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The Emma James Diary 2004
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Welcome to one of Cyclingnews' up-and-coming female talents, Australian Emma James. Emma has spent the past two years with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) team based in Italy, and in 2004, she has graduated to a full professional contract, firstly with Team S.A.T.S. and now with Bik Gios. She's a gutsy rider who's decided that she'd rather be testing the waters of professional cycling than testing the salinity of the Sydney's waterways as an environmental scientist - which used to be her previous occupation before Emma decided to take the plunge.
Tour de Haute Vienne
Back on my feet
I had trained hard leading into the Giro d'Italia. I had raced a lot, and tried to make sure I got enough recovery, but what ever it was that I did, it left me flat and feeling pretty crap for some seriously fast, international-level racing in Italy.
It was great to see the Aussie girls who will represent us at the Olympics in action. Oenone Wood is sprinting so powerfully and making it seem so easy to stay in the perfect position when the bunch is flying at 60km/hr for the last 5k of a race! She won the first road stage and took the sprint jersey in the Giro d'Italia, taking it all in her stride; winning is just part of the job!
Olivia Gollan was riding strongly and helping Oenone. She finished with a good position on GC [ninth] after a consistent week and good performance on the toughest day where the bunch shattered up the Cat. 1 climb finish. I didn't get to catch up with Sara Carrigan as she didn't race the Giro, because she was getting in some altitude training at Livigno as she has done for the last few years. All the girls will do a fine job in Athens I am sure.
After the Giro I headed to Brittany, and was not too disappointed to have a week training while the rest of my team did the Tour of Bretagne. I went for easy rides in the mornings then searched for a TV to catch the Tour de France in the afternoon. PMU may be one of the big sponsors of the sprint jersey, but the focus of their business is permanently on horse racing and betting. The customers in the smoky PMU bars are NOT interested in cycling, as I discovered... but luckily almost everyone else in the small towns I visited is! I was welcomed into the little kitchen of one café where the TV was on the right channel, and the back room of other establishments where my only duty was to keep them up to date with the progress of the French riders, especially Thomas Voeckler.
We had a mad drive back to the Netherlands straight after the final stage of the tour to get to a National Series race in Limburg. We still had 400km to go when we left the hotel near Amiens the next morning, but we arrived in plenty of time for the race. 'The Hills Classic' was a bit of fun for me, not being as tired as the other girls, and I was glad for a chance to race. The circuit (6 laps of 20 km) was quite tough with a climb of almost two kilometers and a really steep wet, narrow descent just before the finish. I nearly stayed with the front group of eight the final time up the climb, but just couldn't quite latch on. A group came from behind, so I finished up in the second group for the day, but glad to be feeling better on the bike.
A few days back in the Netherlands before we returned to France for the Tour de Haute Vienne, raced in and around Limoges, in the Limousin Region. This has been one of my favorite races over the last few years. It was my first race in France in 2001, and where I met great friends who helped me get a start in a team for the Grande Boucle (women's TdF) that year. I won the tour in 2002, and was second in 2003, so it was good to return for another year in 2004.
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Stage 1: St Just le Martel, 78 km
The first stage was six laps of a tough 13km circuit. There had been storms all night, and it was still raining incredibly hard the morning of the race. It cleared up before the start at 5pm, with only a bit of gentle rain occasionally while we were racing. The roads were wet and narrow, and the circuit quite dangerous, despite efforts to sweep most of the loose gravel from the corners. There were numerous crashes, some quite nasty. One of the best climbers, Elizabeth Chevanne-Brunel, hurt her lower back from a fall midway through the race and with her bike also damaged, she was unable to continue.
I was not the strongest on the climbs, coming over the crest of the hills about fifth wheel, but a fair way behind Annette Beutler (Swiss rider with the ES Gervais Lilas team). Alexandra Le Henaff (Les Pruneaux D'Agen) attacked at a good moment quite early in the race. Her team-mates quickly took positions at the front of the group to cover any efforts to bridge across to her. Annette Beutler was the only one interested to chase, the rest of us aware that the climbs may be where a decisive split may come, and knowing a bit of energy would be needed to go with Beutler. Le Henaff rode well to win the stage and take a 39 second led in the tour.
