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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.
The Jayco Bay Classic (Days 4-5)
Day 4 - January 10: Geelong - Botanic Gardens
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The NSWIS was in a difficult position. Oenone (ACTAS) and Hayley (WAIS/VIC) had about 10 to 15 points more than three riders from our team, with me in third on 18 points, and my teammates Olivia and Rochelle also on 15 points. The circuit in the Botanic Gardens at Geelong is tough, with a rough surface and a strong headwind through the back straight / carpark, and a steep little pinch after a tight corner that strings the bunch out every lap. Often a group gets up the road, and I was hopeful that with a tough race we could decimate the field, and end up with either Olivia or me up the road or, at the very least, ensuring I scored some good points to maintain my third position in the series. We were not confident that we could win the series ten points down with only two days remaining, but would be racing hard to see what could arise.
We looked after Kate Bates again for the first sprint points, 15 minutes into the race. She had a big margin over Olivia in this category, with another NSWIS rider in equal third! There were some solid attacks, and the race was beginning to warm up. Natalie Bates (NSW) and Helen Kelly (VIC) got away, and I was looking for opportunities to bridge across. If Olivia or I could get there, and continue on, it would be a nice way to get the win, and move us into a good position for the series. Alexis Rhodes (SA) flew across to the break, and Sara Symington (UK) followed about a lap later. Both Olivia and I tried to make a move a couple of times, but we were closely marked by ACTAS and the Victorian team. Their frustration showed as they yelled at us: "Why are you trying to chase your own team mates?!". I was hopeful they would crack with just a few more blasts up the hill. I did not make decisive enough attacks, unable to gap the field enough up the climb, and called out by team mates not understanding my intentions. Halfway through the race, Rochelle attacked at the perfect time leading into the finishing straight and quickly bridged the gap. The Victorians and ACT riders did not realise the danger of letting this NSW rider go. They had been too busy focusing on Olivia and me! Alison Wright (ACTAS) and Olivia joked about letting more riders go up the road and the Victorians also seemed to be happy with the situation! Rochelle won the sprint, taking the maximum points, the other riders took the majority of points on offer so that NSWIS now had our best sprinter only four points off winning the series overall! Incredible considering we were practically out of the hunt before that evening!
I was disappointed with the race in some ways. I had strength I wanted to use, but obviously it was going to be hard to get away with two teams unwilling to let me go. I needed to ride in a position to cover moves more effectively (and then countering off them when the bunch was strung out), and I regretted not timing my attacks better, and having better legs/gear selection to get a really good gap when I made my moves. NSWIS was now in a commanding position, and you could not have scripted it better with just one race remaining in the series.
Day 5 - January 11: Docklands
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We were all focused on our job for the day. At all costs we needed a bunch kick for Rochelle to get the maximum points, and hopefully get someone into second ahead of Hayley and Oenone to recoup the four point deficit. The Victorians were going to go on the attack; Katie Mactier, Narelle Peterson, Helen Kelly and Elizabeth Williams all tried to launch during the first half of the race, with all our NSW riders covering the moves as quickly as we could. In the later part of the race Hayley and Alison both made really solid attacks forcing NSW to chase hard. We tried to maintain the pace for the last eight laps, to limit the aggressive moves. As we came into the last couple of laps, we did not have a smooth train, but it regrouped down the back straight. Rochelle was struggling to hold Olivia's wheel. I took over, and rode hard to the top corner, but Alexis Rhodes was storming up the inside to lead out for Oenone (South Aust rider / but bit of ACTAS in her!). We needed more speed in that final straight, and Rochelle needed better legs and luck on the day. Oenone took the win and the series, with classy, controlled, smart riding - taking advantage of the tactics of the other riders, and carefully using her small but powerful team. Nice work.
Photography
Images by Emma James
- On the startline - the NSWIS girls ready to rumble on Day 4.
- The pack wind it up in Geelong's Botanic Gardens.
- Baden Cooke leads the peloton through the final corner on Day 5.
- Warming up on the rollers - Emma keeps the engine warm before the final race.
- Cyclingnews diarist Trent Wilson looking composed at the final race in Docklands.
