This New Zealand summer is just brilliant!
For the past six weeks I have been pedalling around the country taking my time to enjoy the scenery, beaches, surf and good coffee!
I only have one month left to enjoy the sun burn and tan lines from 4 hour - two wheel journeys before I fly out to America to join my American Professional team TIBCO. Check out our team website: www.teamtibco.com
Recently I have enjoyed great hospitality in Christchurch at the Armstrong Festival of Cycling. The road race on day one provided picture perfect views along the course and at the sea side finishing straight where I managed to pull off a sprint finish and take the win.
The downtown Criterium was the next day. My warm up consisted of jumping on a tandem bike with the race organiser and participating in the “celebrity tandem race” for charity.
Overcoming my fears of tandem bikes fast, and learning very quickly how to ride in jandals, it was great fun as our tandem just got piped on the line for the ‘win’ (even after we had taken 3 short cuts!).
2 min’s later the actual Elite Women’s race was full on with teams from around the country ensuring the race was all-go from the gun! Without my sprinters legs on, I was just sitting in the bunch in this race rolled in pretty knackered from a double day of racing.
On Christmas day I ate WAY too much. But it’s only one day of the year and I made sure I got a bike ride in to counter-act the chocolate and trifle a tiny bit…
Then it was cram pack the car and off to the surf and sand. Before I could get into beach mode too much, the Mt Criterium gave me some good Christmas speed work. Prior to the Women’s race an ‘Undie Five Hundy’ was held for anyone willing enough to run past the crowd in their underwear. Let’s just say that a group of underwear wearing individuals ensured a fast start in the opposite direction for the girl’s race…
The race was one of the best women’s races I have ridden being very aggressive and it was great to come ‘zooming’ or ‘crawling’ down the finishing straight and be deafened by the crowd noise.
With awesome team work on the SUB team’s behalf, Meshy or I were always up the road, and with 3 laps to go I took an opportunity and sprinted (it felt like I was crawling) down the opposite side of the road to grovel for the last three laps and come across the line with a SUB victory.
Elite Nationals were looming near and I had to cut the sun tan time short. With a slightly dented immune system my preparation was hindered, however this allowed for an easy week where I managed to sip coffee and wine Hawke’s Bay style in between my week prep in Havelock North. (I promise the wine was only on the night after the race!)
Nationals for me were way below my own expectations and I came away from Hawke’s bay disappointed but at the same time buzzing from Meshy’s double win!!
The next month will see, long rides, SUB events and a few good Raglan sun sets before I leave for San Francisco where you can’t see the sun set because of the fog!