Switching Gears: Sammie takes on the RTL

It’s done! After living in Taupō for my whole life I can finally say I have successfully ridden around the lake, and I even managed to have fun (most of the time😉) while doing it.

My race day started pretty normal. 5:45am wake up and down to breakfast. A big bowl of oats and banana with an extra helping of peanut butter, honey and chocolate because she was going to be a big day out! Then for some reason I had a strange inclination to check what start wave I was in, and good thing I did because otherwise I would have been standing around at the start line for another 15 minutes in the cold (turns out I was wave 3 not 2) 🤣

Overall my race was pretty epic! Got a good group rolling early on (after having to encourage some draft-loving roadies😉) that slimmed down to four riders once the hills started coming. We found a good groove, and thanks to Roman, we punched onwards into the head wind. Road riding is so different from MTB in many ways, and one thing I really love about it is the social aspect. I loved being able to talk to those I was riding (suffering(?)) with and develop genuine respect and admiration for them. Then there’s the scenery aspect of road riding, and when you’re riding around the lake it’s hard to not take in the views. My little group was even lucky enough to have the sun peak out as we curved our way around bully point and rode along the lakeside. At the end of the day I rolled home just under 4:40hrs, a time I’m very happy with but also leaves me wanting more- what would have happened if I had started in the earlier waves and had the opportunity to ride with the other speedy women (maybe I should have rocked up to wave 2 after all 😉).

Finally, I can’t talk about the race without acknowledging all the amazing volunteers and staff who worked so hard to put together this incredible day! It’s always hard putting together events as big as this, and to be able to cater for all ages, abilities and levels of fitness is even harder (special shout out to the person on a UNICYCLE who ride around the lake, that requires an extra level of crazy🫣). So thanks to the LTCC team, I can’t wait to be back on the start line ready to tackle this challenge again!

Hope everyone else who participated on the day enjoyed it just as much as I did and rode that “finish line endorphin-high” all night long! Now what are you waiting for, go check that calendar and make sure 30th Nov 2024 is clear!!

Sammie