Sweet As.

Womens Cycling

eNews Subscription

Sizzing Summer Series Race # 4

An overcast and rainy Sunday welcomed the Bundaberg Sugar “Sweet As” team to the final race of the 2010 Sizzling Summer Series. Four Sweet As riders, Simone, Angie, Sally and I (Brielle) were ready to hit the road for what was bound to be a very aggressive final race.

As the girls rolled to the start line they were greeted by some tough competition. However all riders were familiar faces from the past 3 races out at the circuit. The aim of the day was to defend the series leader’s jersey which had been sitting on our Sprint Queen Simone’s shoulders since race 1. As the overall win for the series was on a points basis, there were a few riders we really needed to keep in our stride if we were to secure the jersey by the end.

The race kicked off at a very rapid pace, with each rider taking a strong turn at the front before falling back into the fold of the bunch. Once everyone had settled and felt comfortable on the track the attacks began. The Sweet As riders were determined to ensure no break away stayed away so jumped on every move and brought it back before it reaped any danger to our overall lead.

Not long after the start the rain came down which saw the riders ease the intensity around the corners to minimise the risk of crashing.

Throughout the first half of the race the bunch was mainly together as the pace was flat out. However, coming into the lap for the prime sprint there were 3 riders who had a slight gap on the field. The chase was on for those crucial points that were awarded for the sprint win. Coming around the corner about 500m from the line there was a big turn of speed and a flash of yellow as own Sally Robbins kicked it into high gear and, from a long way out, made a massive dash to the line. No one could follow as she made it look easy taking the prime sprint win by a big margin!!!

The second half of the race was very fast and aggressive. After seeing a break go away the previous week, riders were desperate to try and make it happen again. But the dominant presence of the Bundaberg Sugar girls made this difficult as we were determined to ensure a bunch kick finished off this race. Around the 38 minute mark (of a 40 min + 3 lap race) and just as Simone launched an attack on the field, a red flag was waved in our direction to issue a neutral lap as a rider from the elite B race had crashed in their final lap. So the field bunched up and for 3 neutral laps before the commassaire gave us a 5-laps to go signal. This unfortunately gave some riders a chance to recover from the efforts already put in during the race, so the finish was going to be close!

Getting a little excited for the run into the finish, Brielle took off as soon as the signal was raised, with an aim to keep the pace high and minimise the breakaway attempts with such little time remaining. Lead outs from Sally, Ange and Simone then followed maintaining a good charge for the final lap. The girls worked like a well-oiled machine however could not stop a final charge from QAS rider Tahlia Paskins from upsetting their plans with 2 laps to go. It was hard out, but the Bundaberg Sugar girls worked ruthlessly together to get Tahlia back into the fold before the final 200m of the race. Swapping turns and burying ourselves, Sally, Ange and Brielle brought Tahlia in, putting Simone in a great position to launch her winning move.

The final corner came, the bunch was back together and Simone took off without a second glance, leaving the other riders to collect her dust as she crossed the line in typical “Ginga Ninja” fashion. Another win for Simone, another victory for Bundaberg Sugar!!!

IMG00043-20100307-1134

Not only did the team secure this win but managed to repeat their success of last year and take out the overall series.

Well done to the riders who work so well together both within and outside racing.

Thank you to all of our support over the series. Particular thanks to Dave, Terry and Jason who are priceless members of the team.

Until next time...

Sizzling Summer Series Round 3

Well how time flies, we're already up to race three of the four race Logan Sizzling Summer Series! For this race report you'll have to put up with me again – "me" is Simone.

This Sunday I looked out the window, expecting showers again (because we'd planned to ride down) but was pleasantly surprised to see blue sky. Awesome! A dry track for a change. Riding southwards however, the dark clouds started to build over the coast and by the time we got to the race track the rain was looking us straight between the eyes.

Team Sweet As have the fortune of being treated like Persian queens. We arrived to two large tents resplendent with personal chairs, racks and rollers...but no eunuchs with feathered fans and grapes. We're working on that. Dave, Jason, TP (our DS – Directeur Sportif) and this time Steve Carlton & Tony Scriven were busy preparing our pad in un-eunuch fashion. So when the rain came in we were lounging about in our tents whilst others were getting soaked. I think we could make some good money on the side by charging $1 entry to our tents when it rains because we suddenly seem to have a lot more friends! Well...maybe enough money for drinks after the race. Thanks boys for setting everything up (and down after the race)!

