I have been very slack with the blog again this year. Instagram tends to take up a little of that slack but I would still like to spend more time here telling bike racing stories. This year's Masters QRTS was a great series and hopefully a bike racing story worth telling. I rode this year with the new CompNOW Electrolite Racing Team, which rose from the ashes of the Wray Organic Team which changed major sponsors at the beginning of this year. The QRTS this year would involve four rounds; Moreton Bay, Tweed (Tour de Tweed), Warwick and Murrarie.
Round 1 - Moreton Bay
Stage 1 Road Race
A disappointingly short 62 km race on the non-challenging Elimbah course would prove uneventful. The only moderately interesting that happened was dropping my chain on the first hill of the day and having to chase back on with the help of team mate Craig O'Connell. A big bunch finish happened after a small breakaway was caught not far from the line. That was all fine with me as I was keeping my powder dry for the individual time trial that afternoon.
Stage 2 Individual Time Trial
The 20 km Elimbah course was one I was happy with. Plenty of long drags up and down would give me a good chance to get some watts out. I had completely revised the front end position on my time trial bike so was keen to see how it would go. It seems to have had a positive effect as I managed a third place, 30 sec behind the winner, Paul Andrews from NX Racing Red. This also had me in third on GC for the round.
Stage 3 Road Race
This was going to be a tough stage. Only 66 km, but that included four laps of the up and down Wamuran loop and then a hill top finish up Mt Mee. The finish climb was long and in many places steep, so I was not expecting to hold my position in third overall. At 84 kg and 193 cm tall, steep and long climbs tend to be my Achilles heel. Fortunately I would have team mates Craig O'Connell and Simon Small for support on the climb which helped immensely. I did fare better than expected, finishing 23rd on the stage and only losing a bit over two minutes to what was left of the front group. I ended up 10th on GC for the weekend, which all things considered, was not a bad result.
Round 2 - Tweed (Tour de Tweed)
Stage 1 Road Race
97 km on a tough course with plenty of climbs was going to be challenging, but given I had had four days off the bike sick a week out from the start, this weekend was going to go one of two ways; a total disaster, or fresh legs that would work really well.
I struggled more than I should have in the first stage, especially near the end. I was hoping this was just my legs trying to find some form. I finished safely in what was left of the front group, with about thirty other riders.
Stage 2 Road Race
The stage was only 75 km but with four proper climbs and plenty of other berg action it was going to be a difficult day. My legs were a lot better than the day before and I managed to climb with the front handful of riders all day which was a great sign. Three riders slipped away and again I finished in a dwindling main group. I was feeling good with one day and two stages to go.
Stage 3 Individual Time Trial
A 9 km ITT on a dead flat course with windy conditions made me smile no end. I warmed up well on the cool morning, had a plan in my head and executed it well. I have had some close calls in races over the years in terms of wins and losses, but nothing quite like this. I ended up second on the stage by 0.02 seconds. Man oh man! This had me sitting in third on GC for the weekend.
Stage 4 Criterium
The top five on GC was very tight in terms of time gaps so the criterium, with its many opportunities for small time bonuses, was always going to be interesting. I was surrounded by good sprinters on the GC so was not hopeful of moving up, but was very keen to at least defend my spot on the podium. The stage was a fast and furious affair on the very quick Stan Brims circuit. A break did get away and unfortunately it would both stay away and knock me out of the top three. Ex-pro Chris Williams from the Futuro Pro team was in that break and he would jump over me into third on GC. While we are talking about getting knocked off, there was a nasty crash with two corners to go on the final lap. Team mate Craig O'Connell went down hard and I ended up riding through the driveway of a nearby business to miss going down as well.
I wound up fourth on GC for the weekend and was sixth for the entire QRTS so far.
Round 3 - Warwick
Stage 1 Criterium
The team started this round in a bit of trouble. Work, illness and family commitments had impacted, leaving us with a starting line up of only four riders (instead of six). We had however, managed to bring in guest rider Peter Gwynne for the weekend as a part of the four. Peter is a world class masters ITT rider and an easy fella to be around, so his inclusion was a huge positive.
