Tour Down Under: Deborah Paine - bmwcycling
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15 Jan Tour Down Under: Deborah Paine

Posted at 19:40h in Featured, Race Reports, Racing by

Day 1 was as expected – a predictable race, very controlled, definitely one for the sprinters. Little ripper Niamh took it to the big dogs, pulling out an impressive 9th place.

We all knew Day 2 was going to be tough. For me personally, I wanted to take a different approach to the race… somehow throw a spanner in the works to change the dynamics of a race that tends to just be centered around the final climb. However, I didn’t expect to get away so early…after punching over the first climb, I turned to see only Rebecca Wiasak on my wheel. With over 80km still to go, it was definitely a gamble…but I was up for it.

In the Break – Photo Kirsty Baxter

I had nothing to lose really. We worked well together and gradually kept gaining time on the peloton, reaching a gap of 4minutes before the big dogs decided it was time to chase hard, catching us 7km out.

Got There – Photo Kirsty Baxter

Totally spent, I still have no idea how I made it to the finish line with temperatures reaching 40C.

Day 3 was an exciting, lumpy course. Plenty of attacks were made as teams took their chances with a wild card. However, everything was quickly shut down. Just as the race started to blow apart, a marshall error sent us all the wrong way and the race was neutralised, making the final 10km full gas and destroying any chance of a break. Mitchelton-Scott was extremely dominant, successful in protecting Spratty and also taking the stage win. Us little NZers all finished strong, mainly in the front bunch.

Day 4 was a matter of survival for me personally. The day that requires the most mental strength as the body is completely spent after a tough few days of racing. I battled hard to position myself near our pocket rocket, knowing that we needed to protect her 2nd place position in the U23 category.

As I look back on the week, I am excited. Excited for what this year has in store. Excited to have the opportunity to race overseas with MGH, continuing to learn, develop and do what I love.

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