The great thing from a spectator point of view regarding the individual time trial is that you have plenty of time to observe each of the riders as they get ready for the event.
Unlike the road races where everyone comes to the start line together and are lost in a milling kaleidoscope of colourful lycra, the time triallers are called one by one to the starting gate and the commentators have time to elaborate a little on the background of each of the competitors.
Tradition dictates that the faster and more well known riders are the last away and many of the earlier participants have already passed the spectators by before they even think about raising their cameras and snapping off a few shots.
After all, who wants a picture of Joey Somebody when you can capture an image of Luke Durbridge?
But there are so many fascinating stories among those riders who roll down the starting ramp before the main contenders.
The nationals time trial at Burrumbeet last Wednesday was no exception. Only a handful of the 40 riders who started the event had a realistic chance of finishing on the podium, prompting a few misguided souls to ask the question, “why bother?”
After 50 year old Brett Cottee, who was the first rider away, clocked a time some 30 minutes slower than Michael Hepburn’s title winning ride, one mean hearted individual on Twitter was prompted to ask, “Why was he even allowed to start?”
I would answer that by saying, “Why not?”
Until the rules state otherwise, anyone eligible to ride under the current format should be encouraged to do so, whatever their level. Hats off to Cottee (who also rode last year for a similar result) for having the courage to enter.
I’m six years younger than Cottee and could probably ride a comparable time around the same course, but would never dream of entering, so all credit to him for following his passion for cycling the best way he knows how – by actually riding his bike!
Then there was Michael Gallagher, a gold medal winning paralympian and world champion who, at one stage looked as though he would make the top ten. He faded to finish 14th, losing just five minutes to Hepburn.
In 2013 he finished 17th, so the boy can ride!
Suffering an accident at birth that left him with nerve damage, he lacks movement and strength in his right arm. But the Scottish born athlete more than holds his own at elite level and his performances stem from hard work and a love of the bike.
Another rider with an unbridled passion for all things bike is regular Roar contributor Chris ‘Bones’ McKay.
McKay, who suffered a nasty, if not spectacular crash during a criterium race last year, is still as enthusiastic as ever about his riding.
Entering his first nationals, the Melbourne based racer knew that he wouldn’t be giving the likes of Durbridge, Hepburn and Damien Howson anything to worry about over the hot, windswept course.
Like most of us he juggles a full time job with his passion for riding and laments that it interferes with his training time. It is the cry of cyclists the world over.
“I’ve just had three weeks off work,” he said post race, sweat still pouring from his forehead, “and I’ve been training like a pro”.
Even in such a short space of time he has noticed significant improvement in his ‘numbers’ and went into Wednesday’s time trial feeling as if he had good legs.
Although I sensed he was slightly disappointed with his time directly after finishing, his result fell within his pre-race expectations and he can feel proud to have achieved such a result on what was a trying day in the saddle.
A day later he tweeted, “Thrilled with my first roadnats TT. Achieved everything I set out to do. Gave it everything I had and left it all on the road.”
No doubt he’ll be back for more next year.
And he won’t be the only one.
Standing on a slight rise about a kilometre into the course really highlighted the different ability levels of the riders taking part.
Some glided over the gentle slope, never wavering from their selected gear, while others click clacked through their cogs, searching in vain for a cadence that would carry them over without going into the red.
They all had one thing in common however. Every single one of them was giving it 100 percent.
And as spectators, what more could we possibly want than that?
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