Gaby Book 17 - Seasons

It really was weird being at the start mob handed. Our fellow competitors seemed quite bemused by the sea of light blue jerseys that dominated the front of the bunch as we were presented to the Badische crowd Sunday morning. Of course we aren’t all wearing blue, as leader of the Jungere League I have an interesting jersey that’s mostly white with the red, yellow and black of Germany in a diagonal stripe. I’m leader of the girls competition as well but I can’t wear both jerseys so Roni gets to wear the er pink jersey of leading girl.

And lets face it, it clashes with my hair! Just to help with the confusion, Gret instigated a braiding session after breakfast. five girls in the same shirts and hair style might just add to the confusion, of course you can’t hide in a pink jersey or with my hair but Ron and I joined in for solidarity – and lets face it its only boys we are trying to kid.

Its a big field today too, riders from the south of Germany that rarely see further north as well as interlopers from both Switzerland and France. Last year I spent my time trying to look like, well a boy, this year its no longer a requirement, I’m on the start sheet as Gabrielle Bond. Not that I don’t look for Andrew Bond but I'm not going to find him this year am I?

Having ridden in Switzerland and Denmark last year Laura has some experience of the big field but Kristen – well back in blighty the fields are restricted to as little as forty riders so her current nervous looks were well founded.

“Don’t worry, it won’t be this big for long.”
“No, I'll be out the back.”
“Talk rot Kris, you’re better than a lot of these jokers.”
“You’ll be alright,” Mand added, “Mr B is brilliant at nailing how races will go, we follow his plan and we get a result.”

In theory I internalised. There are some big brutes here today, we won’t be winning from going head to head but from a degree of subterfuge – but that’s bike racing.

The Burgermeisterin finished extolling the virtues of her town, we got our talking to by the Chief Commisaire then without further ado we were waved off. As usual it was neutral until we exited the town, Tali, Kristen and Mand took a flyer, soon being joined by about a dozen others willing to chance their luck with over 140km left. By the time we started the long rolling climb onto the High Road they were steadily taking time out of the main peloton.

Confusing for those in the bunch was the apparent lack of concern from Team Apollinaris. If you remember Hamburg we ran a similar tactic there, the sharper cards in the peloton might recall the outcome in Holstein but we were banking on a big lump of them not picking up on it

“So Bond, what’s with the hair?”
It was Innerthausen who’d slid alongside me.
“Well as I'm not wearing the pink jersey I thought I should at least make an effort to show I'm the girls leader too.”
“Girls,” he snorted, “what are you guys up to?”
“Nothing,” I innocently replied.
“How come there are so many of you today?”
“Its in the contract, we have to have six in Apollinaris jerseys.”

He seemed to contemplate my reply before the flow of the peloton moved him away.

“What did he want man?” my guard Josh asked.
“Fishing,” I told him.
“That Martin kids hiding behind us.”
“Best keep an eye on him, I'm sure that Pellini lad from Switzerland’s here too.”
“He could certainly be trouble,” Josh noted.

It always feels weird to be sat in the bunch essentially doing nothing when there are riders away up the road. Yeah I know chasing everything is just a sure way of wearing yourself out, it might work when you’re twelve but not when you’re our age when some riders at least are learning the tricks of the trade. Certainly everyone I would consider a threat was in this group.

We reached the Baiersbronn turn with no one making anything like a serious move, our troops however massed to the front – no point in risking a fall on the fast twisty descent. By the time it started to level off the race was stretched out over quite a distance, some of the nervier riders having caused splits and slowing more than necessary. Next lap the feed will be along here, close to last nights accommodation but this time through there was a chink in the status quo, Innerthausen tried his luck with a long, hard pull on the front.

Do we join in, close it down, sit tight? When Pellini joined the fray as we turned towards Freudenstadt it was taken out of our road captains hands. Josh isn’t daft and he set off in pursuit with yours truly sat tightly behind him, it wasn’t a surprise of course to find we had company. Not that they were keen to help any.

“Easy Josh!” I called out.

He flicked a quick glance behind and instantly reading the situation swung off and eased back. Our companions were thrown now, wasn’t it up to Apollinaris to do all the work? Not on your Nelly.
Our slowing was enough for those behind to close the gap a bit bringing Ron and co back into play.

“What?” she gasped coming up to me.
“No help, need to lose some and before they get too far up the road.”

The last thing we need is Innerthausen and Pellini to get to the front group without us. oh I know we have Tali, Kristen and Mand up front but if the lads get up there, well realistically only Tal really has any chance of answering any ensuing moves.

“Mob?”
I nodded.

We don’t return to central Freudenstadt until the finish this year, instead we bypass it on a lane through the valley, the climb into the town avoided until the finish. Ron organised the troops, Me and Josh would be last to go, Laura first. Flag waving and whistles alerted us to the turning off the main road and Laura took off on her not quite suicide mission.

Of course the rest of the team were ready but enough others weren’t when there was a reaction at the front. Gret was next up and as we came up onto Laz she took off like a scalded cat, her extra experience making her effort at least look more serious. The result was a definite rise in speed, she got to where the road starts to rise more steeply towards the main road before being reeled in.

Ron’s turn had the remaining peloton strung out nicely, the gap to the escapees was maybe forty five seconds, visible still on the wide sweeping curves. I checked around, both our previous rabbits had managed to hang onto the shirt tails of the now much smaller bunch, well done Laura. Ron was still time trialling, head down giving it some when Josh made his effort, not all out but even I had to really turn on the juice to follow.

The idea isn’t to blow our riders out but to get some reaction from the other riders with us, the lesson seemed to have be learnt as when Josh eased off slightly a couple of lads did go through to spell him. I said its a rolling climb before, it is but stretched over best part of ten K, along the ridge it bobbles along and it was only there that we started to make some headway.

