Commuter to competitor

Margot McGovern speaks with Liz Joiner to find out how a keen commuter becomes a competitive racer.

The first flush of warm weather often brings a surge of motivation. Many of us dream of riding further and faster. We set ambitious fitness goals for the end of summer and plan for early morning rides and long weekends in the saddle, determined that this year is the year we will finally reach our targets.

But somewhere along the way our motivation wanes. Other commitments crowd in and we lose our momentum. Inevitably, when the chill of autumn arrives we find ourselves well short of our goals. So how can we hang on to that initial rush of enthusiasm to take our riding to the next level? Liz Joiner is one rider who found the answer.

Joiner fell in love with riding a bike while living in London from early 2009 to late 2010. She found that commuting by bike was the quickest and easiest way to make the 15km round trip to work in Old Blighty. She loved the freedom, the fitness and the feeling that she was almost flying.

When she returned to Australia, riding had become a bit of an obsession and she was keen to learn more. Joiner took the next step—road riding—when some work friends invited her to join their morning ride from the Melbourne CBD to Black Rock and back. Though the weather was wintry, Joiner was eager to join the ride.

“It was cold and dark, but we were so excited,” she says.

Joiner says having enthusiastic people around her was key in motivating her to get more heavily involved in riding.

“I’ve always been sporty and loved riding, but it was meeting roadies at work that put me onto more serious riding. I do have a competitive streak, and once I got a taste for the road bike, I was hooked,” she recalls.

Joiner says it was also the willingness to “give anything a go” along with her friends’ encouragement that gave her the confidence to start racing.

“I tried a duathlon (running and cycling). I loved it. I really found that I enjoyed the racing element. But I was getting injured running and thought: I’ll stick with cycling.”

Her first races were criteriums.  “I signed up for the E Grade race and thought ‘yep, I’ll have a go’ … I just jumped on the front of the bunch with no idea that I had to save my energy … and I ended up coming last,” she says.

Far from being deterred by her loss, Joiner was motivated to get serious about her training. Luckily for her, she won three months free training with coaching company Lead Out Cycling. She says it was the best thing that could have happened at that point, and continues to train with them today.

“It’s a really great program that you build on as you go. You ride three times a week and learn how to train and how to rest—which is equally important.” Training with a group gave her structure. “It’s a set program, so you’ve got a clear routine and each month you build on the previous month to peak in summer,” she says.

“… I realised that I just love riding and it’s not all about racing.”

Soon she was racking up wins at weekend crits. Her first win involved a bit of luck, but through training and racing, she’d picked up a few tricks too. “The first win I had was at a women’s B Grade criterium race in St Kilda. By that point I’d learnt what not to do—it’s a fine tuning process each week—and I knew what I had to do: either break away, which I generally don’t do—I’m not a sprinter—or pick the right spot to go in the last lap. It was the latter, and I guess I was lucky. I found that spot. It was short enough that I could hold out, but long enough that I could get into the corner first and hold on until the finish line,” she recalls.

Joiner says she enjoys the cut and thrust competition of crits, but it’s the longer rides and races that she’s really fallen in love with. She started with the Tour of Bright. “It was hard but a really good experience,” she recalls. “Racing up Mount Hotham is different to riding up, and I’d only done that once before.” After that, and placing third in the Tour of Gippsland, she redirected her training efforts towards similarly scenic events. “I absolutely loved Peaks Challenge Falls Creek. It was almost a ride against myself … I realised that I just love riding and it’s not all about racing.”

Following such a big riding season, she’d spent enough time training to know that it was time to throttle back. “This year I really had to schedule a break. I knew my body was going to benefit from it,” she says, explaining that after such an intense training period it’s important to give yourself time to “get your energy back and get excited about riding again.”

Getting started

For aspiring roadies, Joiner has plenty of advice. The most important thing, she says, is to surround yourself with capable and enthusiastic riders—they’ll show you the ropes and keep you motivated: “I wouldn’t get up and ride to Mordi [Mordialloc] by myself. Riding solo is still a good feeling, but it’s really about the people you ride with.” While Lead Out remains her primary training group, Joiner has also been a member of St Kilda Cycling Club for two years and is an ambassador for The Freedom Machine, leading shop rides and a monthly women’s ride. She says that new riders shouldn’t be intimidated to join a group and that training with experienced riders helps you progress quickly: “I see a lot of girls who start out pretty unfit—the road bike is completely foreign—and now they’re flying along.”

She has some practical tips too: “A lot of people are really stiff on the bike. Just relax and trust yourself.” Also, “Get into road pedals—it’s not that scary. I used to clip out 50m from a traffic light, but road pedals really are much better than using cages or flat pedals.”

Staying motivated

Even the keenest riders have days when their motivation flags. To push through, Joiner says it’s really important to focus on the positives. “You can do a nice 80km ride by 9 or 10am on a Saturday morning, and it’s a great way to start the weekend surrounded by people who are motivated by the same thing.” If you feel as though you’re not progressing as quickly as you’d like, she says it can help to think about the ground you’ve covered. “You’re always looking at what’s next, but it’s good to look back and see how you’ve progressed.”

And for those dreary days when you’d rather sleep in?  “When it’s really cold, you know that within a few kilometres you’ll be okay,” Joiner says. “If nothing else, I’m thinking about the coffee at the end and a hot shower.”

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