2008 State Criterium Championships, Armadale

It seemed like ages since I'd done a road race - was it really almost 6 months? A little out of practice. Needless to say, I was ready to race and looking forward to testing out my legs on a criterium circuit. The course was nice, but there was a small bump with a bit of a pinch which we would be tackling into the wind. We had 12 women starting - a great turnout, but with some of the top girls away at Oceanias (Davina Summers, Josie Tomic and Sarah Kent) anything could happen.

Clare McLean and Liz Leyden kept the pace high for the start of the race. However things did quiten down and somehow I found myself off the front without trying. As the pace had been slow I decided to see who was playing and pushed. The hill out the back was enough to slow me down and the group had caught me within a lap. Not long after Sarah Fraser and Bec Halliday were off the front. Not sure if it was a big attack or whether the wheel behind them couldn't hold the pace but it was enough for them to get away and proved to be the winning move. With my team-mate Bec in form out the front I wanted her to have the best chance at winning so I kept an eye on the chase group.

Big thankyou to Peter Mah for taking some great shots that tell the story much better than me (many more photos can be found here).

The break, Bec Halliday and Sarah Fraser, developing their winning gap.

The chase group:

The chase group starting to hurt, L to R; Bella King, Mel Hoskins, myself and Liz Leyden.

The sprint for the win:

The sprint for 3rd place:

Final Results:
1. Bec Halliday (Fleet Cycles)
2. Sarah-Jeanne Fraser (Eddy Holland's Bicycle Services)
3. Melissa Hoskins (Plan B)
4. Bella King (JETS)
5. Holly McClellan (Fleet Cycles)
6. Liz Leyden (TBE)