My first Euro season...

(Written in August)

As the junior world cycling championships loom ever closer my mind races back to the 20th of July last year when I took to the start line of my first major international race, the U19 women’s world road race championship in Cape Town, South Africa. I placed 37th, a bitter disappointment after two years of sacrifice and preparation.

The year since these championships has truly been a rollercoaster ride. If I had been asked when I crossed the finish line in my first, and hopefully not last, World Championships where I hoped to be in 12months time I would never have thought it possible to be where I am now. It’s been a year of contrasts, the past 12 months have left me a little shocked and still struggling to comprehend what I have achieved.

I made the decision after the World Championships to put my bike to the side and focus on completing my year 12 studies. Three months later I graduated with top marks, no fitness and a mass of cobwebs covering my bike.

What was to follow was a long and gruelling process of attempting to get back to where I had been in July. It was by no means an easy process. As my coach so wisely said to me one of the many times I whined about my general lack of fitness, how much the bike clearly hated me, and what was the point of all this: it takes no time lose it, and twice as long to get it back.

After numerous races where I struggled to finish, if I finished at all, I began to find my legs at the Bay Criterium Series held every year in Geelong during the first week of January. My participation in this event was even in doubt as people were reluctant to put me in a team after my lacklustre performances in the months leading up to the series. Nevertheless, I finished third overall behind current Australian Criterium Champion, Kirsty Broun and World Omnium Champion, Josie Tomic.

However, the National road race Championships held the following week reinforced that I still had a long way to go, I only completed 5 of the 10 laps.

As I watched Lauren Kitchen, a fellow team mate who raced the Junior World Championship with me, jet off to the Middle East to compete in the Women’s Professional Tour of Qatar with the Australian National team I was left to ponder my future.

I made the decision that 2009 would be the year to make or break me as a cyclist. I would train harder, longer and with more intensity than ever before - and then I would go to Europe.

Europe is the Mecca of the cycling world. Cyclists from around the world take the pilgrimage there to race in the hope of being noticed by the elusive and illustrious professional teams. I found a small Dutch club team with a stellar race programme that would have me, and I booked my flights.

What was to follow was a flurry of results that launched my name onto the international cycling arena. Wins in top ranking UCI races in New Zealand and China propelled me into the top fifty female cyclists in the world overall, and in the top five for 2009. I was less than 5 months into my first season as a senior rider and I was already making a name for myself.

My first two races in Europe were big. Cervelo, Columbia, Flexpoint, Lotto-Belisol, DSB Bank. Wild, Gilmore, Vos. Just some of the teams and big name riders that call the European peloton home were all there. They fuelled the fire that I had lit in January when I decided this year was the year.

I finished 6th and 4th in my first two UCI European races. I’d left people asking, who the hell is this Chloe Hosking girl? Literally. Dutch cycling websites set up forums titled Who is Chloe Hosking and where did she come from?

I’m Chloe Hosking; 18, short, stocky, fiery and from Australia. And I just made a splash.

Numerous professional teams approached me, wanting me to sign in July to race the remainder of the season with them. The offers were incredibly tempting. However, under the guidance of my coach, the Australian coach, my parents and Harrie van de Horst, a man who has come to be a mentor to me since I arrived in Europe, I graciously refused the offers. Knowing that I still had a lot to learn before cycling became my job, rather than just a hobby and hoping that other offers, bigger offers, would come along.

Six European podiums and 12 months since I crossed the finished line in Cape Town and everything has changed.

In December of 2008 I couldn’t finish the New South Wales Criterium Championship, and was lapped in a local Criterium in Wangaratta. Now, I finish on the podium with world class riders, in world class races.

On paper I am one of the most successful riders of the 2009 season. My world ranking rose from nothing to 79th in March, and then from 79th to the top fifty in April. Currently I am ranked 17th, the second Australian, behind Rochelle Gilmore and the only 18 year old in the top 100.

In August I was added as a trainee to the roster of the number one women’s team in the world, Team Columbia-HTC and will race the Giro della Toscana in September as a Stagiaire for them. A little over 8 months ago I couldn’t find a team to race for at the Bay Criterium Series.

