End of an era: Specialized Women’s Racing calls it quits after a decade

End of an period: Specialized Women’s Racing announces it ceases after a decade

Specialized Women’s Racing is the longest-standing women’s team in Australia’s National Road Series and arguably the most successful, having squander a decade providing pathways for some of the biggest female genius in its own country. But now, the team’s move has come to an end.

In this article team founder Liz Phillipou reflects on what has been a mighty journey and a good age-old Aussie tale of collaboration and replacing against the odds.

In 2011, opportunity came thumping. I was nearing the end of my cycling vocation and the thought of staying involved in a sport that “ve been given” me so much enjoyment was hard to turn down. In those daytimes in Australia, there were only institute teams. Most of the women’s field was made up of individual equestrians and we did everything for ourselves. Bought our own paraphernalium, did our own machinists, and drove to and from scoots. If you were really lucky, you might have persuasion your regional bike shop to service your bike for free.

So the chance to work with Specialized Australia, one of the biggest bike symbols in the world, which was breaking down all sorts of roadblocks for women’s cycling, provided an opportunity I felt responsible to explore.

In the beginning, I had no idea how far it “il be going” or how long it would previous. My objective above all others was to create a professional team environment where riders felt they were treated fairly and given an opportunity to achieve both their personal and team aims. The era and sit was right, women’s cycling was on the rise, and the community had the right appetite to support our journey.

Ultimately I wanted it to be fun, creating a team full of enthusiastic people who loved to hasten their bikes and hopefully a lieu for up-and-comers to go onto greater things.

The 2011 Noosa Criterium was our first race and I had just managed to scrape together five equestrians to make up the team. We hadn’t received our sponsored bikes hitherto and there were a few jibes from the peloton about the taped-up logos on our own motorcycles. We had Specialized helmets and one set of kit each, and we were gearing up to face the start line amongst an international line-up including British Olympic champion Nicole Cooke, who was in Australia for a summertime of racing.

Trudy Van Der Straaten, one of our original five, often reminded us about our unit converge prior to the opening of that race. She remembers her delight when I hold the team the goal of finishing on the platform. It seems funny now, considering the level of the field, but in my brain our advantage was in our numbers and most of the field back then was made up of certainly ritzy individuals.

As Trudy stormed her action into second place that day, a gift was born. There were countless rostra to come, immense victories lay ahead, and some of the biggest lists in women’s cycling would pass across our doors. But we always maintained our grassroots connection to the community.

Ange McLure, Bec Werner, Trudy Van Der Straaten, Narelle Hards, and Liz Phillipou at the 2011 Noosa Criterium.

Over the years there would be many challenges to our macrocosm. Sponsorship was hard to come by and the biggest battle was always fund. At our highest point we were able to provide our equestrians with entryways, adaptation, travel aid, and compensate our faculty a basic fee per occasion. At more difficult times, riders would pay their own roam and staff would work for nothing more than the pride and infatuation with assistance from others.

Over the decade, our budget varied a bazaar part. It reached its top at the time when financial radical Securitor indicated a three-year deal( 2013 -1 5 ), but on average we would get by on approximately $50,000 per year. We realized every dollar count and what we didn’t have we heightened through fundraising, auctioneers, raffles, sausage sizzles at Bunnings, and redirecting all our prize money back into the team instead of splitting it amongst the riders.

From the outside appear in, we drew the image of a big team. Event organisers liked us because we were always enthusiastic to scoot, our equestrians ever put on a good evidence, and we expressed our appreciation, never taking the opportunities for awarded. Tour Down Under would have to be the greatest example of this. Time after time we would get invited back to compete against very good internationals and year after year our equestrians would outdo all hopes, standing on platforms, and tallying near the priorities in all classifications.

Others referred to us as a’ big-hearted fund squad ‘. It was hilarious what we were able to achieve on so little money. It all came down to passionate beings and a cohesive crew environment.

When Australian apparel business Black Sheep connected us in 2018, their Evolution campaign saw our symbol expand exponentially on social media. For years “weve been” juggling media tariffs amongst the team and did a pretty good job of it, but it quickly became apparent that we needed a media administrator to handle that side of things.