But not enough, okay its only half distance but it’ll be difficult to shut things down on the last lap from this distance. The escapees made the turn ahead of us, still a good thirty seconds ahead of our chase. Oh well, nothing for it.

I did one of my out braking manoeuvres on the turn, hey I only weigh about forty five kilos, Josh is at least twenty K more there’s simply not as much of me to slow down. The result was a no effort lead of ten metres before we cleared the corner and its downhill now. I might not have gravity on my side but I'm still a dab hand at going downhill quickly, I snicked up a sprocket and let fly.

My lack of mass meant some big gear stuff on the straighter stretches but I made up a lot of road on the tighter turns, I was on Pellini’s wheel as we came out of the last hairpin. Of course then it was all about hanging on although clearly a lap of chasing the front group had taken some toll. The lead group popped into sight a couple of times on the straighter bits of descent but I reckon they still had a minute on us.

The feed was coming up and it didn’t need words to agree a temporary truce to collect our musettes. We reached the zone to find bodies on the road and helpers and officials everywhere.

“Forty five,” Caro advised as I grabbed my bag.

Clearly there had been a bit of a coming together in the feed zone and rather than forty odd seconds we immediately started passing riders. I spotted a light blue jersey, but whose? That was quickly answered as I recognised Tali’s distinctive riding style.
“Up!” I called to warn of our approach.

She glanced behind then prepared to slot onto us.
The truce was over, Super Mario and Innerthausen both keen to reach the front of the race. As a result Tali didn’t quite make it, our velocity just too high as we passed, damn. I considered the options and eased off a tad.

“What’re you up to?” a panting Tali asked as she drew up to me.
“Its advantage us, they can waste energy if they want. What happened back there?”
“Some idiot slowed right down for the feed, it was all brakes and bodies then.”
“You come off?”
“Nah but I had to stop, what's going on behind?”
“We broke it down some, I got away on the down.”

We made the turn onto the lane, the lads with about fifty metres on us.

“What about up front?” I queried.
“Six or seven, ours are doing okay.”
“Best go join ‘em then,” I suggested.

We regained the lads on the steeper bit up to the main road, the leading group now occupying the road that the lads held last time around. Although numerically stronger our two companions are much stronger, they were sure to try to dump me, us again – and as soon as they can. Some riders can’t help giving themselves away, Mario certainly couldn’t help telegraphing his intention as we joined the Hochstrasse.

I was on his wheel before he’d got clear, I could hear Innerthausen and Tali close behind but there was no thought of easing off. Pellini, I don’t think realised he had company for a good minute, the frustration in his body language when he realised was palpable. This attack‘ s been neutralized but how many more can we cope with and how will that affect the result.

Our return to sharing the pace gave me time to think a bit, thirty K, one downhill then the drag up to the finish, hmm?

“Anchor, five,” I mouthed to Tal who nodded in understanding.

Our companions were away last time so this might just work.

I had to stop pedalling, the bike was bouncing too much for comfort but I had clear road behind and the gap to the leaders was virtually zero. The brakes went on hard to scrub speed into another one eighty turn and then I was on Kristen’s wheel.

“Wotcha,” I grinned as I moved alongside her on the following straight.
“Where’d you come from?”
“Poof, and she was there,” I grinned, “need you and Mand to block when I go.”
“’Kay,” she agreed.
“Later,” I offered with a wink.

I caught my breath, everyone in this group looked bushed to be honest, its a wonder they’d lasted this long to be honest. Slipping forward I took my chance and accelerated hard out of the last tight corner and wanged it into the twelve. Its quite a gamble, there’s still over fifteen kilometres to the finish and lone breaks don’t have a good record of success.

For my part I was betting on Innerthausen and Pellini to not make use of the resources I was leaving them, okay so the three Apollinaris girls won’t be helping out but that still leaves five others who might.

I used all the road to maximise my speed and advantage as the road completed its drop into Baiersbronn, once or twice getting far too close to the lead car. A few people cheered me through the village, Caro, Sonja and Angela would be at the finish now. It was full on TT mode now as I swept onto the Freudenstadt road, swinging well wide so as to not lose momentum.

Five to go the board suggested, yeah, its all uphill and there's that sting up into the town. The comp agreed on the distance showing a steady fifty kph for almost two more kilometres before starting to erode a bit. I passed the ‘bypass’, three to go and an increasing gradient, keep it going Gab, you can do it.

Can I? Course I can, don’t be so daft girl. As the gradient started to bite I took a firmer grip on the hoods before dropping a sprocket, then another, my speed dropping quite swiftly. I got out of the saddle as I reached the hairpin, its not hugely steep but the surface isn’t the greatest which doesn’t help.

Don’t look, don’t look. I couldn’t help myself, glancing down through the trees to the road below, no one there, where are they? Sugar are they that close I missed them? I stood back up to get on top of the gear only sitting as the road levelled as trees were replaced by buildings.

My legs were by now leaden, inside the last kilo, come on! The road turned sharply to the left and I risked a glance behind, wish I hadn’t, a sizeable bunch was perhaps fifty metres behind. It was a slight incline but I'm not sure to whom the advantage fell, the ninety turn onto the finishing straight though was definitely to me.

Sprint? I left the saddle and engaged my last resources, the small crowd cheering me on or not, they’re gonna get me. Keep going.
“Gaby!”
“Go girl!”
“Keep going!”

The fog was descending, I'm still ahead, maybe I can still make it, don’t give up, races have been lost by doing just that this close. The PA was going potty, the crowd screaming – not that I could discern anything, my concentration focused 100% on the line. I'm gonna make it, I crossed the line and punched the air.

Maddy Bell © 01.11.16