Race Report: SCODY Racing at the QRTS

Queensland road team series (QRTS), A race of the best cyclists within the state with the motive to win the overall team prize at the end of 4 rounds and the learning that comes with racing. The 2019 team consisting of U19 developing females: Brooke Carnes, Eliza Dowell, Emma Green, Franky Sewell, Liliana McLennan and Stephanie Corset alongside our director of sports Hayley Jones. The team have all grown up through the junior ranks, with us all now gaining experience in the senior women’s field. Round one kicked off last weekend in Moreton Bay, with two road races and a time trial all in the space of two days

Stage one greeted us with a very cold and early morning start in Elimbah. We pulled on our new team kits, eager for our team debut. Our embarrassing parents all got some quick pictures, comparing our ear to ear smiles with pictures of us beginning our junior road races (some things never change).

The 61.8km road race consisted of four laps around the picturesque surroundings of the state forest and strawberry farms. The course profile suggested a quick, fast race, consisting of numerous sprint and QOM checkpoints.

Our pre-race chat began. Our DS Hayley Jones set us with an ambitious goal: to take home every leaders jersey, setting out clear steps to achieve this goal. I (Brooke) acted to help Stephanie into the sprint leader’s jersey, whilst Liliana acted to help Franky into the QOM jersey. After a quick tactics talk and re-pinning of numbers from Louise Jones, we were on our way.

As planned, the race was quick, with team’s working strongly to get their chosen rider into the sprint and QOM classifications respectively. SCODY RACING acted at the front of the bunch ensuring the pace remained quick.

At the end of stage one, we had 3 top 10 finishes, and reached ¼ of our goal with Stephanie Corset gaining the sprint jersey, alongside Franky finishing second in the QOM classification.

The time trial wasn’t as simple as Hayley, the best team manager out explained. Rather than an uphill tailwind on the way out and the downhill headwind on the way back, I faced with what felt never-ending hills and wind smacking my face. And if things couldn’t get much worse I (Liliana) had to manage a loose saddle for almost the whole 21km whilst averaging just under 38 km/hr. Though I had bad luck throughout the race, I still finished 7th and enjoyed the course, atmosphere and most importantly, the racing. With another three in the top 10, it was into the final stage where Franky was 5 seconds off the u23 jersey.

Stage three, what a hoot! A challenging 68km road course - climbing up Campbell’s pocket and finishing at the top of Mount Mee, if you want to become a mountain goat look no further! Overall we rode very well as a team, as an individual, I (Franky) felt strong and thought I was ready for the killer of a climb lasting the final 11km of the race. We endured chilly weather, winds and rain making the race all that much harder. Throughout the race, there wasn’t too much action, except for when we turned it on to get Stephanie some more sprint points, which she did successfully. 11km to go meant it was about to get real, we hit the final climb! Wet roads meant getting out of the saddle was not an option as your wheels would slip. A section of the climb was a dirt road, here I enlightened myself as to why I’m not a mountain biker! All this didn’t stop Fellow Gold Coast rider Bree Wilson (Women's Cycling project team) from putting the pedal to the metal and absolutely smashing it up the climb. Not too far behind Bree we finished! Chuffed with our results individually and as a team, great job girls! And I managed to ride myself from 2nd U23 to taking the lead and Jersey.

After the weekend SCODY Racing P/b Galibier Partners are holding the sprint jersey, u23 jersey and are second team overall, Keep up with us for the next few months to see how it all goes