All photos courtesy of Greg Long
After the customary slow start to women’s C, it was a confident Amanda Koerber who made her made her intentions clear early in round 6. Several attacks and some strong pulls on the front that stretched the bunch out into single file eventually causing a split with Carly Rickerby, Kylie Biilman and Merryn Steer on board the Koerber Express.
With the chasers clearly working in the red to keep it under control it looked as though the winning break had formed, however the lead group riders clearly didn’t like the look of each other as they stopped working together and sat up. The back of the peloton lead by Emily Clark, the hard working Mel Connor, Carol Paice and Linda Rigby pulled themselves back on and it was all status quo.
Meanwhile, Donna Smith sat in the bunch watching closely and looking relaxed while keeping her nose out of the wind. There was a quiet moment as the ladies got their breath back before another flurry of attacks from the likes of Liz Lowe and Katherine Huckstep, each one marked by the bunch but taking the bit more from the legs for the finish.
The bell lap came around and the full field of 12 riders were still all on par with a bunch three wide and riders with eyes peering back over their shoulders as much as to the front. On the slight rise up the back straight Smith exploded from the bunch leaving a frantic scramble of riders in her wake. Leading the chase were Shalan Bray and Steer.
Smith’s initial jump on the bunch was good enough to take her to the finish for her first win. Bray just got the edge on Steer for second while Biilman outsprinted the improved Rickerby for 4th place. Race protagonist Koerber eventually rolled through the finish chute in 6th place.
Special mentions this week to Katherine, Emily, Carol, Liz and Mel who all have massively improved their skills and ability to read the race over the last few weeks. The five of them were not only passengers in the peloton this week but active in shaping the race.
Results Women's C Grade Round 6
1. Donna Smith
2. Shalan Bray
3. Merryn Steer
4. Kylie Biilmann
5. Carly Rickerby
6. Amanda Koerber
7. Linda Rigby
8. Katherine Huckstep
9. Carol Paice
10. Elizabeth Lowe
11. Emily Clark
12. Melinda Connor
Race Report: Simon Dwyer
All photos courtesy of Greg Long Photography
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