So the track was nice and wet for the start of the race. There's always a bit of chatter on the line before the race and often I get asked all sorts of questions such as:
- I haven't pumped up my race tyres since last race, should I have?
- Do you wear your sunnies when it's raining?
- How do you get calves like that?? Etc....

Today I was asked something a little easier to answer.
Someone piped up: "Hey what's that M on your kit?"
Me: "Where?"
"The red M."
"Oh, Monadelphous" ["of course" tone used here]
"Mona-what?"
"Look, I know its four syllables but it's only one syllable up from bicycle so have a go: Mon-a-del-phous."
"Ohhh (counting on fingers while saying in head), what's that?"
"They're a mining and engineering group that provide expertise to resources, energy and infrastructure industries. They're like, massive, so I can't believe you haven't heard of them. They engineer success." [raise my eyebrows and nod knowingly].

Schooling on the start line finished, it was time to race. With a few more girls than the last couple of races, it was great to see a flurry of attacks early. Sweet As kept in the mix with the pace kept high by the constant attacks. Sal managed to slip away a few laps before the prime with two other girls and was joined by one other to make a dangerous group of four. With Sal up the road, Sweet As sat in and waited for some chasing action but with few instigators, it was time to take charge. Jazz, Brielle, Angie and I all attempted to ramp the pace up in the second half of the race but with the breakaway group keeping a solid pace, we weren't making any ground. The breakaway's success owed a lot to Sal's current hot TT (time trialling) form. Sal's been putting in some solid training and I would not like to go up against her in a TT at the moment!

Sal sprinted to a very close and respectable fourth in the final lap while, after being led in to the final lap by my trusty team mates, I won the bunch sprint to place 5th, still earning me some series points and allowing me to keep the yellow leaders' jersey. Awesome work all round by Sweet As again today!

Next week will be interesting racing as I'll need a result to take out the series and we'll be without Sal and Jazz. Jazz is heading off to the US of A tomorrow to spend 3 months being a "pro" cyclist in California, so we wish her an awesome time while she's over there and we look forward to her coming back with some great experience and stories to share with the team.

Until next week,
Simone

Simone’s Australian Open Road Race Championships 2010

While most people are tucking into a turkey and the odd sherbet or two at Christmas time, there’s the odd cyclist making final preparations, both to the body and the bike, for the National Road Championships in Buninyong, south of Ballarat in Victoria. This year I was one of them.

2010 was my second year at the National Road Championships. I’d ridden all but one of the National Road Series races in 2009 and with a solid base under my belt, I was looking forward to testing myself on the Buninyong circuit again this year. I’d been doing sessions on the ActivCycle computrainers which was a step up from windtrainer efforts at home and I was stoked when Cam told me that he had the Nationals Course on the computer so I’d be able to do a reconnaissance session. Angie came along one morning for moral support and all I can say is I’m glad I don’t do her spin classes! She doesn’t let you get away with anything!

This year I took on the Time Trial and the Criterium which was a good lead up to what I was making my “main event”- the Road Race. For the Time Trial I clipped some aero-bars onto my roadie, which I’d borrowed from Angie, and fitted some borrowed Zipp 808 wheels (thanks AB!). Unfortunately I couldn’t borrow anyone else’s legs! In the end I didn’t need to worry about the legs because mine did the job for me (and quite frankly surprised me). I was stoked to place 8th overall in the Open Women, beating some of my regular competitors who usually beat me by a minute over this distance. Training had paid off!

Simone TT

Does my head look big in this? Coming into the finish line in the TT.

The next race was the crit. It was a wide hotdog circuit on the main street of Ballarat with one side up an otherwise gentle slope and the other down. Most of the girls who had lined up for this race had been racing the Bay Crits (Geelong) during the previous week so the pace into and out of the corners was fast! It was a 33 lap course which meant 66 sprints (out of each end of the hotdog), not including intermediate sprints! This whittled the starting group of 70 down to 23, helped by a mystery crash in the middle of the race. I placed 8th in the open women again and was pretty happy with that result considering the company I was in and the preparation I’d done for it.

Simone_in_the_Mix

Keeping in touch with the big guns. Rochelle Gilmore had just come from a strong series win at the Jayco Bay Crit Series in Geelong.

The road race was my goal race and the predicted heat made its presence felt early. By 9am it was 32 deg and I had already finished 2L of water. I was nervous and excited at the same time because my form and legs had been great leading up to it. The heat was going to be a telling factor however. As the race wound up, I claimed a few QOM and sprint points and managed to get away in a breakaway which formed after the hill on the 3rd lap. We were reeled in halfway around the 10km circuit after ex-World Champion Judith Arndt rode away from us and stayed away until the closing laps.

