Someone forgot to read the script!!!

Someone forgot to read the script and when I say someone, I mean EVERYONE else!!!!-:)

I have parcipated in this race for the last couple of years with the same script. We cruised to the bottom of Wainui Hill, the odd Pantani attcked the bunch going up while the rest of us groveled to the summit.  As it is  a slight downhill to the coast,  those that got dropped would work together, catch the riders out in front and then we all worked together back up the valley into the head wind.  Once we got to the rubbish tip enterance the odd attack would start but the real contenders wouldn't start sprinting until leaving the dip with 100-200 metres to the finish line.  Sounds like quite a pleasent race, doesn't it?

(In the Balfour Pennington Series, the bunches are handicapped with Scratch being the fastest and Break four being the slowest.  The powers to be put me in Break two).

This year 'that script' was thrown out the window on the start line! All it took was for one person to jump on the "Go" and the bunch was all fired up, dropping people before the start of the hill.  For me, I was able to hang on along the flat and limit the damage going up Wainui Hill. A gap of 50m opened up quickly which slowly became 100m.  Any hope I had of rejoining the front bunch before the top was dashed about 3/4 of the way up on one of the steeper corners.  I tried to bridge the gap but my legs had nothing in them, leaving me to look around and join forces with three others.  We worked well together down Coast Rd closing in on a few riders just ahead of us.  WOOOSH, about half way down, Break 1 caught us, we worked  with them, caught Break 3 just before the turn around.  A few kiometers later we caught Break 4.  I never saw what happened at the front as I was tucked in neatly near the back of about 40-60 riders.  The pace suggested that we were riding into a very strong head wind.

It was a good day out, my first raod race in about 8 weeks, didn't crack or crash and I was able to bank a 4 hour ride.