April 1-2, Ronde van Brisbeen, Brisbane
Race website and results

Elite Men's Cat 4 report by Nick Hanni    Masters 35+ Cat 5 report by Graeme Macalister
Elite Women's Cat 3 report by Elis Bradshaw

Race photos: Chris Patterson and Garrett Lau

Men's Elite 4 Omnium report by Nick Hanni, Fusion Sport

Stage 1, Brisbane Highlands Circuit Race

Ahh… the Ronde. I have not had the best results at this event. Two years ago it was my first “Cat 4” race and I finished 34th off the back chasing the main field after a crash split the group. Last year I had some pulled muscle issues in my leg and got yanked 3-4 laps into it. This year my form seems to be right on and I was looking forward to some redemption. Despite my poor showings in the past, I really liked the course.

At any event Tom promotes, I always have a good time, so we gathered the troops and concocted a plan. Scott and myself were the protected riders as we seem to both be in good form at the moment.

I was having a good ol’ time talking to Raymond and almost missed my start. I had to line up in back of the field. I looked up and could see Josh on the front line and Tony not far behind him. Scott and I were together on the back and we’re off!

The start leads onto the fast downhill section and I could see Josh up ahead stringing it out from the gun. Once we were on the long downhill drag I popped out on the left and motored down into 5th wheel and caught up with Josh once we started the climb.

From there it seemed that the race was going smooth and not too many close calls. Josh was doing a lot of work on the front and keeping the pace high. Two to three laps into it Scott was pulling through on the front and Tony was floating around the sharp end as well. Things were looking good. We had all the boys were they were supposed to be and I felt actually OK. Our communication was good and Scott looked like he was hardly working even after doing a bit of work on the front! My first thought was maybe we were going a bit slow on the hill but everytime I looked down it was reading 33+/- kph and that’s not too slow!

Around 5 laps into it, I was feeling like testing my legs and found myself on the front, leading onto the climb, so I set a good tempo and pulled the group up the hill to the top. Peeling off, I was very encouraged from the sensations I was getting from the legs. No pain, my breathing was hard but steady and when I jumped back in around 6th wheel, on the descent, my HR was dropping fast, my recovery was better than I had expected.

This gave me the confidence that I would be able to do the hard work necessary to chase down breaks (which I did) and still have enough to give it a go at the finish.

Well there was a lot going on up until the bell lap, but the Fusion boys managed to keep the pressure on at the front with a bit of help from some other team guys from: Squadra Ovest, Cyclesport and Roaring Mouse.

On the bell lap I was in the top 15 or so and it quickly got strung out on the descent. I was fighting for position leading down to the bottleneck right-hand turn and could not move and lost some positions. I had to sit in and protect what I had (25th~ wheel) I took a drink and a few deep breaths and planned to rail up the hill and try to catch the small group moving off the front, that contained Scott. Great plan if you can get through the wall of guys huffing and puffing and blocking the whole lane.

I had to wait until the false flat before I could pop through and start moving up. Well… I was running out of room to the finish so I started sprinting, guys were coming back to me right and left, then I turned the corner towards the top and saw the first place rider and Scott in second, right in front of me. I accelerated and managed to finish right behind Scott in third place.

A great day for the Fusion boys….

Big thanks to Tom Simpson and Pilarcitos Cyclesports for a great race!

Stage 2, Sierra Point Criterium

After yesterday's race I was looking forward to the Criterium. We went into this race with Scott as the #1 guy. He had the best shot at winning the overall and if I could finish with him on the podium we would likely both be in the overall.

Scott was the only guy who had ridden this course before and told me the chicane was tight. After warming up in the morning I went over to take a look and he was right. This was going to be a very technical course that would favor a small/solo break. I am very good on the technical crit courses and the hairpin and chicane made me feel like it was a small road race course (motorcycle).

