I've previously enjoyed racing up at Neerabup (even if it is a bit of a way out in the back-burbs) and I was looking forward to renewing my acquaintance with the course. Problem was, the four weeks of solid training that I had been through leading up to today was beginning to catch up with me and I woke this morning feeling a little heavy in the legs. I am so looking forward to rest week but was keen to get through this last trial (and the coming Tuesday morning group training, of course) with as much grit and determination as I put into the training sessions that Brad had on the program this past couple of weeks.
I arrived reasonably early up at Neerabup to give myself a chance to relax a little before getting into a slightly longer warm up than I would normally do. The heavy feeling in the legs was still nagging and the warm up didn't offer me any sort of encouragement that it was just something that would ultimately pass as I got into the race.
I knew the course pretty well from last season and I had won here before. I've always felt pretty comfortable here so I set the plan to put Brad's tactical training into practice and attempt to conserve as much energy as I could and hope that the opportunity to contest a final sprint would eventuate, but also keep an eye on the race as it unfolded to see if it might be possible for a breakaway to succeed and to be sure to go with it if possible. What wasn't helping was the appearance of not two, but three teams in the line up. Three Roues Chaudes riders, two or three Eddy Hollands riders and two Star International riders - a team which have proven their capabilities in previous races. My expectations were that this race was going to be dominated by the teams and those who were not aligned would need to be on the ball and watch for the moves and team tactics. Should be fun, right?
We set off from the starter and unlike Pickering Brook, the pace was gentle leading into the opening laps and seemed to remain at a steady 38km/h. Not as blistering as it can normally get up at Neerabup but I think the fantastic weather set a strange mood in the group. As we rode around to the back of the course and engaged the first of the climbs, I immediately felt the fatigue in the legs but it was not preventing me from keeping with the group's steady pace and I was somewhat comfortable.
Three laps in and a bit of casual chin-wagging with Frans Buissink seemed to help and I could feel that the legs were beginning to respond to the work load of the race and I was keeping with the short climb efforts much better than expected. Another greeting from Mike Burton and Stephen Farran also seemed to get my competitive mood going (I have no idea why, but thanks anyway guys).
I have to recognise the efforts of the three team riders at this point as the middle laps of the race seemed to be controlled a little by those three teams. The Roues Chaudes guys (Steve Farran, Jamie Kirkwood and Scott Ayles) were attacking and counter-attacking with a fairly consistent frequency which seemed to generate reactions from the group each time to prevent them from getting away. It seemed the group were in no mood to let anyone from the three teams get into a break away and the chase downs were as diligent as the attacks themselves. This may have worked to favour my plan to conserve energy as not only did it mean it was more likely that the race would end in a sprint, it also meant I didn't have to work as hard to chase down the breaks.
At this point, I felt I could read the race like a book and was beginning to note who the stronger riders were versus those that seemed to be fatiguing. 7 laps down and an unchecked solo break got away in the form of Michael Johnston - a powerful rider and one that I had quite underestimated. Before the group knew it, Michael was out by about 800-900m and well into the 9th lap of 10. The group did not seem to be showing any signs of wanting to chase this breakaway down or was simply waiting for someone to try and cross the gap. This was beginning to pan out well for me and my energy levels were very good with any signs of the fatigue I felt earlier having dissipated.
As we rode into the bell lap, Michael was still out by at least 800m which was going to prove to be a difficult gap to close or cross. I figured that if it was going to be done, it had to be done before reaching the final stretch of Mather Drive and onto Flynn Drive. I wanted to round the corner off Pederick Drive and into Mather Drive at the head of the group to ensure I was able to go with any jump to cross the gap that might eventuate and suddenly found myself with 5 metres or so on the group with no sign of any strong efforts to go with me.
A split-second decision had me out of the saddle and pumping out as much power as I could to get a decent jump on the group and extend the gap I had. They would have to work to cover the 5 or so metres I already had on them and also to match the power and speed I had kicked up. It worked beautifully and the gap increased rapidly with still no sign of anyone wanting to go with me. Truthfully, I was surprised by this and had expected Jamie or Steve to come across or maybe one or two others who seemed to be showing some good strength leading up the bell that sounded earlier.
As I reached Flynn Drive, I noted that there was one rider who had attempted to catch on to me. I couldn't see who it was and didn't really care as he was still at least 150 metres behind and I still had to ensure I could chase Michael down before the downhill at the end of Flynn Drive. If he got there before I caught him, that downhill would assist him in keeping the gap on me and I would be in no-man's land and struggling to keep second place.
Thankfully the gap behind me was increasing and the gap ahead of me was decreasing just as quickly and by the time I began the second of the two short climbs on Flynn Drive, I had caught up with Michael and came around him just as we crested the second small climb. I had to know how he was feeling so I kept the power on as I passed him to see if he had the energy to go with me. He was certainly able to do so but I wasn't sure if that was because of the downhill or if it was because he still had some juice in the tank so the only way to find out was to attack him again on the short climb up Old Yanchep Rd.
He was able to go with me so I sat up and opted to work together with Michael to keep us as far ahead of the bunch as possible. I was really feeling the hurt resulting from the effort to bridge the gap and continuing with the two attacks to test Michael's legs. As we crested the small climb on Old Yanchep Rd, Michael turned to me and said, "I'm happy with either place at the end as long as the group doesn't catch us". I was kind of happy to hear this as it gave me a chance to recover in case it was more of a ploy to catch me out on the sprint so I remained alert and watched with eagle eyes for any strong moves.
As we rolled across the top of the last climb on Pederick Drive toward the finish line, I sensed that I was feeling a little stronger than Michael who, while admirably still taking turns, was showing signs of fatigue and, with a quick glimpse back to the group who were well enough behind as to not cause any problems, I came around Michael for the last time. There had been a crash in C grade just at the base of the small rise leading up to their finish which we both passed with care before I got out of the saddle for one last effort to the line.
Under my shoulder, I could still see Michael's shadow behind me and I monitored that for the next 50 metres or so until it dropped back and I knew that the job had been done. I rolled over the line with about 5 metres or so on Michael and a good gap still on the group. I was wrapped with the effort to cross the large gap and still having the energy in reserve to get across the line in first place. It was a win (first one on the Venge) that I could definitely dedicate the best part of to some great coaching!
Michael Johnston's effort to break away as he did was a fantastic show of strength. His gap at one stage almost looked insurmountable and I believe, in part, this had unnerved the group to a point that it seemed to suppress any other attempts to chase him down. It was always going to take some true grit and courage to get across the large gap and I was not completely sure that I would have it in me to do so. As it became clear that no-one was prepared to go with me, I simply got into the same state of mind that I got into during last Wednesday's training efforts and turned myself inside out to get across to Michael. That training has certainly paid off and it was great to be able to put it to successful use.
There were a lot of riders in the field that I recognise did a lot of work throughout the course of the race and without the work they put in to keep the break aways in check, it would have been a very different result. The breakaway efforts in their own right were also noteworthy and showed the strength of some of the riders in the field to continue to try to get away. Kudos also to David Ellis in C grade for avoiding the crash and getting across the line in 2nd place. Perhaps my vacant spot in B grade could be filled by him. Also to AP for his solid effort to grab 7th place in A grade today. Hopefully some help to come your way at Wandi, mate.
Happy now to enjoy a well-earned (I think so anyway) rest week and look forward to my first true hit out amongst the A grade ranks in a couple of weeks. What makes it even more appealing is that I have the chance to ride with AP as a small team representing Hall Cycle Training. But for now, I have to get through Tuesday morning without keeling over!
Thank for reading.
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