In December of 2008 Oenone Wood said to me that ‘the door is well and truly open’ for women’s cycling in Australia. I listened, I wanted to take advantage of that opening.

In the year since I crossed the finish line in 37th place at the Junior World Championships a lot has happened. The year has been full of unbelievable surprises and unexpected twists and turns. I’ve come further than I ever could have imagined, and I don’t plan to stop.

The fourth and fifth weeks of the TdeF...

For those of you who believe that when the peloton rolls into Paris after three weeks of grueling racing at the end of July the cycling season is all but over, you would be mistaken. Not only is there the third and final Grand Tour, the tours of Britain, Poland and Ireland and the World Championships in late September still to come but also the Post Tour Criterium series run in the two weeks immediately after the Tour de France.

The series of races generally known as ‘post-tour crits’ held in various cities around Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany provide fans the opportunity to watch and cheer for their heroes while enjoying a party atmosphere more commonly associated with concerts or festivals.

How do criterium’s held in random towns across Western Europe, carrying no UCI ranking and no prestige like that of Paris-Roubaix or Milam San Remo attract the who’s who of the European peloton?

TdeF Jersey and stage winners and big name riders such as Jens Voigt can earn big money just for showing their faces. The appearance money riders can earn is stratospheric and how successful a rider is during the tour dictates how much dough the race organisers are willing to throw at them.

Years ago there were up to 96 ‘post-tour crits’ held around Europe, now there are twelve, and I chose to race one of the biggest, loudest and most atmospheric of them all the Draai van der Kaai in Roosendaal, the Netherlands.

Before the big names take to the line the crowd is given the chance to warm up a bit while watching the junior and women support races. By ‘warming up’ I mean partaking in the various beers, wines and spirits on offer at the innumerable bars scattered around the course.

As Emma and I cruised up to the criterium in her SmartCar we were met by fences barricading off a huge residential area. Entry into the area where the criterium was being held cost 20 euro per person. This in itself shocked me, but what was inside made me gasp! Thousands of people lined the three kilometre circuit, stands erected along the straights of the course and a large stage where the hottest Dutch bands were playing for the crowds made it the most fantastic and unusual atmosphere I have ever ridden in.

21 laps raced against riders such as Marianne Vos (DSB), Chantelle Beltman (Columbia) and Suzanne De Goede (Nurenberger) on the rough, bumpy, red bricked 3 kilometre circuit later, and I had claimed another podium place in a European race. Taking third to Vos and De Goede was a result that I was more than satisfied with.

The cheer from the crowd as Vos crossed the line with her arms outstretched in a victory salute was insane. I don’t think I have ever heard people cheer so loudly for a female sportstar. Vos is cycling’s and the Netherlands golden girl, and for good reason. World Champion in track, road and cyclo-cross disciplines she’s extremely talented and a lovely person. It’s easy to see how she has managed to win the hearts of her fellow country men and women.

The men’s race was won by Mark Cavendish while Contador and Andy Schleck almost got him on the line. It’s not everyday you see general classification riders challenging the fastest man in the world. A bit like professional wrestling really, I want to believe it but ???? Anyway, its good entertainment and rest assured the Women’s racing was fair dinkum!

If you would like more on these Crits visit this link: http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/features/?id=post_tour_crits
An interesting read if you want to know more.

Thank you Italy!

As it turns out my time in Italy and the suffering I endured in both races and training when the gradient of the road tilted upwards has come back to lend a helping hand. The Sparkassen Giro, held in Bochum Germany the past weekend helped prove that all those hours of agony spent off the back of the bunch were actually worth it after I finished third behind Rochelle Gilmore and Suzanne De Goede.

The race, carrying a UCI ranking of 1.1, one classification below a World Cup, was 6 laps of a 14 kilometre circuit. It had two power climbs and a long, fast downhill to the finish line so was raced at an average speed of 37km/hr. With crowds lining the course there was a real party atmosphere surrounding it and I found myself feeding off the crowd’s energy as I powered over the climbs each lap with the front group.

As I stood waiting for presentations I saw riders like Mark Cavendish and Henrich Haussler casually ride past me to the start of their race. I realised that the crazed crowd weren’t hear to see me, rather these athletes who carry superstar status. Nonetheless, it was still pretty amazing to ride infront of what was possibly a hundred thousand people or more.