The criterium course used previously at Warwick had been shortened, which I actually preferred. A break of three escaped mid-way and I just attempted to stay out of trouble, saving my effort for the team time trial later that day. I managed to float around the top ten pretty comfortably all stage. The last lap was your standard masters criterium finish, with many riders getting their ability and ambitions confused, surging and bumping in order to secure that life long dream of a top forty finish in a bike race. I managed to finish mid-pack and I was happy.
Stage 2 Team Time Trial
With only four riders, I was expecting a tough 34 km, but I didn't imagine just how brutal it would be. The game plan was to leave me and Peter Gwynne on the front as long as possible, with Gabe Yates and Peter Murphy swinging on the back and helping out when they could. The wind was a lot stronger than expected and my choice of front wheel ended up being poor. This gave me a lot of trouble as I attempted to stay upright in the crosswinds. Peter Murphy battled bravely but succumbed near halfway. Gabe also put in a massive effort and hung there all the way to the finish. Luckily we only needed three riders to finish. Given there were only four of us, sixth place on the stage was actually a great result. Being only one second away from fifth and seven seconds away from fourth however, was a little frustrating.
Stage 3 Road Race
The 94 km road race had very few natural challenges and not a lot of wind. The Elite race on the same course that afternoon was destroyed by cross winds and I couldn't help but feel jealous that we didn't have that experience. A break of three escaped mid-race and to be honest, I was surprised to see it stay out there on the fast and open course. Kudos to those guys on a great ride. I ended up inside the top twenty in a massive bunch sprint for the minor placings. The absolute highlight of the day, was watching a large number of grown men take a wrong turn at the finish and then have spectacular tantrums at the officials and the police officers in attendance. I can only assume that these riders had not read the race handbook and also could not see the massive inflatable finish line banner that was in place. As I mentioned in my Strava post, that sound you could hear after the finish was the adults laughing at the children.
The rough weekend did unfortunately drop me a place on the GC, now sitting at seventh with the final round to go.
Round 4 - Murarrie
Stage 1 Points Criterium
I was very disappointed to learn that this criterium would be an exhibition race and not count for series points. I had some plans to try to shake things up but given the result wouldn't count, I just stayed safe and saved myself for the second stage criterium which would count for the GC. I did note with some hilarity, that several riders were risking life and limb to secure a top twenty in the final sprint, when the points actually stopped at fourth over the line.
I had to try something. I was too far behind to win this series but a podium was not out of reach. Given that the win was impossible, I was confident that the NX Racing Red team, which had series leader Paul Andrews, would understand that I was not a threat and give me some room.
The Murarrie course is a hard one to force a break on but it was blowing a very strong wind in sections, which could be useful in terms of mixing things up. The start was full on with lots of attacks going up the road. I made sure I was in pretty much every one of them. It took a while but finally a break stuck and I was away with two other riders. My team mates were back in the bunch doing what they could to help me establish a lead. The break dangled at about ten seconds for a long time but we were soon joined by two more and with a strong group of five, we were able to press on. The lead finally stretched a little and with two laps to go we had almost thirty seconds. Graeme Rose from Team Tineli attacked with a few hundred meters to go and looked very strong. I went after him late but I was unable to close the gap. I did do enough for second on the stage.
In terms of points, I made a big jump up the GC but was an agonizing one point from the podium. Despite that I couldn't help but be happy with how the day had rolled out. Second on the stage and moving from seventh to fourth on GC was a great outcome. The stage also pushed the CompNOW Electrolite Racing Team up to sixth overall for the series. It was also awesome to have my wife Nadine and my two girls Megan and Hayley there to watch. They don't see me race often and it was super special to have them there.
So in the end, I can't help but be satisfied with how this QRTS went. Two second places and a third on stages and fourth overall. CompNOW Electrolite Racing are a great team to be involved with. Marty Mitchell puts in heaps as manager as do all the other guys behind the scenes. We are also very lucky to have the support of such generous sponsors:
CompNow www.compnow.com.au
Thanks also to my coach Mark Brady, for his continued commitment to my old legs. Thanks as always to Factor Bikes Australia for their support.
I'm looking forward to 2020 already!
