RIDER REPORTS – Zoe Parker (Solihull CC)

Rider Report: Zoe Parker (Solihull CC), a first year Junior lined up for her first CiCLE Classic and writes about that experience …

RIDER REPORTS – Zoe Parker (Solihull CC)
brilliant report Zoe … 😉 Would love to have many more!

Zoe writes “Sunday was the CiCLE CLassic and my first ever road race. I’m a 1st year junior and race CycloCross, MTB, Circuit, Track, TT normally. I’m not the best or the worst, I just love riding my bike.

I saw the CiCLE Classic was fairly local to where I live and liked the look of it. I was a little daunted about the course, it’s reputation and that most people would be riding in teams but after speaking with my coach, I thought I’d enter. My teammate Sam Brownsword decided the same thing, we came and rode most of the course a couple of weeks ago and we were both looking forward to riding.

Sunday came, Sam raced in the morning and made it to 1hr 11 in the race before getting a double puncture. He came back to headquarters covered in mud but was clearly buzzing with a big smile. When asked what we thought, his reply was “It was awesome”.

I had to give a great deal of consideration to fuelling, I’d never raced more than an hour before. So armed with two water bottles, 6 gels up my shorts and a whole pocket of Haribo, I waited at the exit of HQ with a whole new group of people as well as some of the youth age group last year.
We got to the ceremonial start and I was buzzing as it was amazing to have a huge crowd around us and to be in a race with over 100 competitors WOW!!!

We started racing and moved away from the wider roads to narrow, muddy and bumpy roads. I felt so squeezed in the group and kept drifting back a little until I got further towards the back than the front. A few minor crashes around me and then some steep downhills with uphills straight after, caused a bottle neck at the start of the next hill and I got caught behind three crashes where I had to put the feet down on the tarmac. I then ended up dropped and was riding on my own until Marshalls stopped me and others and sent us back to the HQ.

We chatted as we rode back, had cold showers and a great chat about our experiences. I had such a good time and I’m thankful to all the organisers, volunteers and other competitors. It was so much fun and I really want to attempt it again next year and beat the 1hr 40 I raced for!”
Well done Zoe, thats the key, enjoying our racing! Zoe is pictured in the Solihull CC kit and yellow helmet/black bike …