Donning the Moving Ladies colours for the first time in a little over a month is was great to race with all the girls again. Emma was very aggressive in the race and found herself in a break with two laps to go which had all the major teams in it. Nurenberger, however, were obviously unhappy with the composition of the break as they dragged it back with a little over 15 kilometres to go. And so it was to be a sprint - was I happy? Was I ever!

The long descent into the finish line meant that the speed of the peloton in the final kilometres was around 60km/hr and there was no one team controlling the front of the bunch. The last two kilometres were truly chaotic as all the teams were vying to get their sprinters into the best possible position for the final right hand corner which was only 200 metres from the finish line.

Since arriving in Europe and growing to know and love the European peloton I have learnt many things, one of which is this; if you want to sprint and succeed in Europe you need to have guts, and be willing to take risks.

After a few very close calls and wheel touches while travelling at 65km/hr I arrived at the final right hand corner in fifth wheel, not necessarily the ideal position with only 200 metres to go. It was great to see the Australian team taking a firm hold on the race with Vickie Whitelaw giving the new Australian sprinter, Kirsty Broun, a fantastic leadout as she took her into the final corner in second wheel with Suzanne De Goede, Rochelle Gilmore and I strung out behind her.

As we all exploded out of the corner the noise of the crowd thundered in our ears as banners and flags were waved madly. Rochelle proved too strong, taking out the win narrowly from Suzanne and myself. It was a close and exciting sprint with thousands of people watching on and yelling wildly for no-one in particular.

I was extremely happy with my third in one of Europe’s major races. What was also great was having the three Australian sprinters, Rochelle, Kirsty and I all racing against each other in a quality international field as it really demonstrates the strength of female cycling in Australia.

While no longer riding for the Australian team it was fantastic to see how they took hold of the race, trying to control it. But it was not only the Aussie team that really impressed me; my Moving Ladies team mates were really active throughout the whole race. All the girls seem to be going from strength to strength as the season moves towards its climax, the World Championships in late September.

The Sparkassen Giro is definitely going on my list of races I will do again. With any luck I’ll be back next year and hopefully I’ll be able to improve on third.

Tour de Fra...Okay not quite.

My last race for the year in the Aussie colours was the Tour Féminin en Limousin in rural France. A UCI 2.2 category four day Tour consisting of four slightly undulating road stages. I went into the race excited as always and a little nervous after my last tour experience.

After a rotation of riders the Aussie team once again had a different line up. Under the direction of Martin Barras, the Australian national women’s coach, the Australian team this year has adopted a different approach to previous years. Where in the past 6 or so girls raced for the Australian team for the entire season, now girls are given the opportunity to race two or three races with the team and then others are brought in.

I think it’s a great opportunity for all the girls involved, giving them international racing experience and exposure to the European peloton. It also enables Australia to show off the depth of talent we currently have coming through the sport.

Tiffany Cromwell, Miffy Galloway, Shara Gillow and I all returned from the previous races. We were joined by Ruth Corset, who rides for the American professional team Jazz Apple, and the U19 rider, Kendelle Hodges who was invited to race with the senior team in preparation for the junior World Championships in a little under a week in Moscow.

The depth of the field while not at the same level of the Giro was still respectable with a number of UCI teams taking the start line and over 170 riders. The first stage quickly established the General Classification (GC) for the rest of the tour with 10 girls escaping on the first Queen of the Mountain and staying away for the entirety of the stage.

Ruth, who was the designated GC rider, finished third in the Stage 1, setting herself up well for the rest of the tour. In the remaining stages all the girls worked hard to try and move Ruth up on GC. The 18 second time gap that Grace Verbeke from Lotto-Belisol gained on Stage 1 proved too difficult to close, however Ruth was able to gain enough time bonuses in intermediate sprints to jump over the Russian rider Alexandra Burchenkova and move into second overall, a position she held until the end of the tour.

I was glad to be able to help position Ruth and give her a wheel to follow coming into these sprints so as to give her the best possible opportunity to gain time over the riders sitting only seconds in front of and behind her in general classification.

