra, climb out to the Homestead, then go back down into and out of Uriarra, before then climbing in and out of Coppins Crossing, and then back over the first day’s time trial course before finishing back at Stromlo. I would estimate that a third to a half of our original bunch did not even get to complete this final stage due to the wintry conditions, various mechanicals and/or injuries. Sal positioned herself fearlessly again towards the front of the bunch, but the injury to her back from Friday was to cause her too much distress to finish the race. After climbing in and out of Uriarra all the way to the Homestead, she elected to pull out of the race at Stromlo to help avoid worsening her injuries. Smart move Sal, you will live to fight another day. Nik on the other hand was on fire, and she wholeheartedly chased the lead bunch all day after just missing out bridging onto them through the fog at Uriarra. However, as luck would have it, she didn’t quite close the gap before the finish, but this was fortunate because the bunch Nik might have bridged to, had a crash on the finishing straight! Amy Cure won the stage, with Nik in roughly 25th place in the Elite Women A category. At a guess, I would have finished the day in roughly 29th spot, had it not been for a broken chain 5km from the finish and a lengthy walk home to Stromlo! All in all, despite the unpredictable, almost overwhelming challenges that this 3 day tour had thrown our way, Nik, Sal and I found the trip quite a humbling experience, and I think we have learned a lot about ourselves and why we do this! As Wayne explained to us, not many people do the Sydney to Hobart yacht race for the sheer enjoyment and pleasure of it, yet many come back to do it for the challenge again and again. I think that each of us have found this sort of ‘relationship’ with the Canberra Women’s Tour too, and as crazy as it sounds, I think we all want to come back next year, to do it all again!

Thanks again to our loyal support crew back in Brisbane, and all the Bundaberg Sugar ‘Sweet As’ Cycling Team sponsors. Without you, we would not have had this "character building" experience!

 

 

For the second year running the Sweet As girls have made the trip to Bundaberg for the Caneland Classic.

The Caneland Classic has a proud history over many, many years, and whilst it has changed with the times into a handicap race, one thing hasn't changed, hard racing!!

BCC_2010

Simone was keen to repeat last year’s victory and didn't disappoint, crossing the line as the fastest woman, with Sally following her home in second place.

The local press gave us some great coverage with a number of articles in the Bundaberg News Mail.

 

Bundaberg News Mail - Doug Gillet | 5th June 2010 - Robbins on road trip to redemption

Bundaberg News Mail - Doug Gillet | 7th June 2010 - Grounds wins Canelands Classic

 

 

A crisp, fresh and clear morning welcomed Nikolina, Nat, and I (Sal) to the town of Boonah early on Sunday morning, arriving around 8.30am where we were about to begin the assault over the hills near Mt Alford and tackle the head winds that were very unforgiving in this area.

As we got closer to our destination the temperature gauge in the car was slowly creeping lower and lower eventually reading a chilly 11 degrees. For Queenslanders this is cold!

As soon as we arrived we jumped on our rollers to get the blood pumping and legs warmed up. With a delayed start of approximately 20 minutes to allow for the Elite A men to pass through we struggled to keep the jitters away. Nat, Nikolina and I remained focussed on the task ahead and continued rolling around the back street’s ensuring to keep warm. Fortunately Terry was there  providing  us with warm jackets until minutes before the peloton took off.

Metros_RR_ReadytoGo

This race was a little different to others as we started with sixty Masters A men and I could feel the testosterone and adrenalin surrounding me right from the beginning!

Jostling my way as close to the front as possible I managed to stay with the peloton over the first few climbs but it was the final pinch and the left hand turn where I lost contact and formed a chase bunch. We could see the lead bunch where Nikolina had managed join approximately 500m in front on the long decent. Myself and four other men started echeloning to accommodate the crosswind. We were slowly closing the gap but unfortunately we weren’t able to rejoin them before they turned the corner into the headwind and we knew it was going to be a long day in the saddle.