Simone_Break

In the road race, a small group of us gapped the bunch after the QOM on lap 3 but we were chased down by the start of lap 4.

On lap 5 my fortunes changed and after a couple of interesting manoeuvres around some of the corners, I realised my rear tyre wasn’t happy. I should say that by now, my computer was showing 46deg and tar on the road edges was becoming molten! So I wasn’t entirely convinced that my tyre was punctured (it was a slow leak) but was worried it might have been melting with the tar! By the time I realised that I definitely had punctured, I’d been well dropped from the bunch, but was able to stop and get a spare from the QAS follow vehicle and a big push from Nick Formosa (thanks Nick!). I put my head down with vague hopes of catching the bunch but the bunch pace had started to pick up and the extreme heat was starting to take its toll on me. I managed to finish the race, a bit worse for wear and my hopes for an improved result on 2009 totally dashed.

To be honest, I was really apathetic about doing the TT, but in hindsight I’m really glad I did it because it made for a better rounded week for me. My result in the road race proved to me that no matter how much hard work you put into something, some things are just beyond your control; like little tiny bits of glass and the weather! It’s great to have goal races, but it’s also good to remember that if the race doesn’t turn out like you want it to…maybe with you storming across the finish line in first place, pointing at the sky, with the bunch desperately chasing you in the distance…life still goes on afterwards.

I’d like to thank two important people who helped me achieve what I did in 2009 and the 2010 Nationals:
1. My coach, Adam Gill from Cycling Science, who has without a doubt improved my time trialling ability (never say never!) and got me through 2009 in good mental and physical health.
2. My husband & often training partner Jason, who lives by the mantra “happy wife, happy life” and always makes things happen beyond what I expect of him (which he’ll tell you is a lot!).

Photo credits go to: CJ Farquharson/WomensCycling.net.

Sizzling Summer Series Race #2

Well, another lovely February day greeted the riders for the second round of this year's edition of the Sizzling Summer Series. The skies were grey and the course was saturated, but the riders of the Bundaberg Sugar "Sweet As" team weren't going to allow another wet day to upset their spirits. After prepping for the race under the much-needed shelter of the SRAM & Zipp tents, the Sweet As team caught up with Sporting Director Terry Peters to have a chat about tactics for the upcoming race. After racing in the wet the previous week, the team was more than ready to take on their opponents in the unfavourable conditions. On paper and on the course, the Sweet As team were the dominant presence in the race. The five riders- Simone, Angie, Jasmin, Sally and I (Brielle) stepped onto the starting line with a well thought out plan and an eagerness to get underway...

Once again the girls undertook a 40 minute + 3 lap event, and as the most dominant team, took control of the race from the word go. With no neutral lap to begin, the intensity was high and the girls buckled down for what was sure to be another aggressive race on the Crestmead circuit. A few minutes in and the attempted breakaways began, the main opposition coming from the QAS (Queensland Academy of Sport) who gave the Sweet As riders an opportunity to show off the strength of their teamwork. The Sweet As girls covered each break and kept the intensity high through counter moves and swapping turns on the front. A few (yes more than once!!) solo breaks by our star time-trial specialist Sally got the ball really rolling as she made the opposition work hard to bring her back into the fold. In the mix of every move there was a bright Bundy Sugar kit hot on the tail. We knew when to chase, when the move was dangerous, and when to let the opposition stretch their legs (and their lungs) out in the strong wind up ahead.

Sally Attacks

About half way in the whistle sounded for the prime lap. Although the lap did not go perfectly to plan, the Sweet As girls still came out on top. With a few swaps of the lead and in a bit of a mix up over the little hill before the line, Jazzy got some space on the outside and took off from a fair way out to take an impressive mid-race win!! She quickly recovered to follow the wheel of a strong QAS rider who used the prime to try to get a gap on the rest of the field. The rest of us were strung out fighting for the wheel in front as we all dragged ourselves back into the mix and were once again back together.

