Lawson Homes
2009 Tour of Tasmania
Stage 1 – Devonport Criterium 31.8km (Tuesday, September 29)
After a great Tour of the Murray the Lawson Home Cycling Team was keen to impress in our home state during the 10 stages of the Tour of Tasmania. The first stage started from the Spirit of Tasmania into a tight criterium circuit. The team knew they needed to keep up the front as the race was going to be off the blocks from the start. The short criterium of 31.8km proved to be as fast and speedy as expected. Tom played his cards well over the course of the race by staying up the front, while David and Clay were also keeping their legs fresh at the front end of the peloton. Respectable finishes for Tom 13th, Clay 15th and David 22nd showed that the Lawson Homes Team was keen to have an impact in this year’s tour. The rest of the team rode well all finishing the race safely.
Stage 2 – Spreyton – Mole Creek 53.7km (Tuesday, September 29)
The first road race of the tour was always going to be a decisive stage as it included 3 climbs including a category 2 climb over the course of the short 53.7km stage. After the previous criterium in the morning the team was ready to tackle the race head on. The race split over the first categorised climb where the field was strung out with everyone chasing wheels. Michael and David managed to keep up the front, where a lucky move projected Michael into a break of 14 riders up the road. As the race unfolded the last climb put pressure on everyone as smaller groups were formed. Michael managed to stay in the front group and finished with a tough sprint in 8th. While David and Clay kept their general classification chances in good stead, only finishing 50seconds behind. The rest of the team rode well finishing the race and ready to feed up for the next days racing.
Stage 3 – Burnie Criterium 39km (Wednesday, September 30)
In previous years the Burnie criterium has proven to be a definitive stage in the tour’s general classification. With a tough uphill and downhill section (including speed humps) the team was readily anticipating an exciting and hard race. From the gun the race had riders dropping wheels off the back, while the Lawson Homes Team was trying its utmost to stay and/or get up the front as Ken passed on stirring words each lap. Unfortunately the race was whittled down to a small group of 20 or so, where Lawson Homes was not represented. However each team member showed much determination battling to stay in the race for as long as possible and all fishing the race in good spirits.
Stage 4 – Burnie – West Mooreville 75.4km (Wednesday, September 30)
As the dark clouds descended on Burnie the team was ready for a hilly 75.4km ride out to West Mooreville. The race was under control for the first 15km and riders were itching to start the race in the final km’s of control. The Lawson Homes Team was well represented in the front in the first 30km of the race, but as the race hit the hills for the day, it begun to split. Matthew had a stellar ride, making sure he stayed in the front group of 40 riders. Unfortunately after a strong start to the race David had a puncture and lost time over the front groups, while Matthew continued on with a strong ride, finishing a respectable 17th in the stage. All the team performed well finishing the race soaked after a hard day in the saddle. Ready to warm up, shower and feed up the team travelled to their accommodation in Wynyard.
Stage 5 – Smithton – Stanley 116.5km (Thursday, October 1)
Stage 5 of the 2009 tour was always going to be a tough 116km race around the North West. As the clouds began to threaten rain for the second day in a row, the Lawson Homes Team was ready to put in their best show. It began to rain in the first number of km’s in the race, but thankfully the skies cleared at it opened up for a sunny day’s race. The first number of climbs out from Smithton managed to put pressure on the field, but it all came back together once we were in the final km’s of entering the 9 laps of Stanley. The first three laps were reasonably calm where the Lawson Homes Team were looking to stay towards the pointy end of the race. With 6 laps to go the pace was on, once Fly V decided to put pedal to the metal. A break formed and the pressure was applied for the rest of the race. Tom put in a great ride to stay in the main group finishing only 56 seconds behind the race winners, while Joel, David and Clay all finished only 1min 40sec down in good position. Steven, Michael and Matthew all had a tough day in the saddle, but finished safely nonetheless. A long day in the saddle but the team was in high spirits and ready to rest up for the next day of racing.
Stage 6 – Ulverstone Criterium 36km (Friday, October 2)
With the rain away and the sunny skies overhead the Team was ready for a fast flowing criterium over the 36km circuit. Although legs were beginning to get tired the race held up to all expectations and was as fast as expected. With 8 laps to go a crash caused a major split in the peloton, catching out a number of Lawson riders. However they were able to have a lap out and joined in with the main group once more. In the final stages of the race a number of attacks tried to get away, but in vain. With one lap to go the break was caught and it came down to a bunch finish where Lawson Homes was represented strongly in the top 30 riders through Tom, Clay, David and Joel.
Stage 7 – Ulverstone - Penguin 78.5km (Friday, October 2)
After an intense criterium earlier in the day the Team was ready to tackle the hardest climb of this year’s tour. The category 1 climb up Gunns Plains has been notorious in the past for splitting the field into pieces, so the team prepared for a full on race. After the first 30km the field had split into a number of different groups, where the Team was working well together to bring the second group up to the first, on the descent into Gunns Plains. As the groups hit the climb Tom and David showed their strength to move into the front group and eventually finish only a minute or so down on the race winners in a select group of riders.
Stage 8 – Launceston - George Town 80.2km (Saturday, October 3)
Stage 8 brought the Lawson Homes team to their home town Launceston. The Team was excited to be racing in their own territory, and the morning started with a buzz of anticipation. The race was a fast start out through Rosevears where the tight twisting roads made the peloton duck and dive like a rollercoaster. As the race unfolded a number of breaks were trying to move off the front, where Tom showed good legs trying to ride himself into a number of moves. As the race made its way out to George Town a break managed to solidify itself off the front. In the final kilometres Matthew unfortunately met with a hard end to the race, hitting the pavement at over 60km an hour. Although he finished the race, he rolled in battered and bruised. The rest of the Team kept out of trouble with Clay doing his best to lead out Tom in the final kilometres. A solid ride by the full Team resulted in everyone finishing in the bunch, not far behind the winning break.
Stage 9 – George Town - Scottsdale 91.8km (Saturday, October 3)
After a fast flowing 80km already in the legs, the next 91.8km was going to push the Team to its limits with the number of hills to be climbed. The first 35km was along flat roads where the Team tried hard to get someone into a break, however once the first major climb began after Lilydale, any chance of a break succeeding blew to bits. The 3.5km climb out of Lilydale separated the peloton into various groups. Unfortunately the Team didn’t manage to get anyone in the front group, but all finished strongly in the main bunch at the Scottsdale finish. A gutsy ride was put in by Matthew as he tried to complete stage 9, but due to his serious injuries from earlier in the day he could not continue.
Stage 10 – Westbury Criterium 52km (Sunday, October 4)
After driving out from Grindelwald the team set up early to get ready for the final stage, the Westbury Criterium. It promised to be an exciting race with an added incentive of $200 cash bonuses for each intermediate sprint. The team started the race well, representing Lawson Homes in the front moves. Early on, Tom showed good form battling out for a number of intermediate sprints while David and Michael stayed up towards the front. A number of laps later Michael tried his luck in a break and a number of intermediate sprints. Likewise David also showed his ever growing strength by jostling for a number of sprints, as Clay begun to hover towards the pointy end of the race. The fast paced race started to take its toll as riders begun to struggle off the back. Steven and Joel put in an impressive effort not finishing far behind the front runners, while Michael, David, Tom and Clay all finished in the top 25.
After a successful end to the Tour everyone in the Lawson Homes Cycling Team was happy to have ridden to the best of their abilities. A great performance by all the boys and 6 days later, all in one piece, they were ready to enjoy a bit of relaxation to cap off a great year!
End of season break-up