At this stage Nikolina recollects thinking that she had to stay protected by the fifty other male riders, as she knew she was the only female in the lead bunch. She was determined to hold her position so she put her head down and pedalled as fast as she consciously could, however I wasn’t sure where the other girls were but I had a feeling they were behind me so I told myself to stay in contact to maintain my position and hope it was second place.

Metros_RR_NO

With four laps to complete, the first one whizzed by and we were soon into our second and third. Each lap we were picking up riders who had been dropped and were forming pace lines into the cross and head winds, but each lap there seemed to also be someone bailing out for one reason or another mainly due to the tough course and conditions.

Throughout the race I had highs and lows but with encouragement from the guys  we maintained a consistent and solid tempo. I was very apprehensive starting this gruelling course but I achieved an enormous amount mentally by gritting my teeth and digging deep even though I was not feeling my usual self. With the finish line in sight it came down to a sprint with two other men and I was extremely happy to finish with second place out of the girls.

In the words of Nikolina “On the last lap I knew I was on the home straight. Looking back behind my shoulder every so often, I couldn’t see anyone in sight or approaching. Easing off a little, I took the last lap a little slower, not only because I was exhausted but also because I knew I gained enough time to do so. Crossing the finish line I was extremely happy with my result. And even happier knowing I’ve only been racing with the Sweet As team for roughly seven weeks now I have bagged my second win. As I look back on the Metropolitan Championships last year, I am confident to say my training is now finally starting to pay off. It’s taken a good year to do so, but I guess good things come to those who train and wait. Follow your dreams, with determination and dedication you will achieve whatever you put your mind too.”

Nat unfortunately had to pull out of the race having also been sick and not being fully recovered. She still showed her desire and determination to race the tough races and gave it go. A few more kilometres in the legs and she will be firing!

Metros_RR_Podium

On the whole it was a very successful and enjoyable weekend at the Metropolitan Championships for Sweet As and I look forward to the challenges ahead!

 

 

Sweet As clean up at the Metropolitan Criterium Championships held at Murrarie on Saturday 29th May.

DSCF2548

With the weather forecast not looking good for racing, Dave sent around a team message reassuring us that racing was on and to be prepared to dominate!

Warming up on rollers under our team tent to escape the drizzle Ange, Brielle, Nikolina and I (Sal) were ready to fire on all cylinders. Just when we thought it was going to stay clear, the heavens opened up at the start line and the reality of being drenched from head to toe and covered in sand and grit set in.

With only a small field of seven girls, four of which were Sweet As we felt pretty confident even in the wet conditions of securing at least a couple of us on the podium.

The race got underway with Brielle leading the charge and setting a solid pace right from the beginning. After the first lap Sweet As and Carissa Smith (QSM) broke away followed by another attack by Nikolina who had Brielle and I on her wheel close behind. Ange and Carissa dropped back for a couple of laps with Ange just sitting on her wheel to protect us for the podium.

After a solid attempt to bridge the gap by Carissa she wasn’t able to rejoin us but managed to get Ange close enough to come across and slot into our team time trialling effort for the remainder of the race.

Working together to stay away we established a good rhythm and each lap were receiving feedback and instructions from our race technician TP who encouraged us to keep an even tempo.

We new that it was going to come down to the final two laps to sort out who was going to take the top three spots, it was just a matter of who was going to make the first move.

Anticipation was building, our hearts were pumping and into the final lap I can probably safely say we were all telling our legs to ‘shut up’!

With half a lap to go I decided to make a break. Nikolina tried to go with me but was unsuccessful finding herself battling to stay on the course in the wet conditions and I managed to stay away for my first ever win.

Followed closely behind, Brielle outsprinted Ange to take second with Nikolina in fourth place.

Overall it was a clean sweep for Sweet As and smiles all around. We couldn’t have hoped for a better outcome with Sweet As filling the top four spots at the Metropolitan Championships.

 
More Articles...