World Gran Fondo 2023
Perth and Dundee Scotland
August 2023
Background:
I have been participating and racing the World Gran Fondo events since 2017 with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to the impacts of the pandemic
2017 - Albi, France
2018 - Varese, Italy
2019 - Poznan, Poland
2022 - Trenton, Italy
2023 - Perth and Dundee, Scotland
The US qualifying events for the World Gran Fondo each year are the Cheaha Challenge (100 Mile Race) in Jacksonville, Alabama in May and the Utah-Cacha Gran Fondo (76 Mile Race) in Cacha Valley, Utah in July.
The Cheaha Challenge is a tough qualifier due to the length and elevation gains, but it’s nearby and well organized. The Cheaha Challenge has an added component which is a separate time trial qualifier. I race both with the hopes of qualifying for both events. With the Cheaha Challnge, one can decide to only race and qualify for one event, the time trial or the Gran Fondo. That is an added benefit for racers with a strong time trial background who want to race at a Worlds event or for traditional road racers who only want to race the Gran Fondo. One can pick one or the other or both. The qualifying parameters is to be in the top 20% of ones age group. In smaller fields, one has to be top three.
This year I was healthy and Covid free this time going into Cheaha Challenge in May of 2023. I placed first in the time trial and 100 mile race in the Women’s 65-69 age category. The only real concern I had was that my lower back on the left side really hurt during those long climbs this year. Cheaha Challenge is 100 mile, 10,000 plus feet Gran Fondo, so perhaps I should expect some pain.
Before committing to another Worlds competition, I decided to go to a physical therapist for a diagnosis. I chose to visit Mission Move Physical Therapy in Roswell, Georgia mainly because the owner, Joel Eaby specializes in sports therapy including cycling. I knew Dr Eaby from the Webb Bridge rides on Saturday out of Alpharetta, and knew he was also a certified bicycle fitter. https://www.missionmovept.com/cyclingpt/
My back pain was actually my upper Gluteus Maximus which was being pulled because of tight hip flexors and weak lower stomach muscles. The solution was hip flexer stretches and core strengthening exercises including the dreaded planks. I also had 3 of my bikes fitted - the time trial bike, road bike and gravel bike. The road bike needed to have the handle bars changed out for narrower ones since my shoulders are narrow and the wide handle bars made me prone to sticking my elbows out like an overly aggressive criterium racer. I ended up coming back with my time trial bike because the newly release UCI dimensions were sent out by the Worlds race organizers. The organizers also wanted racers to have the new height sticker that correlated to three different dimension depending on the racers height. I am a category 1 height which is officially a “munchkin”. The benefit of this advance preparation was the opportunity to race my time trial bike and road bike with all of these changes before going to Worlds Gran Fondo in Scotland. I race and won two time trials - Georgia Games, category 4 Women’s and State Championships, Women’s 50+ category. I placed high and medaled in both the road races at both events and was 2nd in omnium points at the Georgia Games. These races were in preparation for Worlds.
Finally, I arrived in Scotland on July 30th, 2023 a few days earlier then some other racers in order to acclimate after the long flight. I was very please that Betsy Hard, a fellow Sorella Race Team Member and her husband, Walter were competing in Scotland and were part of the race tour group that have have used at Worlds since 2019 -
https://www.one-more-ride.com
Part One - The Grand Fondo - Perth, Scotland - Friday, August 4th, 2023
Scotland is not like mountainous Northern Italy. The Medio course was a 54 mile race with 2,956 feet of climbing is raced by the 50+ age group women’s fields. It was a rolling course that could trap you behind a gapped racer if you weren’t careful. The older women’s wave went off before the younger and the trick to success is to jump onto the faster waves coming by. I missed the first fast wave. The top two finishers in my group didn’t miss the first jump. I was able to latch onto the second fast wave, and we chased the first wave for 30 plus miles. It was a large unorganized group with various bicycle handling abilities especially in the very few switchbacks. The race organizers decided to have the finish with a sharp right handed turn into a castle grounds through a stone archway entrance onto a very narrow straightaway to the finish line with metal fencing on each side. There was a mad dash to the finish line for most while others inexplicably just set up blocking other racers behind them. I ended up 5th in my age group less than 100th seconds behind 3rd place and missed the podium. Even World Champion Jeannie Longo said she had the same thing happen to her at the finish line and place a surprising second. My teammate , Betsy Hard had a very strong 7th place finish at her first Worlds race. (I think I placed 12th at my first Worlds in Albi, France)
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Part Two - The Time Trial - Dundee, Scotland - Monday, August 7, 2023
The time trial is often called the race of truth. It’s a full all out painful race with no let up. There are no pack tactics, drafting or surges to contend with. It’s just an out and back race at full threshold heart rate up to mostly zone anaerobic. I know that I have given my all in such a race if I feel like collapsing at the end and have a cough like a “two pack a day cigarette smoker” for the balance of the day. This time trial would not disappoint.
Registration package pickup for the time trial was the day before. The advanced preparation of having my time trial bicycle compliant with the new rules paid off. There was about an hour wait in line to get to the measurement jig, and my bike passed the first go round while other participants had to get out tools for adjustment and go back in line for approval. I would now be able to relax and go back to the hotel with the tour company. There would be another check point race day for illegal motors and compliant geometry at the starting line staging location. I was concerned about the starting ramp. Tall ramps make me nervous but the one in Scotland wasn’t too dramatic. Also, the was a strong tail wind going out the 7 miles plus to the turn around which, of course, meant there would be a strong headwind for another 7 miles coming back. There would be lots of suffering for all of the racers. In addition, the finish was very technical and went around a round about that was narrowed forte way racing traffic by fencing with a short sprint to the finish line just as you came out of the roundabout. These Scots love those tight tough finishes!
I really was fortunate to get in a good warmup for the 14 plus mile race. The tour company had trainers set up for each racers to spin on. There was great discussion as to how to approach conditions. I decided to risk it all by going out strong and fast with the aid of the tail wind and be prepared to tough it out not the wind.
I was able to start out smooth and strong from the starting ramp. My average at the turnaround was 27.5 mph. I raced into the wind at as aero position that I could. The core exercises that I had done all summer helped me. I just kept focusing on keeping my cadence and power up through out the course. I ended up with a 22.2 mph average overall which was solid for me especially in these conditions. I caught my 30 second competitor from Australia within a the first mile and a half and was surprised to be passing more racers out and back - a total of 6 competitors in my age group. I was only passed by one racer near the end by multi-World champion and Olympic gold medalist, Jeannie Longo. She is sure a machine and one of the most efficient rider I have had the privilege to see and ride with.
When I came to the dreaded round about, I dropped down from my extended TT bar into the drops and road it like a criterium. As I came out of the roundabout towards the finish line, I sprinted on my pedals to the finish! To my amazement, that move helped me secure 3rd place by a mere 1 second and a place on the World’s Championship podium. What a pleasant surprise. The fourth place British racer barely beat me by hundreds of seconds on all of the checkpoints on the course, but my aggressive tactic at the very end secured the win for a place on the podium!
I think I slept the best had all week in Scotland that night.