I managed to get in two sighting laps and lined up on the front line. Off we go and I went to the front and pushed the pace with Josh, Tony, Scott and James on my heels. The Squadra boys were there also lending a hand to keep the pace high. After some laps of going through rotations on the front I needed a break, so I dropped back into around 10-12th and recovered. At this time a two-person break went off the front. With the brutal headwind on the straight I didn’t think they would last and kept tabs on the time gap, which was around 20-25 sec…

As I start moving back to the front, a rider next to me points at Scott’s rear wheel and states that his skewer is loose. I look down and to my dismay it was full open! My heart sank, knowing that Scott was to this point riding strong and with us working together, we had a great chance to podium. I almost dropped back to help but with me in 3rd overall I knew if I covered a few guys ahead of me in the sprint I might be able to take the overall. When the other guys saw Scott had a problem the pace went up right away. Of course they did not want him back in the group, can’t blame em’ that’s racing. I could only sit in and hope someone else saw the situation and dropped back to help Scott back into the group. James made a solid effort but just the two of them, with the pace picking up chasing the solo break off the front, it wasn’t looking good for Scott to return to the fray. I was checking the time gap on him to us in the hairpin and it looked close for a bit but I had to put my head down and focus on the front end of the race.

With the solo break off the front now extended to 40+ sec it was looking like we might not catch him. There just wasn’t enough organization from the other teams/riders to chase him down. I new the guy off the front was not in contention for the overall so I started thinking about covering the Webcor and Cyclesport guys in the sprint. At seven laps to go it was time to sit up a bit and take stock of the situation and plan the last laps. Scott wasn’t coming back and it was up to me to come through with the goods. I was feeling strong and confident for it to come down to a field sprint.

With two laps to go, Josh came around me and I jumped on his wheel and let him know I was there. I think he used up a lot of matches to get there and could only sit in. I needed to move up a few positions across the finish line at the bell lap.

Bell lap…. I move up and got into around 7th place, we headed into the hairpin and I protected the inside and it put me on the outside of the entrance of the chicane, which worked out good. Guys were fighting for the inside and I rolled around them and got into perfect position into the last 300 meters. Nice…. Second wheel down to the final corner, I adjusted my gearing and as soon as we came off the corner, I moved to the inside and put the hammer down. I came across first in the field sprint but second in the race due to the solo break which stayed away. This was a very short sprint only 150 meters, I hit a top speed of 54 kph….

Well, I did enough to win the Ominum Overall and got on the podium both days. A pretty good weekend for Fusion Sport. It’s unfortunate for Scott and I feel for him because he was looking really strong. Tony, Josh and James all gave it there all and we had a fantastic showing in both events. Again, thanks to Pilarcitos Cyclesports for a great event and Mother Nature who gave us dry conditions for both days!

Masters 35+ Cat 5 report from Saturday's Brisbane Highlands Circuit Race by Graeme Macalister

Locking horns at the Ronde

I was woken from my pre-race slumber by the pitter-patter of rain on my bedroom window. I sighed, realized by my sore throat I was coming down with a cold, then mused that in the true tradition of the Ronde van Vlaanderen I should be happy and relish the prospect of racing in the rain. Since I live near the Mission it was only a 20 minute ride to the course, and I felt I was gaining Flahute points for riding my bike to Brisbane through the showers. By the time I reached the course I had gained a couple of pounds (in water) - more weight to power up the climb (this could be my new secret weapon!). Making my way to the registration area, I could see the Women's 4 race in full swing and the sky was now beginning to clear, so the Women and the Elite 5 deserve the true Flahute award. They had the worst of the weather. As we lined up, I recognized a few faces from the Bariani RR and after a wise warning about the turn at the bottom of the hill from the Race Official, we were on our way.

Lap one was the usual reconnaissance affair, even more important with the slick roads. And in my usual style I was straight out the back. I am so used to this that I was not worried and by the second lap I was working my way up through the field. Knowing the course from last year definitely helped. However, the pack was nervous from the rain-soaked roads and one rider suffered a minor collision with a hay bale. He managed to re-integrate with no harm done. I got the feeling early on that the race would end in a bunch sprint; this was due to the major slowing down of the pack on the climb. I decided to "give it a go" on the third lap near the top of the climb to see if I could split the field. I am not sure if it had the desired effect, but by the fourth and fifth laps the lead group had shrunk to twenty riders, and the lead riders now began to turn up the gas a little more each time up the climb.

Since the sharp right hand turn at the bottom of the descent was almost treated as a neutral zone, the race became a war of attrition on the climb; each lap riders were put into difficulty and finally fell off the back. I felt pretty comfortable and spinning up the hill I realized the best spot to make in-roads through the pack was on the inside, which I did more and more as the race progressed to keep up in the top ten. With two laps to go, a small group opened a gap at the top of the climb; I covered it and the guys behind got back on with a little effort. Now there was a little lactic starting to build and my heart rate monitor was starting to send out, "Mayday" signals, but the prospect of one of those shiny green medals made me power on.

