Today was an early start, with the Men’s race scheduled for an 8.30am roll out. The 97km stage consisted of 14 laps of a circuit through the embassy district of Yarralumba before a jaunt across the Kings Avenue Bridge and a finish atop Black Mountain. The boys rode to the start so we drove down early to get the car prepared for convoy duties. We hadn’t been given our team car sticker yesterday, so we had to get that from the Commissaires and decorate the car. After a few attempts to get the sticker on straight and professional I gave up and accepted a little bit hanging over the edge of the screen 🙂 Based on our results yesterday we’d been allocated position 12 of 19 in the convoy, so there were stickers to indicate that too.
The morning had seemed quite chilly, but by the time the race started the sun was out and it had warmed up, so gilets got dumped before the flag waved for the start. The first third of the lap was flat with a hotdog turn, the middle third was rolling hills up to a KOM point and then final third was downhill, through a final roundabout and into the sprint line. The pace was on from the start with riders trying to get a breakaway established, but nothing stuck. Being at position 12 we only saw what was happening at the hotdog turn about 800m into the lap, so we were pleasantly surprised when we approached the turn and could see Jesse on the opposite side of the road, going solo off the front of the peloton. He managed to stay away for long enough to grab some sprint points, but the rest of the bunch shut it down shortly after that.
DS duties during the race amount to listening to race radio, hoping they don’t announce that one of your riders has a puncture. There were a handful of riders either getting punctures or getting dropped off the back of the bunch, so we also had to keep our eyes peeled for any riders coming back up through the convoy and either give them a short tow or get out of their way, depending on the situation. We also had to alert the cars in front of riders coming through by beeping the horn and deal with other team cars passing us either to get to a rider requiring a wheel change, returning to their spot in the convoy having looked after their rider or, in one case, towing back a rider who’d disappeared out the back – the classic sticky bottle!! All while accelerating and decelerating to keep up with the cars in front, who in turn are at the mercy of whatever speed the peloton decides to ride. You’ve got to have your wits about you at all times!
Dan dropped me off at the KOM point on Lap 10 so I could take a few photos of the peloton on the following laps, then picked me up again on Lap 12. By this stage Moosh was struggling a bit on the climb and the next time around he got dropped halfway up, but fought hard to go over the top still in the convoy. He got in behind our team car and got a short tow to the downhill section where he went around us and continued making his way back to the bunch. Unfortunately, at the final roundabout he got clipped by one of the other team cars and hit the deck hard. I saw it happen from our position and told Dan, “shit, Moosh is hit! Moosh is hit!” We pulled in behind the accident and ran to check on him, lying on his side and in quite a bit of pain.
Dan’s the physio and much better qualified than me to deal with accidents, so I turned traffic cop, waving the remaining cars in the convoy through until the race ambulance showed up. With the paramedic and Dan looking after Moosh, it fell to me to collect his bike, helmet etc. give it the once over and place it in the car, then stand around a bit uselessly hoping for the best. Putting my years of watching the Tour to good use, I recalled the heartlessness professionalism of some photographers and made sure to get some shots and do a quick piece to video in case Media Director Miller could use it in the day’s news report! After some thorough checks the paramedic was happy that Moosh didn’t need a hospital trip and could go home with us in the car.
The race was over by this stage, so we drove to the top of Black Mountain to meet the guys and see how things had gone. Chris had been hoping for a decent result up Black Mountain, but the pace was super fast into the final, dodgy right-hander before the climb started and he ended up out of position, finishing in a bunch 1:30 down on the stage winner.
The guys rode back to the house as a warm-down and we drove back with Moosh. Once home Dan did a few more checks on Moosh’s hip and the decision was made to go to hospital to get it scanned as a precautionary measure, so they headed off with Pete to spend a few hours waiting in the emergency department. Myself, Jesse and Chris drove back into town get some lunch and then watch Ben and Grechy compete in the Open A race which was on the same course as the NRS race that morning, without the finish on Black Mountain. Both looked strong and Ben managed to get 9th in the sprint finish.
By this stage Moosh was back from hospital and had been given the all-clear – no hip fracture. Good news! With everyone back at the house and content to chill for a while, I headed off to catch up with a mate who lives in Canberra for a couple of hours. With the boys later deciding that pizza was the chosen dinner option, remaining DS duties for the day amounted to buying some more groceries to ensure we had food for breakfast, filling the car’s petrol tank for tomorrow’s stage and bringing home some well-deserved beer. Having one of your riders being hit by a car on Day 2 as a DS wasn’t ideal!