Strong attacks came from left, right and centre for the second half of the race. Simone, who was sporting the Triple Play Series Leaders Jersey, made some fine moves to make the opposition panic. Moves that were followed by counter attacks by the rest of us, sometimes solo but often taking advantage of our strength in numbers by sending a couple of riders up the road. Nothing lasted too long out in front as the windy conditions took their toll on each rider's legs. Coming into the last 3 laps the Sweet As girls got organised into a fine looking train ready to take on the final sprint. Jazzy, Sal and I took turns in burying ourselves around the course for the final laps putting Simone and Ange into a good position to jump into the sprint with confidence. Coming around the final corner, Simone and Ange took off like lightning toward the line. With the QAS girls tailing, Simone and Ange worked hard to blast out the final metres to take the positions of 1st and 2nd, respectively!!!

Sweet As Leadout

So, another great day in the saddle. Rain, hail or shine, the Sweet As girls are bound to work 100% together to ensure the sweet taste of victory. The team is functioning like a well-oiled machine both on and off the field. The missing component, our teammate Bridget, is well on her way to recovery and we are all excited about her return to racing. After such a successful day, makes us wonder what we will be able to accomplish when we are 6 riders strong...

A big thank you again to Dave, Terry and Jason for the wonderful support. It really is amazing how uplifting this support is for us going into races.

Brielle

Photo's curtousy of Ben Manson - please visit his website http://benmanson.com

Sizzling Summer Series 2010 Rnd 1

Well, I wish I could begin this report by saying "It all started on a fine autumn morning..." but alas, Queensland weather doesn't always create the perfect racing conditions. As rarely as it rains here, cloud cover, puddles and fresh winds were awaiting the Sweet As team for the start of the criterium series down at the lovely Crestmead circuit. With a fully equipped set up- all decked out withchairs, stands for our beautiful new FELT F3 and AR3 machines, and under the comfortable shelter of SRAM and Zipp tents, the Bundaberg Sugar "Sweet As" Women's Team was more then ready to kick off the start of what was bound to be another successful day at the office. I sound confident...and soon you will see why...

IMG_4085_Resized

Things were looking good for the Sweet As team. Not only were we looking fine in our Triple Play kit, but the new addition of SRAM Red socks certainly made the difference standing on the start line. I actually overheard Simone decline several offers for pin-up adds modelling her newly acquired socks saying "sorry, not now, it's showtime!"....which clearly shows how dedicated this team truly is ;-). On the start line the field looked strong. Four of the Sweet As riders- Jazzy, Ange, Simone, and I (Brielle) were ready for what was sure to be an exciting and aggressive race. Unfortunately, Sally was unable to race due to other commitments and Bridget is recovering from glandular fever. Although busy and recovering from ill-health, both Sally and Bridget went out of their way to be great support for us. Thanks girls!

IMG_4072_Resized

All prepped up from a team talk with new Sporting Director Terry Peters, the Sweet As girls were ready with a battle plan as the whistle sounded for the start of the 40 minute + 3 lap event. From making breaks, to covering every other attempt, each representative of the Bundaberg Sugar team took on a role and nailed it with nothing less than 100% effort. It was not all fun and games out on the circuit as about 15 minutes into the race the heavens opened and rain pelted down on us like hail the size of tennis balls!! Not only drenching the field but our fantastic supporters on the sidelines who were giving us some great cheers and advice throughout the race.

About half way through, the whistle sounded for the prime lap. At this stage the field was altogether so Sweet As again took control with Simone on the front and the Sprint Queen herself, Angie, attached to Sim's wheel ready to stretch out her legs for the upcoming sprint. The power that comes out of Ange's little legs is phenomenal as she made the sprint look easy, taking the WIN!!!

IMG_4058_Resized

For the second half of the race, the intensity didn't get any easier with the QAS trying their own plans to break the field. The rain died off and so the wind picked up, which meant shattered legs as the speed increased and the accelerations became more frequent. As the field approached the 40 minute mark, a few more attempted breakaways were reeled in just in time for the 3 laps to go sign. Team Sweet As once again took responsibility and took the lead with confidence. As the 2 laps to go sign came into view we got the nod from Terry to prepare for the final sprint. I took the lead, put my head down and buried myself for as long as I could at which time I peeled off and left the rest to my amazing teammates. As the field approached the final small rise into what was then a heavy head wind the three remaining Sweet As girls lined up for the last 400m. Simone took off up the inside as Jazzy found a gap in front on the right. Both girls cleared the field with Simone claiming 1st!!! and Jazzy 2nd!!!

Sweet As on the Podium

As the first race of the Triple Play Sizzling Summer Series was also the Logan City Cycling Cup, Simone took home the Gold Cup for the win along with the Yellow series leaders jersey, which she will be wearing in the next round.

