Bowditch eighth in country
ISLAND GAMES cycling star Ann Bowditch produced another superb performance as she battled to eighth place against some of Britain's fastest women at the National Circuit Championships. in Middleton, Northamptonshire.
ISLAND GAMES cycling star Ann Bowditch produced another superb performance as she battled to eighth place against some of Britain's fastest women at the National Circuit Championships. in Middleton, Northamptonshire. This event is a time-trial raced over two laps of a nine-mile course taking in a number of major climbs, the first of which was a matter of metres from the start and warranted a quick change down in gear to the small ?39? chainring.
The course also including the feared 'Devil's Staircase', a steep, stepped rise which seems never-ending.
'You think you have reached the summit of the climb as you approach the third step, but in fact you cannot see the top of the climb until you are over the third step and you then realise you have a further level to climb,' said the 2003 Total CI Sports Personality of the Year.
Riders were greeted by the hottest weekend of the year, with temperatures reaching 28 degrees.
Bowditch had ridden a lap of the course the previous day following a three-and-a-half-hour drive to Northamptonshire and thought it was one of the toughest she had ever ridden.
'This is harder than the course used in the 2002 Commonwealth Games, as there were few areas to recover from the climbs,' said the pocket-sized racer.
Bowditch had her work cut out as the event was also a qualifying race for the World Championships held later this year.
This meant a very strong field including Emma Davis, who recently performed at the Athens Olympics.
Bowditch powered through the first of her two laps looking fast and smooth.
The start/finish line was at the top of a half-mile drag, meaning pacing tactics were crucial.
On her second lap she was clearly feeling the heat, but dug in to finish the last hilly 10 miles in a little over 26 minutes for a total time of 49.04 and a very respectable top-10 placing.
The event was won by Francis Newstead, a professional rider who has raced for Britain on a number of occasions.
The following day Bowditch tested herself against the clock once more in the Kettering Cycling Club's 10-mile time trial.
The event took place at a much cooler time of day, with Bowditch off just after 8am.
On a course slightly less technical than the previous day's and a straight out-and-back event, this was still a stern test as many of the riders had tired legs from competing in the previous day's championship.
This is Bowditch's favoured distance and after a fast start she motored past two of her male rivals to finish as fastest woman in a time of 24.18 which is her second-fastest ever.
Bowditch now changes her focus to training for the national hillclimb championships at the end of October. This will be a first for her as she is keen to test her abilities against the country's best climbers.