On our way to second overall the whole team seemed to get a chance to show what they were made of. On the second stage, Shara, chasing attacks to protect Ruth’s general classification place found herself in a break and claimed second in an intermediate sprint. Shara being better known for her hill climbing and not necessarily her sprinting received a text message from the Australian coach ‘Shara, a sprinter?’

Miffy Galloway was forever present at the front of the bunch, jumping on anything that moved. Miffy ensured that Australia was always well represented. She showed that the nervousness she may have once had about big bunches, fast speeds and narrow roads are all but a distant memory.

Kendelle Hodges, at only 17 years old and not even in the senior ranks was the youngest rider in the race. Kendelle while finishing respectably in each stage improved each day and showed she has a huge future in cycling. She had a successful crossover to not only European but also senior racing. On the third day of the tour Kendelle was challenging for the ‘Aussie Cup’ for best positioned throughout the race and found herself covering numerous breaks, no small feat for a girl who isn’t even senior yet.

The ‘Aussie Cup’, while being a complete fabrication by Nico, our charismatic mechanic, was a competition between all Australian riders in the race and could be awarded for anything from most embarrassing crash to best placed.

Tiffany’s convincing Stage 3 win from a breakaway of five and her tireless and selfless effort throughout the entire tour to help her team-mates showed why she is such a valued member of the American professional team Colavita and the Australian team. Her amazing lead out effort for me in Stage 2 where I claimed second was a sight to behold. After having chased for much of the race to protect Ruth’s general classification position, Tiff again made her way to the front to help me in the lead up to the final sprint. With 3ks to go Tiff was on the front driving it to give me the best possible chance in the sprint. A phenomenal rider and an awesome team player, Tiffany is definitely an Australian cyclist to watch.

And me, after claiming a few sprint points in intermediate sprints and finishing second in Stage 2 the team thought I might be able to have a crack at the green (sprinters) jersey. However, Rochelle Gilmore proved too strong and things were quickly reassessed. My role changed to help position Ruth and also attempt to lead her out for the intermediate sprints which carried valuable bonus seconds. Since the riders around her on GC were 3 seconds ahead, and 1 second behind and Ruth was able to gain more than the 3 seconds needed to move herself into second overall through bonus seconds and small gaps at the finish I’d like to think I did my job well.

The whole tour was incredibly enjoyable, from the people I shared it with, (the Aussie girls and staff, parents and sister), to the success of the team it was a great way to finish off my stint in the green and gold. I can only hope that there are many more opportunities for me to pull those stripes over my shoulders and race with these girls, some of the most talented athletes Australia has to offer.

For now, I’m back to Belgium to race for the Moving Ladies team. It was sad to say goodbye to the girls (who have been good company and excellent training partners for the last month) and my family (who were some of the best groupies one can hope for while on tour) but I’m looking forward to some more Dutch racing and trading the gelati for stroopwafles.

'Flat, like pizza flat'

My legs found themselves back where they belong this past Saturday, on the flat and in the wind. Strangely enough this wasn’t in the land of windmills and wooden shoes, rather, still in the country where clothing, speed limits and indicators are all optional.

The Cento Carnival UCI 1.2 category race was my second race with the Australian team during my month long stint in Italy, and as alluded to was probably the flattest race Italy has ever seen. After my demoralising and draining experience of the Giro I was left singing ‘Hallelujah’.

I was obviously excited to finally do a flat race after what seemed like an eternity since my last Dutch race. I was also excited because I was being given the opportunity to race with and ride for one of the best female road sprinters in the world, Rochelle Gilmore.

Emma Mackie and Rochelle who both ride for the women’s UCI team Lotto-Belisol Ladies joined Tiffany Cromwell, Miffy Galloway, Shara Gillow and I in the race.

Quite often professional riders will ride as guest riders in their national teams when their UCI team is not doing a race. It serves as a great opportunity for girls like myself and Miffy, (who are eager to learn as much as possible about the European peloton, teams and racing) to pick their brains and race with some of the best riders racing, truly an invaluable experience.

Three laps into the eleven lap, 110 km race Emma found herself in a break of 6 riders. With most of the bigger teams represented the break quickly gained an advantage of over 2 minutes. But the Olympic and World Champion, Nicole Cook and her team (Vision1) along with the Italian team Selle Italia Menikini didn’t see the race playing out that way and the break was slowly dragged back with under 10 km to go.