A massive effort by all involved. Just shows what great teamwork can achieve.

Thank you to Dave, Jason, and Terry for their ongoing support, advice and help with race organisation and set-up. It definitely makes a huge difference.

Hello everyone and welcome to 2010 with Sweet As!

The upcoming year sees some changes and tweaks to the team, plus the addition of Terry Peters as our Sporting Director.

Terry brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience on Elite Women's racing at both a National and International level. Our plans and organisation are 99% complete for the 2010 season and over the next few weeks we will keep you in the loop!

Our first team racing of the year is the Triple Play Summer Series which was our first big win last season. Lets hope the trend continues for 2010!

Tour de Perth 2009 – Go West!

Another month, another tour for the Sweet As team. This month Jazz, Sal, Angie and I (Simone) headed west to make our mark on the great city of Perth. The Tour de Perth is a 3 day, 4 stage tour, comprised of a criterium, 2 road races and an individual time trial (ITT). This time we had a local advantage: Sal! We were also lucky enough to stay with Sal’s friends Nat and Gary who were fantastic hosts.

Sal greeted Jaz and I in Perth on Wed and it was a bit of a shock to the system to be welcomed by 27 degree weather… unlike Melbourne. Not that we were complaining. Angie arrived the following day but without her bike! After it didn’t arrive on the next flight as promised, we started hatching a recovery plan. Jazz complimented our lovely host Nat by suggesting that she looked liked an “abuser” and that she’d be the best person to go down to the airport and demand answers about the bike. Needless to say the name stuck. As a back up plan Nat had kindly dusted off her Apollo commuter and brought it out of the garage in case Angie got really stuck. However, her bike arrived by courier that night and when Angie woke up the next day it was like Christmas had come!

The first race to kick off the Tour de Perth was the city criterium, 30 mins plus 2 laps. Held in the entertainment precinct of Perth – Northbridge – there were plenty of spectators watching the action. Being a Friday night, some were merrier and more vocal than others… Big names on the start line were Ruth Corset (newly crowned Australian Elite Female Cyclist of the Year), Belinda Goss & Josie Tomic - Australian track stars and Ellen van Dijk from women’s European pro team Team High Road-Columbia. It was great to have these girls racing with us to add some class to the field.

Five teams were also represented at the starting line up: AIS, Plan B Racing, Bundaberg Sugar Sweet As, Eddy Holland Cycling & Ecosse which meant that there was more than individual glory to be had. The pace was on from the gun and speeds of +50kph were hit along the straights with hard 90 degree corners sorting out the bunch. Add a roundabout in the middle of some cobbles along the finishing straight and it had a distinct European flavour! Jazz put on the pace early and was often seen on the front driving the pace, followed closely by Sal. Ange and myself sat in the bunch trying to save some energy for the final sprint. Slowly the bunch was stringing out and we snaked into the final straight to sprint head to head with some very big name sprinters! Ellen van Dijk won the sprint, with Sweet As finishing in the main sprinting bunch.

Our first road race was Saturday morning, 95km and 10 laps around the famous Kings Park. With a decent hill and some crosswinds on the other side of the course, it was not all plain sailing. The pace was up and down with many in the peloton happy to sit in.

Simone and Angie (L to R) lead the bunch up the hill on the second lap with Ruth Corset sitting to the right of Angie in striking distance.

On the 4^thlap and first QOM stage Ruth Corset rode off from the peloton and kicked over the hill to gap the field. With no-one willing to bridge the gap, Ruth was allowed to get away. While the bunch was trying to get organised, Ruth was steadily putting time in to us. Despite strong efforts on the front by Sweet As and some of the Eddy Holland girls in an attempt to string the bunch out and reel Ruth in, not everyone had the same aim and the pace of the bunch kept faltering. Ruth stayed away to claim victory and the leader’s jersey.

Sally claimed the best part of a page in the sports section of the local West Australian Sunday Mail

After a couple of media interviews for Channel 7 and The West Australian newspaper, and a post-race debrief with Darryl from Shotz, Sweet As rode home for a hearty lunch, a kip and a swim. We were joined by one of my best hockey mates, Dee, who had made the trip from Geraldton to hang out with us for the weekend. That night we headed back to the scene of the criterium but this time for dinner and tucked into some fine Italian food. Sal, Dee and I decided we should impart some of our infinite wisdom onto Jazz and Angie and we can only say they are much more learned as a result. We headed straight home to get an early night but not before some medicinal green tea and dark chocolate!

