Tuesday 27 October 2009

UCI World Rankings

I've just checked the current World Rankings.....I'm third. Wahoo! :0)


Ranking - Mountain Bike 2009

Women - Elite - UCI Ranking - Marathon

18: 19 Oct 2009

Rank Name Nation Age* Points
1 (4) Gunn-Rita DAHLE FLESJAA Norway 36 357
2 (1) Esther SÜSS Switzerland 35 340
3 (8) Sally BIGHAM Great Britain 31 305
4 (6) Sabine SPITZ Germany 38 300
5 (9) Barbara KALTENHAUSER Germany 32 294
6 (5) Ivanda EIDUKA Latvia 32 284
7 (10) Elena GADDONI Italy 29 282
8 (11) Elisabeth BRANDAU Germany 24 277
9 (12) Roberta GASPARINI Italy 41 255
10 (19) Ivonne KRAFT Germany 39 236


Full rankings can be found here

Friday 23 October 2009

Hanging up the racing wheels!

Wow, what a year! It's been an emotional roller coaster and at times the pressure was overwhelming, but I couldn't be happier with what I have achieved. It's now time for me to have a break from structured training for a few weeks before my winter training starts. My evenings are currently filled with TV, red wine, and dark chocolate :0) According to Matt, my coach, it won't be long before I want to ditch the comfort of my living room for the saddle. Until then...........

Wednesday 14 October 2009

Roc D'Azur, Frejus, France

To go or not to go?! This was the decision we were still trying to make minutes before we had to leave to go to the airport. Work commitments and impending deadlines meant that I had spent the whole night awake wondering whether I should take the flight to France or go to work. Obviously I really wanted to go not only because Roc D'Azur is renowned for it's amazing trails, but it would also be a chance to celebrate the successes of the season with some of the guys from the Team, who I might not see for quite some time. I finally made the decision to dash to the airport but that work would have to join me. Oh well a small sacrifice......

It was certainly worth it, Roc D'Azur lived up to it's reputation and more. The event was the biggest I have ever seen. The expo area was enormous and the slope style guys put on an impressive display right in front of the Team Topeak-Ergon stand. I had chance to ride a small part of the course the day before the marathon, but afterwards I had to hurry back to the apartment and spend the afternoon locked up with work and a few ninja mosquitoes who took more than their fair share of my blood!

It was strange standing on the start line. My competitive head has disappeared since my structured training stopped after the European Marathon Champs in Estonia. This was going to be a relaxed fun race, but for me the words 'relaxed' and 'race' don't normally appear in the same sentence! Some start line chit-chat soon revealed that some of the other girls were also there to just have fun and enjoy the course.


The course was unbelievable: When I wasn't ascending I was descending; there was virtually no fire road and almost no tarmac; stacks of technical single track; amazing coastal views; and a short ride (or run) along the beach. It is one of the best, if not the best, marathon courses I have ever done. I'll definitely be back next year :0) Male team mate Kim Tofaute almost made it to the podium but alas his 3rd place ranking was in the women's and not the men's race (see race results below)...better luck next time Kim ;0)

The season is now officially over for me and for the next few weeks I will be eating LOTS and no longer abstaining from the alcohol ;0) Wahooooooo

Women's Roc D'Azur Marathon 83km

1 Marielle Saner-Guinchard

2 Ivonne Kraft

3 Kim Tofaute (The things he'll do for a podium spot...!)


4 Myriam Saugy

5 Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjaa

6 Sally Bigham

7 Elisabeth Brandau

8 Daniele Troesch

9 Fabrice Krela

10 Carole Janssens


Full results can be found here