The last 10 km of the race were possibly the fastest I have ever ridden. Safi, the Italian team of Georgia Bronzini, the current world point score champion and one of the world’s best female road sprinters, were clearly on a mission as they controlled the front of the peloton driving the pace.

As I had been given the job of leading out Rochelle I tried to slot myself into the Safi train, knowing that on my own I couldn’t possibly maintain the speed that the Safi train was travelling at for more than a couple of hundred meters.

Sitting fourth wheel with a little over one km to go I was optimistically thinking, I might actually get the lead out right! Unfortunately on the final right hand corner coming into the line I was sandwiched between two Safi riders and with nowhere for me to go but backwards Rochelle was forced to accelerate past me coming out of the corner and I was left to watch the sprint unfold in front of me.

Rochelle finished second behind Bronzini, the team was happy with that result but I was left thinking if only I could have done more for her and the team. My lead out skills aren’t quite up to the standard of Mark Renshaw just yet, but practice makes perfect right? Hopefully I’ll get the chance to lead out Rochelle or another top sprinter in the near future. For now maybe I should give Mark a ring and see if he’s giving any classes?

Now for the women's Giro...

After being in Europe a little under a week I was asked, what races in Europe, if given the opportunity, would I most like to race? I answered, the Women’s Giro of course, and some of the world cups. I thought it was a possibility that I would one day get to race the Giro, at least when I had been in Europe for more than three months. I said to myself, in two or three years maybe I’ll get that opportunity.

Just a few months after being asked that question I found myself donning the Australian colours for the second time and taking the start line of one of the biggest races on the women’s racing calendar. Seven other fellow Australian female cyclists also pulled those green and gold stripes over their shoulders and took to the start line of the Giro Donne or the Women's Tour of Italy. Two of these girls, Lauren Kitchen and Miffy Galloway had progressed with me through the junior ranks and it was great to share the experience with both girls.

Amber Halliday (current Amy Gillett scholarship holder and a team mate in China), Carlee Taylor (current AIS scholarship holder and former Amy Gillett scholarship holder), Belinda Goss (current AIS scholarship holder and medalist at this years Track World Championships), Shara Gillow (Queensland Academy of Sport scholarship holder) and Tiffany Cromwell (current AIS scholarship holder and member of the American professional team, Colivata) made up the remainder of the Australian team.

With an average age of 21, the squad was one of the youngest and most inexperienced teams competing in this years Giro which was to be a ten day tour, with one 2.5 kilometre prologue, one 13 kilometre time trial and eight road stages. The majority of the road stages were unfortunately plagued with 10 kilometre burgs to suit the Italian favourite and last years winner, Fabianna Luperini.

Despite having been advised that the blogging of my Giro exploits should be limited to ‘I refuse to acknowledge the Giro’ and ‘Moving on from my Giro experience…’ I will try and provide you with a bit more insight into what it is like to race one of the hardest, and longest professional Women’s stage races on the calendar.

Far removed from the mass of media, fenced off areas, VIP sections, crazed fans and podium girls of the men’s Giro d’Italia, the women's Giro d'Italia instead has a surprisingly casual atmosphere surrounding it. This was especially surprising for a race in Italy, where passion and drama come second only to tans.

Friends and family make up the majority of the fans (thanks Mum, Dad and Chelsea) and the fenced off areas amount to a single yellow tent where teams congregate before signing on before each day’s stage, a tent that is far from impregnable. Team vans are parked in fields sans toilettes where bushes became the next best option.

Pasta with tomato paste sauce became our staple diet for the 10 days. Luckily for us our amazing swannie, Beth, has a knack for knowing exactly what cyclists need, practice makes perfect. Tasty sandwiches and a mind-blowing breakfast box, full with fruit bread, fruit, nutella, and scores of cereal helped keep us sane and our stomachs full.

The course for this years Giro was incredibly challenging and definitely something I wasn’t mentally, or physically prepared for. I had raced against many of the world’s top riders, such as Ina-Yoko Tuetenburg, Kirsten Wild and Marianne Vos, but never over 10 days and never over terrain presented by this years Giro.

