I decided to enter the points race in the Europeans as I had done so unexpectedly well in it in the National masters. Fortunately I didn’t wear my blue National Championship jersey, because i got absolutely thrashed and effectively came last. Them sprinters did me over! I decided that my best tactic for success was to attack early on and try to get away . And that’s what I did in the whole race – I attacked and tried to get away, repeatedly but was chased down. Anyway the good thing was that with me on the front quite a bit of the time , the 12.5km didn’t take too long (19 mins of rather hard work), and I was soon back in the stands having a cup of tea and listening to my Uncle Eddy saying that he had wanted to throw my mother’s crutch at Janet Birkmyer, but Mum’s grip was too strong. Ace-sprinter, Janet Birkmyer, picked up the maximum of 25 points by winning every single sprint lap. I got 2 points.
A few days later was the 2km Pursuit.
You had to get a good time in the first round because this determined where you were in the second round. Well!!!! I got a fantastic time in the first round and a PB – 2min 39.55s This was the fastest time of the day in my age group, the ‘older-than-you-look’ category, and it was good enough for me to be cycling for gold or silver. Inevitably, I was in a death-match with Janet Birkmyer, who had been able to conserve her energy in the first round as she had gone last and had the benefit of knowing the time she had to achieve.
I had a secret weapon – my fan club! Cassie Gledhill, Emily Hogge and Nicci Meadows- my mates from DNA Racing Team , all made the long trek to Manchester with the sole intention of making the biggest racket you’ve ever heard. They had their faces painted with ‘GO JAYNE’ in WILLESDEN COLOURS! I was so proud . It was great!
Simon Wicks ( Bloke) was walking the line for me, helping me stick to schedule, and it seemed to be going well. I was ahead of Janet almost from the start. Unfortunately it’s the last lap that counts, apparently, and she managed to do a phenomenal last lap and nipped over the line half a second ahead of me. Me -2.40.1 Janet- 2.39.6.
I got a SILVER MEDAL! I was so pleased! The medal ceremony was just like the Olympics – dollies with high heels and chrysanthemums and everything! We even had to do a lap of honour . I had a lovely day.
A full album of photo’s is available here
