They say practice makes perfect and I was hoping that last years ‘practice’ at the 3 Ring Circus would put me a step higher on the podium this time around so I could get the win! After getting back from Europe, I needed a break to unwind and rest up. With three weeks off and one week back training, I might not have been the fittest but I was still ready to race. The Circus has three rings. Bet you didn’t see that coming! First, was an initial Blue Ring of dirt road, with some small climbs to break up the field. Next, the Red Ring was predominantly single track with some excursions upwards on some fire roads and small double track. Finally, the Yellow ring was almost completely dirt roads with some solid climbs including ‘halfway hill’, which features in the Highland Fling later in the year.
The field was a little more top heavy this time, with a few more big hitters looking for some winter racing. I wanted to stick to my plan from last year and stay top 3 until the action started. The initial blue loop went well, riding in a good position, and trying to go as fast as possible while doing as little as possible. Things got a bit cozy between me and Cannondale’s Andrew Hall as we entered the first descent of the red loop. I was on his right as we made a left turn; unfortunately, I was the only one turning left because Andrew wanted to go straight on! Our break up was clean though with both of us going our separate ways. Shaun Lewis and Jack Lavis had snuck up the inside and now led. They took it a bit wide through one of the corners though and looked like a synchronized team as they drifted around the outside with legs out. I kept it on the racing line and scooted up the inside to take the lead! Only 44km to go! There was a bit of conjecture about whether or not the feared ‘Wall’ would be included in this year’s race. As we hit the first climb, a part of me was hoping it wasn’t! It didn’t thankfully, but turned onto some new single track instead. Anthony Shippard took up pace-making duties and I was happy sitting second wheel knowing Anthony has had some time on the course. My Fox forks were off being serviced for the past week and a bit, so the training that I had done was all on my road bike. That meant it had been 5 weeks off the mountain bike! It was showing as the single track continued. I still knew how to ride and wasn’t making mistakes but I was lacking flow. I was thinking a lot about what I was doing, and was getting tired. Shaun Lewis went to the front on the next section and Jack Lavis was next to make a move to sit 2nd behind Shaun. Surges came and went but I was constantly leaving small gaps and needing to close them. Towards the end of the red loop, Jack and Shaun got a gap, moving clear till the base of the climb. Halfway up, our group made contact with Shaun but Jack had moved clear. With a lot of fire road to come, we probably were a bit complacent and let Jack get a solid gap. I started cramping as we hit the first few climbs and was happy to follow wheels (all I could do was follow wheels!) On the climb, before ‘halfway hill’, I had to drop off the pace of Ed McDonald, Anthony and Shaun. Guy Frail was with me and accelerated past as we crested the top. I moved clear as we hit the descent to ‘hallway hill’. By the bottom of the hill, I could see the group again: a quarter of the way up, I made contact and pushed it to hold Shaun Lewis’s wheel. Over the top, these three guys got a few bike lengths. And for the next few climbs, I pushed as hard as I could to close the gap back again. The three of them were swapping off now and kept looking back to see the gap. I held it for the next couple of kilometres, but as we crested the last hill my left calf cramped and I almost fell off. Luckily I leaned to the right and could unclip. Once the calf was functioning again, I took off slowly and spun a light gear to relax everything. I could see Guy Frail and Brad Morton working together behind me as we hit the long straight road back to the event centre. I pushed hard, getting as aero as possible, to at least hold the gap. Halfway along, two riders raced onto the road from the right. Unfortunately, they had taken a wrong turn and missed the top half of the course. It did give me a good carrot to chase though. I was happy crossing the line 5th overall and 3rd Open.
It was another tactical race, with Jack Lavis playing the right card at the right time and obviously backing it up with strong legs. Thankfully, my gear made up what I was lacking with time off the bike. With my Maxxis combo of an Ardent Race up the front and an Ikon on the rear hooking up beautifully. I’m looking forward to getting some more time on my beloved Bianchi Methanol and finding some flow!