The 2008 Giro d'Italia Femminile was a similar format to this years, however, the terrain was very different. In 2008 four of the seven road stages finished in mass bunch sprints. In 2009, only two stages were gruppo compacto at the end, even better, only one of them was actually raced by the entire peloton as many assessed the last stage’s course to be too dangerous to race on and chose to effectively neutralise the race.

Belinda Goss and I went into the Giro as the team sprinters, our job on the stages where a sprint was not likely was to look after all the girls by helping them with food, water and positioning. Carlee Taylor and Tiffany Cromwell had been singled out us the teams General Classification riders while Lauren Kitchen, Amber Halliday, Shara Gillow and Miffy Galloway were given the jobs of looking after both Tiff and Carlee to the best of their ability throughout the entire tour.

The 2.5 kilometre prologue was done and dusted for all of us in just over 3 minutes, Tiffany posted an impressive time and went into the first road stage in third position in the Young Rider classification.

Unlike 2008, there was to be no easing into the tour with a few flat stages, rather we were thrown straight onto the mountainous terrain which Italy is so well known for. I quickly found myself for the first, but definitely not the last time, in the ‘Bus’, ‘Laughing group’, or the ‘Grupetto’. This is the group that forms at the back of the bike race, where dropped riders work together to make sure they finish within the time limit for the days stage.

My first real chance to do my job as the team sprinter came on stage 4. The stage, which was a circuit course ridden four times, while not completely flat with a 7 kilometre drag, was one suited to the sprinters. I went into the stage eager to do what I do best, sprint.

Throughout the race I felt strong and positioned myself well. A puncture on the second lap threatened to curtail my race aspirations, but the team was quick to come to my aid with Amber Halliday immediately stopping with me to swap wheels and Lauren Kitchen helping me make my way back to the peloton.

Within 5 kilometres we were all back in the race and the flashbacks to my experience in the third stage of the Tour of Chongming Island were pushed to the back of my mind.

Despite the quick recovery from the puncture it was not to be my stage. A sharp left hand corner on the descent 10 kilometres from the finish proved to be my undoing. Taking the corner too fast my front wheel slipped out from under me and I came crashing down, signalling an abrupt end to my hopes of pulling out a result for the Australia team.

I made my way to the finish with the chasing group, never making contact with the front bunch again. The stage was won convincingly by Ina Tuetenburg.

After a few more visits to the Grupetto I was eventually forced to abandon the tour when I found myself isolated and at the back of the race. This marked the end of my first ever Giro d'Italia Femminile, seven days and 485 kilometres into my first major European tour.

Being pulled from the race was truly devastating, I can now fully sympathise with those riders struggling through this years Tour de France but not quite making it to Paris. Next year, hopefully I’ll be back, stronger and better prepared.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t the last of the Australian girls to find the Giro over before the last stage. Miffy, suffering from chronic back pain didn’t start the 7th stage and Belinda, while starting the 7th stage wasn’t able to finish due to continuing pain in her arm after a crash in the United States a few weeks before.

The rest of the girls continued on with the tour doing Australia proud. Tiff finished third overall in the young rider classification and Amber began to find her feet in the European peloton with some strong finishes towards the end of the tour such as her 13th place in the eighth stage. Lauren, Carlee and Shara continued to work for the team doing their jobs well.

The Giro was, although incredibly hard and emotionally draining, a great experience. It was great to ride again in the Australian colours in such an awesome team. Martin Barras ran a very well organised and professional team which I felt privileged to be a part of. It was great to share the experience with girls like Lauren, Miffy and Carlee, girls who I’ve grown up and competed with for years.

Sprinting with the best

The next month ushers in a full program of racing and training with the Australian National squad. The races will be some of the biggest and hardest I have ridden and I’m itching to race the Giro, Cento and Tour de Limousin.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. The weekend past saw me race the RaboSter "Zeeuwsche Eilanden", a 2.2 UCI category, three day stage race held in Zeeland on the Dutch coast. Consisting of a 7km Prologue, and two typical Dutch road stages, the tour drew an impressive field.

With over two hundred girls and seven UCI teams taking the line, including Columbia, Nurnberger and Lotto-Belisol the races were bound to be hard. The roaring winds of the Netherlands combined with technical courses and enormous bunches ensure this is generally the case.

