What a day! It had been exactly 15 years since I last lined up in the Elite A Cunningham Classic - I won't mention the result in that particular race ;) I was 25 and was a fit and lean young bloke. Here I was, 40 years old, on the come back trail and looking for some challenges. I wasn't to be disappointed.
The 171km race had a KOM at about 50km and then the rest of the course was plagued with a very strong cross-head wind that seemed to destroy most races on the day.
The KOM was tough. The climb itself started out very steady but (well in my mind anyway) exploded about half way up. I can tell you that the bunch reduced from forty-nine starters to maybe thirtyish by the top.
There were some tough cross winds just before Pilton that really stirred things up. I actually had a little 'wise old man' moment right about there. If you know the course there is a long and tough drag right after Pilton. I knew I was in trouble at the bottom of it. I also knew that there was a long downhill straight after and a pretty big convoy of vehicles behind us. I actually dropped off the group before I redlined and rode my own pace over the top. I lost maybe 20 seconds or so but was very quickly and easily able to slot into the convoy and get back on during the downhill stretch. Problem solved!
The rest of the day saw a steady stream of attacks with the decisive break of six heading down the road with about 40km to go. Regrettably for them, two riders fell in the Allora feed zone, leaving four in the break. The chase group had been reduced to less than twenty riders by this point, due to the tough cross winds. This was pretty much how things stayed until the finish in Warwick.
So where did I finish? That's an interesting question. There were four in the break, and our chase group saw two sets of two riders sneak off the front in the closing kilometres, meaning we were sprinting for 9th. I sprinted hard and finished very near the front of the remaining bunch. I was either first or second in the group (I honestly can't remember, it was a bit blurry because we ran up the back of 7th and 8th, and I am pretty old). The rider who I just pipped on the line was on Strava saying how happy he was for coming either 9th or 10th. So I guess I was also about 9th or 10th. The club wasn't able to provide places beyond 5th. So in the interest of making a good story better, I am claiming 10th place! I think that's a safe bet. Maybe 9th? Maybe 11th? Whatever; it's really irrelevant. The point is that I spent nearly five hours on the open road with the best young road riders in the state and had the legs to play with them. To top it off people are calling this 'the toughest Cunningham Classic in years'. I'm pretty happy...
Me on the KOM:
Me right before the finish (guy in blue is the one saying he was 9th or 10th):
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