Ros Davison
Riding Discipline (or lack of): Ironman
Favourite Riding spot: Great Ocean Road, anywhere between Anglesea and Port Campbell
Short and long term goals: To get faster
Favourite Bike: The Specialized Transition you guys have sponsored to me!! His name is "The Stallion" and he rides like the wind!!
Years Racing: 5 - I think
When did you begin cycling and why?: It was all a big mistake. I was asked to fill in for a friend for a corporate event as she had injured her back 2 days prior. Turned out the event was the BRW, a triathlon, not sure if I'd ever heard of a tri before. Anyway, I turned up on a sunny Sunday morning, did the event, loved it and got hooked.
Have you suffered any serious injuries cycling? Describe what and how: My worst/best and only cycling injury is as follows. Port Macquarie 2007; my very first Ironman race. There is a hill called MFD (I have my own acronym but really it stands for Matthew Flinders Drive). MFD has the reputation of being horribly steep, the first year the race was held there people were falling off because of the gradient. Of course, the steeper the climb the better the descent and god damn I love descents. I'd been down and up MFD twice already and was heading for my 3rd descent. I was off my head excited and ready to explode. At the apex of MFD before hurtling down at light speed was a 90degrees left hand turn. With inappropriate speed and an angle Valentino Rossi would grimace at, I flew into the corner. I promptly got high-sided by the bike and landed head first into the middle of the road. I'd love to tell you what happened after that but I don't remember as I'd knocked myself out. By the time my head was back on my neck I was demanding to get back on my bike and keep going. Another 50km on the bike and a marathon to follow saw me finish the race, after which I then found myself in a neck brace, strapped to a spinal board with a suspected spinal injury - oh yeah, I'd lost feeling and movement in my arms. A hospital trip, some cat-scans, 3 shots of morphine which stopped me breathing and the Dr offering to stick his finger where it shouldn't go lead to the diagnosis of a compressed spine and no permanent damage!
Describe your greatest cycling achievement to date: Getting back on the bike after the aforementioned stack!
Describe your worst race or cycling experience: Ironman Japan 08 - I had a chest infection. Instead of loving the rolling course and smashing the climbs I wanted to get off and throw my bike over the cliff - 180.2kms of hell and phlegm.
Describe your favourite race: I guess I should say Hawaiian Ironman 08 because it is the Mecca of triathlon - the world championships, the best of the best. But actually, my favourite race would have to be Port Mac IM 08. I faced my demons on MFD, and I raced hard. It was a day where I felt completely in control and that I had all the answers - I'm guessing those days don't come along too often