As always, I went into the three day race eager to get the adrenalin and heart pumping, but this time I was slightly more excited. The quality field included three of the world’s best female sprinters; Ina-Yoko Tuetenberg (Columbia), Suzanne de Goede (Nurnberger), and Rochelle Gilmore (Lotto-Belisol). I was excited to be able to race with them.

If travelling to Europe has changed anything about me at all it would be my desire. Racing week in, week out against the best riders in the world has only intensified my desire to be one of the best in the world. Every time I take the start line in Europe I find myself determined to prove myself. Racing against riders like Teutenberg and de Goede adds that extra incentive to do well.

Never having been known for my time-trialling abilities I finished a disappointing 131st in the opening 7 km Prologue, as much as I could make excuses and say I was at a disadvantage because I didn’t have any of the specialist equipment, the reality is that it was a dismal result and clearly an area I will have to work on in the future.

I went into Stage Two with all General Classification hopes dashed and with nothing to lose and everything to gain. The importance of being at the front was made obvious when the bunch splintered into three groups at around the 50 kilometre mark. The other three members of my team who had taken the start line that morning, Emma Trott, Mirthe Wagenaar and Sarah Cramoysan all found themselves in the chasing bunches. I had positioned myself well throughout the race so was still at the pointy end of the race with 20km to go.

Flexpoint, a Dutch based UCI team who are always very aggressive launched a few attacks but were reeled in by the Columbia team each time. Columbia clearly favoured their chances in a bunch finish, with sprinter Ina-Yoko Tuetenberg, arguably the best female sprinter in the world.

With 10 kilometres to go I found myself fighting for Teutenberg’s wheel. Coming into the last right hand corner with 300 metres to go there was no clear lead out train happening. Riders from Leontien, Lotto-Belisol, Nurnberger, Flexpoint and Columbia were spread across the road.

With about 200metres to go there was a near fall involving two girls, just in front of Teutenberg and I. Ina went one way and I went the other as the sprint for the line opened up. Suzanne de Goede who been in front of excitement crossed the line for a convincing win with Ina-Yoko a few bike lengths behind her. I crossed the line narrowly taking third from Loes Gunnewijk ( Flexpoint).

I was happy with the result and keen to repeat or better the performance in stage three but that was not to be. The third stage of the tour is renowned for its difficulty and often sees only thirty or so of the massive field finish. Going into the stage I had been told by a friend about last years race where only 24 girls had finished, she described the stage as the ‘hardest race of the year’- coming from an experienced racer this was a warning to be heeded.

The course which included two 7 kilometre bridges and a 6 kilometre dike, a form of road which sits above the land dividing the water from the land, to be ridden three times ensured the bunch was constantly spread single file battling the ferocious winds which the province of Zeeland turned on for us.

Coming into the race I thought I knew when to be at the front, admittedly in Dutch races, or any race in Europe really, you should always be at the front but constantly fighting to hold your position takes its toll. Crossing of the two bridges were obvious danger points and I was so focussed on these bridges that I’d neglected to think about the dike just before the finish line.

Coming onto the dike for the first of three times I was poorly positioned and found myself too far back when the pressure went down. The bunch splintered into three groups and I found myself in the third, with all the race favourites in the front bunch I knew where I had to be and so I attacked out of the bunch after the dike trying to close the gap.

With 30 kilometres to go the race came back together but I had expended a lot of energy chasing and wasn’t feeling too crash hot. With about 15 kilometres to go five girls made a break, all of the major teams bar Nurnberger were represented in the break. With no one chasing, the break rode away from the bunch. The placegetters came from this bunch, Nikki Harris a former Moving Ladies teammate, who signed with Flexpoint mid season, took second and I cruised to the line 35seconds behind first place.

It was a great tour and I was pleased to come out with a stage podium finish in a field of such quality. Hopefully I’ll be back next year with a stronger time trial and more experience, I might even have a crack at the young rider classification!

But now I’m back in Italy and have joined up with the Australian team headed by Martin Barras. It has been great to meet up with the all the girls who are racing with me in the Giro, (and to hear the Aussie accent again!). I can’t wait to pull the green and gold jersey over my shoulders and ride as part of an Australian team!