Well...it has been a while. Life is crazy-busy as per usual. The good news is (touch wood) I am having a lengthy period without any surgery, injury, crashes or sinus issues. This means I have been able to train hard and race well and to be honest...I feel the best I have on a bike for a long time.
9 April: Tyalgum Cup (Masters A) - DNF
This was a tough day out for me. A hot day on a course with plenty of long climbs and I wasn't confident about my form at all. There were two big climbs on each of the two laps and I was hopeful I would at least make it over the first two. It didn't go to plan and I was dropped on the second long climb.
30 April: Club Enduro Criterium (A Grade) - 3rd
This was a 90 minutes + 2 lap criterium, which is right up my alley. I tried to ride aggressively when it was warranted and had a few good opportunities off the front. It came down to a sprint and I had one of my better finishes on the Glenvale circuit and ended up 3rd.
14 May: Murwullimbah Club ITT (A Grade) - 9th
This was a long way to drive for a club time trial, but I really wanted to check out the course, as it is being used later in the year for the State Titles (has been postponed). It was a very competitive field as is standard for Murwullimbah. I didn't have the best of rides and ended up 9th of the fifteen starters. I was in the middle of a big time trial training block and blame that for my heavy legs (excuses, excuses).
15 May: Toowoomba Club ITT (A Grade) - 3rd
What a difference a day makes! I thought I was getting too old for PBs, but managed to produce one by five seconds on the Wyreema course with a 27 min 31 sec effort. I was very (very) happy with this. Averaged a touch over 44 km/h and averaged about fifteen watts more than the day before (go figure).
29 May: Metropolitan Titles Road Race (Masters A) - 12th
This was the most pleased I have been with a road race for a long time. It was on the very difficult Kalbar course, which is not suited to a tall and long and fella like me. Lots of riders were shelled out the back and it ended up in three groups. I finished near the front of what was left of the main group. Very happy with this one. Best I have gone uphill for a long time. A sign of things to come I hope.
12 June: Gold Coast Club Race (A Grade) - 10th
Another pleasing finish in a high quality field of about twenty-five. Plenty of NRS riders and good Gold Coast riders. I stayed active the whole race and was regularly off the front in breaks. It all finished together but blew up on the last hill about 1 km from the end.
19 June: Toowoomba Club Handicap (Combined) - Fastest Time
Today was supposed to be the State Titles ITT, which was postponed due to the weather only two days earlier. As a result, it is not a surprise that I had pretty good legs. I rode in the scratch group with three of the Colliers Team riders (Pete Collins, Trent West, Richard McAvoy). We gave it a really good go on the Goat Hill (Goombungee) circuit but didn't manage to close the 17 minute gap. I started out feeling a little rough but came good big time by halfway. It was just me and Westy left by the end and I managed to shake him for fastest time (not sure he tried real hard in the finish!)
So what's next? Still waiting on a rescheduled date for the State Titles ITT. Charles Coin Memorial is also on in a few weeks. Might sneak down to the Gold Coast for a club race in-between and there is also a Toowoomba Club two day tour in a fortnight. Plenty there to keep my busy.
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