I won the bunch kick, which is not my normal forte. It was an uphill sprint at the end of a long hard race, so not really a fast sprinters finish! Perfect for me.
Stage 2: Beaune les Mines, 86 km
This stage had some tough sections, where I hoped we could lose the tour leader, and get a small group over the climbs that would put us all in a good position on GC. After the first couple of climbs I tried to force the pace and break it up. The others did not seem to want to race aggressively at that point, not willing to pull through. I attacked alone a bit later when my team-mate, Virginie Moinard, was on the front, and the better climbers were caught out of position. Again I hoped a group would come across, but it was pulled back five minutes later with a solid effort from the Pruneaux Team and Beutler dragging the bunch back.
Towards the end of the race there were some nasty pinches. Places where I had a dig and then looked up to see the climb continue around the corner, and wonder if I would be able to follow the next attack. The move of the day came shortly after when Magalie Finot attacked with 20km to go. She rode well to stay away, with a lead of 40 seconds at one point but with only six seconds advance on the finish line. My sprinting prowess from the previous day did not continue. I was a bit worn out and finished 10th. I did win the 'combativity prize', a blue Pluto dog, which will be a friendly companion for my travels!
Stage 3: Prologue / ITT - Uzurat, 4 km
That night we had a shortened version of the prologue from the previous year that I had won. It no longer had the long drag at the start, but still tough little climbs where significant time can be won or lost, and some technical little corners on the descent that it helpful to know! I finished second, three seconds behind the Dutch rider Iris Slappendel (Vrienden van Platterland), and ahead of the other riders who were still in contention for GC. I was also now the leader of the blue points jersey (for the stage placings).
Stage 4: - Naillat, 90 km
The final day we all knew we were in for a tough stage. Three climbs for the mountains jersey we in the first half of the stage. Annette Beutler took the points easily and clearly had that competition won. Karine Dalmais was next best over the climbs then me and a few others, but none of us close enough to stay with Beutler over the second climb. I hoped a group of between four and eight of us would work well and keep Beutler in sight, and pull her back when she had worn herself out a bit, but none of the girls worked smoothly for even a minute! A few were still madly contesting third place in the mountains competition. Annette got a couple minutes up the road very quickly, and the bunch regrouped from behind.
No one was interested in chasing. My team-mates Lenie Dijstra and Virginie Moinard picked up the pace for a while. There were a few attacks with Beatrice Thomas seeming keen to get away. We had four laps of a four kilometer circuit at the end. The finish sprint on the circuit was basically a 500m mountain sprint - quite nasty. I rode hard on the circuit, attacking and really working to establish a break with any riders who came with me. I just had to get 25 seconds advance on one rider (Le Henaff), and I would get second on GC. I was totally smashed from my efforts, and we were down to a break of five riders, but she was still with us! I was so disappointed when I swung of the front at the top of the climb, and saw she was with our little group. I led out the sprint and died with 200m to go, but only Le Henaff came around me. If Beutler had not attacked during the race she would easily have got away on the climb up to the finish. She certainly seems to have a power to weight advantage on most riders, sprinting on the crest of hills in a big gear, and accelerating away easily! She was clearly the best climber.
So I finished up third in the stage and third overall for the tour. Not a bad effort, really. The winner's trophy was a beautiful iron sculpture thing - the logo for the organizing association... It was the outline (in iron) of a girl on a bike (three strands of frizzy hair aerodynamically flowing behind), and on a wooden base with the name of the town 'Naillat' also written in wrought iron. Looked awesome - but too hard to take home, so lucky I didn't win!
Now I am in the Pyrenees. A few days rest and a big training block until mid-August in the mountains. It all started with the climb to Hautacam today. I couldn't ask for a more beautiful place to be, or a better job than riding to the top of the world on a perfect day with an incredible view down over the valley and town of Lourdes! Lots of work ahead for me...