Final lap, and the group was beginning to pass earlier casualties. After a collective sigh of relief on our final time around the infamous corner, there was also a collective realization that crunch time had arrived. The pace was high and I began to make my move up to the front on the inside. I moved up so quickly I found myself right on the front and a little surprised. I instinctively launched another attack. It was quickly covered and I realized I should have held off because I was now pulling the pack with 300m to go; severely limiting my chances in the final sprint. I eased off with 200m to go - expecting to get swamped - a rider from San Jose Bicycle Club was coming up on my inside so I moved over to cover him. Now it was a straight fight of power- Flahute vs Flahute, as we rode for the line I could feel my power starting to fade, but hearing the heavy breathing of my adversary spurred me on. Suddenly we locked handle bars and for a split second our bikes felt like they were welded together; luckily we split apart, with no harm other than a few nervous shouts. But by now my focus was gone and being thrown slightly off my line I had lost all momentum. Riders began to come from behind and I had to settle for eighth place. Meanwhile Gary Franck (SJBC), the rider I had locked horns with, persevered for the victory.

Elite Women Cat 3 report from Sunday's Sierra Point Criterium by Elis Bradshaw, Metromint Cycling

A few weeks ago I was really excited about having a race so close to home, with the beautiful prospect of sleeping in my own bed and getting up just an hour before my warmup dancing around in my mind. Sure, I was riding a metric century with my dad on Saturday, but we weren't going to hammer or anything...I should be fine!

Oh, and I guess time moved faster this weekend, too.

Amanda Eaken and Elis Bradshaw (Metromint Cycling), with Vera Divenyi in the middle (CRC - Hill & Co), line up as the pack strings out.

The metric took 6.5 hours (including rest stops and mechanicals, with 5.5 hours in the saddle). It was a beautiful day, Dad met his goal of riding the entire ride - hills and all - without putting a foot down, and we had a great time, but after the drive home I was pooped and didn't get to bed quite as early as I expected.

Sunday morning I woke up what felt like an hour early to a cold but dry morning, burned-out legs and a bit of a sniffle. My trusty racing partner decided not to race after our big day, which tipped the scales in favor of taking a day off and recovering from Saturday. I called the teammates who were expecting me and told them I wouldn't make the race, then went back to bed.

For the next half-hour I tried to go to sleep, but the racing monkey stayed on my back, chattering at me loudly enough that I couldn't get back to sleep. Finally, with not enough time before the race I jumped out of bed, threw on my kit, tried to grab something for breakfast, tossed my bike in my truck, and motored down to Brisbane. After I got my number and surprised my teammates I had about 15 minutes to warm up...not exactly the hour or more I usually need. Our five Metromint women had a quick meeting, took a lap, lined up, and we were off.

The course is just phenomenal -- all curvy and flat the way I like. Based on how my legs felt I didn't think I would be in the race for long, so I immediately went to the front figuring that I could cover any early moves and help control the pace so that everyone else could sit in and save their energy for the later laps, when I would most likely be cheering from the start/finish. The pace was very high from the gun; I stayed in the top six positions for the first four laps or so, and then my teammate who was going for the omnium came up front and I tried to stick to her and offer any help I could.

About 20 minutes into the race my teammate asked me how many riders were behind me. My gut response would have been to say the whole field, but I turned to double check and realized that there was only one woman behind me; we had a little group of eight off the front! Apparently there had been a crash in the 180 that had caused a small gap in the field (our three other teammates were caught behind it), and our little group just kept pushing, slowly picking off stragglers. We stayed together until about eight laps to go, when the eventual winner attacked our group and stayed off the front until the end. As we organized to chase I saw a large group one corner ahead of us - we were about to lap the field!

We did lap them with about two laps to go, and when we went through for the last lap I found myself in the unfortunate position of being on the very front of the field. Since I didn't have much left at that point I dropped back. The pace on the last lap stayed high. My legs had been calling me nasty names since the start, so when I tried to move up and lead my teammate out I just didn't have enough to get there. She did just fine by herself, though, finishing second in the field sprint and third overall. I finished dead last in our little group, which ended up being 7th in the 3s, but I never ever thought I would be able to lap a field, so it was quite exciting.

Next year, though, I think I'll plan a little better.

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