Cycling: Disappointment turns to joy

Hannah van Kampen. Photo / Paul Taylor

It's fair to say Hawke's Bay cyclist Hannah van Kampen had an emotional ride yesterday.

The EIT Bachelor of Sport and Recreation course student described her start to the day as "a bit gutting". Van Kampen was told her trip to Gallipoli had been cancelled.

"I had been selected in a New Zealand team to go to Gallipoli for a 78km road race around the coast of Gallipoli as part of the Centenary Celebrations for the Anzac Day Landings but the race has been cancelled because of security reasons; organisers felt it wouldn't be safe," Van Kampen said.

Some of that disappointment was erased yesterday afternoon when van Kampen, 21, won the 25km under-23 time trial on day one of the four-day Hawke's Bay-hosted club road nationals. She stopped the clock at 38m02s, the same time as her Ramblers clubmate Kerri-anne Page recorded on the way to her second placing in the elite women's section of the Puketapu-based event.

"I was pretty stoked with that as I'm still running on Thailand time," van Kampen said referring to her return from Thailand late on Tuesday night after finishing 18th on general classification in the 60-rider Tour of Thailand at the weekend.

"Thailand time is five hours behind us so I was lucky it was a midday start today," van Kampen said.

Her nearest rival in the five-rider under-23 section was Hamilton's Madison Farrant with a time of 39m35s.

Van Kampen's next event in the nationals will be Sunday's 105km road race.

Although she is the elite women's defending champion in this event she is unsure whether the Ramblers team will aim for a title repeat for her.

"We've got a lot of strong girls. We'll have a team talk tomorrow and see what the plan is. It will be good to try retain it," van Kampen said.

After Sunday she will have a break before preparing for next season where her major focus will be the Hawke's Bay-hosted elite nationals in January.

"After that the plan is to head to Europe," she added.

Van Kampen was one of four Ramblers riders to win titles in tough windy conditions yesterday. Olympian Westley Gough won the men's elite 25km title with a time of 31m52s.

His nearest rival, Stratford's Michael Torckler, stopped the clock at 32m27s. Marg Porter did her bit for the Ramblers quest to win the top club again with victory in the women's masters 3 25km event with a time of 39m44s which was more than 2 minutes faster than the second placed Mireille Sitters of Counties.

The other Ramblers winner, Carol Bone, won her masters 7 division title unopposed.

Elite women's winner Sharlotte Lucas of Papanui recorded a time of 37m59s. The Ramblers other second placegetter, men's masters 1 rider Patrick Barry, recorded 34m32s for 25km, 11s slower than winner Mike Henton of Counties.

Hawke's Bay's multiple world champion Regan Gough, a cousin of Westley, didn't compete yesterday.