Brunswick Cycling Club

This Sunday, Wazza McDonald (National women’s coach), Vicki Whitelaw (teammate and TT stage winner of the Giro Donne) and I will travel to Rogno, outside Bergamo to race the Cronometro Individuale.

It’s 3 x laps of a 7.6km circuit through the streets to commemorate the life of an Italian cyclist killed in 2004. I don’t know why TTs are often named in memory of the dead, and it would be bad karma to make a joke here, so let’s just say Vail, Davide. It will be my first Italian TT, and an excellent form check before Worlds in 19 days.

Incidentally, the Australian Women’s Team was officially named yesterday. 7 riders in the road race - Carla Ryan (QLD), Nikki Egyed (QLD), Emma Rickards (VIC), Oenone Wood (NSW), Rochelle Gilmore (NSW), Natalie Bates (NSW, Commonwealth Games Road Champion) and Vicki Whitelaw (ACT). We qualified an extra rider in the team thanks to Rochelle’s win in the Oceania Road Race in Invercargill last year.

We also have 3 starters in the TT, thanks to my win in the Oceania’s again - Alexis Rhodes (SA, 3rd at this year’s Nationals), Vicki, and myself. Alas, no road selection per mio. Still, I’m the only Australian to make their first worlds team at the tender age of 34. First doctor too. First wedding singer, probably. And first Talent ID and Development rider too. So, I only have one job to do, and that makes it easy!

We’ve had some inclement weather in Varese the last few days, the SA.com boys were caught in flash flooding at Laveno and had to get picked up (soft). We gals soldiered on, even motor pacing in the pouring rain, which doubles as an excellent exfoliant when combined with local grit.

Flower beds are springing up everywhere on roads that form part of the TT and road race courses. Productivity is up comrades! Mussolini has nothing on the Mayor of Varese. Here’s a snap of Lago Varese. In case you thought you were having good weather in Oz.

Ciao! Bridie

This entry was posted by B. O'Donnell on Saturday, September 6th, 2008 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Reports, Women.