Darley Moor 2/3/4 and Milton Keynes bowl 3/4, 25-26 Sep 2021

Darley Moor 2/3/4:

I didn’t really enjoy this race. I found it quite stale and uninteresting. I was with my (new) team Empella and we had a plan in place, but it didn’t really go to that plan. People were using this as a points chaser and nobody was taking any risks. The race was basically riding round in a circle until the sprint.

I tried to get the race going and make a split a couple of times but no-one wanted to work with me so it didn’t stick. So just hung in with the bunch. I did do a bit on the front to try and animate it a bit, maybe burned some matches in the process. I was also waiting to see if anyone would make a jump to follow. So I followed a couple of minor attempts at an attack from some other riders.

I was in a good position ready for the sprint but made the same mistake I did last time which was to go too early – so lots of people overtook me and I got 10th place. This was quite disappointing but the two I was with initially out of the last corner started to sprint so rather than remain composed and wait to get a bit closer, I went with them and ran out of steam way before the finish line. 10th place is still good though!

Milton Keynes Bowl E123 & 34:

Much better race today. The 34 went off first (the group I was in) and E123 about a minute later. This started off quite well, quite quickly from the whistle. I found a rhythm and settled into a position in the middle of the group, wanting to try and jump on the E123’s when they came past.

When they caught us, a group of us jumped onto the back of them. It was quite fast and furious for a while and then it settled a bit. I stayed in the middle just saving my legs.

On one of the laps, I nearly got taken down by a girl who tried to undertake me on the apex of a bend. I almost lost control of the bike and lost the wheels of the lead group. I thought I wouldn’t catch them but I got my head down and with the help of another girl, I managed to catch them up (that is a first!). I stayed at the back while recovering from the effort and settled back in. 

This time, I was in a really good position for the sprint. I was following the wheel of a girl who I knew was quite strong. Unfortunately, there is a tightish bend just before finish line and a girl next to me took the corner too fast and almost lost control of her bike. She came over to my line and I had to brake so lost the wheel of the girl I was following. I sprinted but they were just out of reach. Nevertheless, I came 5th which is a really good result.

Laura Powell