Team Sweet As out on the town for dinner (because Angie and Jazz don’t cook)

Sunday was the last day of the tour and a big one. We had a 78km road race in the morning which was 10 laps of the “Perry Lakes circuit” around Reabold Hill and a 5km ITT with a hilltop finish in the afternoon. Although Ruth Corset was leading the QOM (Queen of the Mountain) points, she was already in the leaders’ jersey so I had the pleasure of wearing the QOM jersey for the road race.

Team Sweet As lead out the bunch for the second road race of the tour

The bunch was obviously tired from the previous day’s efforts and the Fremantle doctor was whipping up a leg-sapping headwind up the hill on Oceanic Drive. Sal did a lot of work up the front driving the pace and was joined by Jazz and Angie throughout the race. The last 4 laps were slightly different to the first 6 with the QOM points to be contested up Reabold Hill. Ruth Corset hit the hill hard and left us in her wake. It was impressive to witness this class of rider!! Over the hill and away, Sal and Angie managed to drive the pace hard and following a hard attack, a breakaway of about 10 managed to form which included myself and Jazz. Great team work girls!! Jazz and I kept in the mix for the next 4 laps while Ruth was putting time into us yet again. Coming into the final lap Jazz and I were feeling good and Jazz decided to hit the pace early to stretch the bunch for the sprint and in a tight finish I managed 5^th on the line.

We had some lunch, drank litres of water and had a power-kip while we were waiting for the current overall results to be posted and for our 5km ITT in the afternoon.

When the going gets tough, the tough have a power-kip

When the GC (general classification) results were finally posted after the road race, I realised that I had crept up to 6^th overall. There was only 18 seconds between me and second and 7 seconds would get me into 3^rdand onto the podium! OThe only things was, I was also relying heavily on the performance of the other girls.

The first 2.5kms of the TT were reasonably flat but the swirling wind made a hard task of it. The next kay and half was into a direct headwind up Oceanic drive - a gentle slope - but not so when you’re at 95% of your max with a headwind. The final blow was 500m up Reabold Hill and if your legs weren’t feeling it by now then it’s probably because they’d dropped off! As I came over the line I was 7 seconds in front of the next best time! But Ruth Corset and Ellen van Dijk were yet to come and they’re no mugs on the bike with Ellen being an endurance track rider! I was proven right as Ruth finished 8 seconds ahead of me and Ellen 6 seconds, which left me in 3rd for the stage. I was stoked with this result but before I could confirm my GC position I was hauled off for a drug test.

1 hour later…… I resurfaced to confirm I’d ridden my way onto the podium to claim 3^rd and my first NRS podium. Sweet as!!

Even better news……. The Bundaberg Sugar Sweet As Team had finished 2^nd overall to the AIS in the teams’ classification. What an awesome way to finish off the year!

Jazz finished a very strong 8th on GC and Sal inched closer to a top ten national finish with a 13^th overall. Angie finished 22^nd which is an awesome result at National level given her lead up, especially since there were 30 starters.

The men’s and women’s podium pop the corks. After 3: 1… 2………errrrr

Team Sweet As placed 2^nd in the teams classification – a best ever result!

To celebrate we decided to shout ourselves fish and chips, and after the presentations we headed down to Cottesloe Beach to experience the local marine life… battered!

Simone, Dee, Sal and Jazz’s pegs (and Angie behind the camera) enjoyed some local fish and chips to a view of Cottesloe Beach.

Monday was our first day off in Perth and we decided to go out for a nice breaky at “Tarts” – a fantastic local café not a strip club - and a trip down to Fremantle for the day. The West Australian had graciously put a photo of the girls on the podium with the article for the Tour de Perth (usually it’s the boys!). No, Ellen van Dijk was not standing on a box.

This trip we didn’t have any swannies, so this time we’d like to sincerely thank Sal’s good mates, Nat and Gary, who let us take over their house for 5 days (literally), for getting all our gear to the races and for driving us everywhere! Jazz would like to thank them for her exclusive use of their couch. Big thanks to Nat and Gary for their job in the feed zone in the Stage 1 road race and Dee in the feed zone for the Stage 2 road race, you guys were truly awesome! And Dee thanks for being our substitute swanny (along with Sal’s mum), filling our water bottles, pinning our numbers, getting us sangas and pumping us up for races. The support means a lot!

That’s all for the National Race Series this year…..

Simone

More Articles...