Women's Cross-country - February 24: Thredbo

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Grigson gets her fifth

by Paul Goldsmith

Mary Grigson
Photo: © Tom Balks

It was the Mary Grigson show in the Women's cross country as Mary set an Australian record with her fifth straight Australian XC title.

Leading from the outset, Grigson just set too high a pace for the rest of the field. Her great strength was shown in that on the last lap of the 4 and a bit lap race, she recorded her fastest lap time. This was whilst being close on 3 minutes ahead of her nearest rival, Dellys Frankie. Frankie finished second, with Claire Baxter taking third place.

Asked about her "negative split" lap times the longer the race went, Grigson said it was purely about conserving herself early. "It was a mental technique. Dellys (Dellys Frankie who finished second) was really close on the first lap, so I was trying to hold back, just in case she went by me, and I would have something in reserve," said Grigson. "On the last lap, I stopped trying to hold back, and used a higher cadence, and with the longer cranks, this meant more speed," she said. Grigson has changed from a 170 to 172.5 mm crank length this season in the search for more speed.

Showing that even champions get nerves, Grigson said she was pretty nervous prior to the start. "I haven't raced for a while (Grigson forgot about the Wildside Tour of Tasmania, which she also won!) so I a bit nervous. You are just so pumped, and you are trying so hard, it is difficult to get down the hills the first time," she said.

In what could be a lesson for many super-sensitive cycling stars, Grigson's attitude to racing is very refreshing. "If you ride for money, you lose sight of the fun. I want to continue riding for the fun," she said. This is also reflected in her attitude to her fellow competitors. "When I catch someone on the course, I try and stay relaxed. I don't yell at them to get out of the way, I want the girls to keep riding."

Don't you wish all champions acted like that!

Results

Expert Women
                         lap 1    lap 2    lap 3    lap 4        Time
1 Mary Grigson           21.47.3  21.36.9  21.39.8  21.44.2   1.26.48.20
2 Dellys Franke          22.04.4  22.53.2  23.08.2  23.07.3      4.25.25
3 Claire Baxter          23.18.8  23.46.0  24.13.4  23.54.3      8.24.24
4 Anna Baylis            23.28.8  23.48.2  24.10.1  24.12.7      8.52.52
5 Jaci Low               23.40.3  25.07.0  24.12.5  23.59.4     10.11.11
6 Kimberly Baul          25.05.4  25.23.8  25.10.1  25.26.1     14.17.17
7 Sue Thomas             24.32.6  25.23.9  25.49.8  25.48.9     14.47.47
8 Wendy Walker           25.19.2  26.22.9  26.15.1  26.25.2     17.34.34
9 Raeleigh Tennant       26.18.4  25.57.8  26.32.9  27.02.4     19.03.30
10 Jane Scheer           26.26.6  26.58.8  27.20.6  27.51.3     21.49.49
11 Maria Papadopolous    26.14.0  26.53.2  27.45.5  28.35.8     22.40.40
Lapped
12 Alisha Houghton       29.51.9  31.04.6  31.20.3
 
Masters Women
 
1 Sharon Heap            27.17.3  27.14.1                      54.31.40
2 Carolyn Jackson        29.19.2  30.11.0                       4.59.59
3 Bev Anderson-Tranter   31.44.0  35.59.0                      13.12.12
 
U19 Women
 
1 Lisa Mathison          22.30.4  22.54.9  22.20.3            1.07.45.60
2 Helen Barclay          28.34.6  30.50.2  34.51.8              26.31.31
 
U17 Women
 
1 Erica Oldfield         28.04.0  27.57.6                       56.01.60
2 Gail Sutton            31.51.6  32.09.0                        7.59.59
 
Sport Women
 
1 Cathy McAuliffe        25.31.0  25.25.0                       50.56.10
2 Donna Hamlin           26.01.4  25.20.2                       00.25.25
3 Kirin Lindop           26.22.4  25.03.2                       00.30.30
4 Nicci Ansley           27.37.4  28.17.0                       04.58.58

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