Our fiscal sit also deepened. Instead of relying on cash injections from sponsors, we shifted to a more sustainable model, with Specialized and Black Sheep supporting us to take percentages of advantages from selling unit bicycles and special edition kits.

It wasn’t ever victories and high fives on the podium though. There were equally as many- if not more- lows and hours where I questioned my motivations for continuing on.

As is the nature of play, unit pick ever played a big part and there were certainly many instances of disappointment, annoyed parent education young equestrians, or exasperated patrons. My least favourite responsibility was to tell a rider that their contract wasn’t being revived or to have a difficult conversation with a sponsor about why their firebrand wasn’t getting the return on investment that they craved.

But on the flipside, there is indeed the rewards, and not only from wins on the bike. It was not uncommon in the women’s peloton to find talented young riders that had been churned through the national system, who had lost their way after becoming fed up with the politics. We were able to offer them a lifeline to have another crack at their dreams and with the privilege endorsement behind them, they discovered revived excitement for a long lost affection of cycling.

And then there were those who really needed somebody else to believe in them, as they lacked belief in themselves. There was no greater feeling than evidencing the dignity and solidarity of a squad that worked together to execute a proposal, who sacrificed everything for each other, irrespective of whether it raised a acquire or not.

Lizzie Williams( left) after winning the 2014 Mersey Valley Tour.

And of course, there were the victories. There have been so many memorable moments over the years that it’s hard to choose the best. The most special were the only one “thats been” either unexpected or well deserved.

Bec Werner’s astonishing succes at Rymill Park at the 2012 TDU. Kimberley Wells’ thrilling upset at Richie Boulevard at the 2013 Bay Crits. Lizzie Williams’ comeback at Mersey Valley Tour in 2014. Sophie Mackay’s emphatic Nationals crit deed in 2016. Lucy Bechtel’s nail-biting win at Noosa 2017. Kate Perry’s GC victory at the 2018 Tour of the King Valley. Ella Bloor’s well deserved first place at the Tour of Gippsland in 2019. Jaime Gunning’s inspirational best young equestrian t-shirt at the 2019 TDU. The list of successes goes on and on.

Behind every podium, there was a dedicated, selfless crew devoting everything to make it all happen both on the motorcycle and behind the scenes. Each and every rider, staff member, and patron contributed in some way to the SWR family.

Jaime Gunning won the best young equestrian t-shirt at the 2019 TDU.

Not only was it a residence for domestic talent, we also had the good fortune of regular international guest equestrians such as Chloe Hosking, Loren Rowney, and Tiff Cromwell donning our t-shirt on many occasions, plying rare and invaluable ordeal for our crew to razz alongside the best in the world.

We had a lot of big advocates along the way. This team had an virulent lure and those who came along for one travel couldn’t wait to come back again. General managers and owneds of our small-scale and big business partners who became involved at a personal level, endowed their age where they weren’t obliged to. All composed the big home feel that Specialized Women’s Racing embodied.

The likes of Matt Englund and Jane Wilmott from Securitor cheering from the sideline of a Barossa vineyard, Peta Stewart investing not only her own fund but her time to mentor our equestrians and deliver morning chocolate runnings, Chris Stevens from CartGIS generously volunteering his personal equipment or standing in feed zones for hours, Johnny Polson from Black Sheep flipping a sausage sizzle on a hot Adelaide summer’s night, or Mick Brown from Specialized risking his life hanging out a moving auto space to fix a tangled radio wire. It has been such a tremendous team effort.

Kate Perry won the 2018 Tour of the King Valley for SWR.

To Johnny Polson, Nik Howe, Nicole Moerig, Brie Thomas and all the team at Black Sheep, you reformed the game for us. Your ingenuity and reflective material made things to a whole new level, approximately to a pitch where we couldn’t keep up with how quickly things were flourishing. You accompanied wanting and a case commitment to making a real inconsistency not only to women’s cycling within Australia, but to equestrians’ wellbeing worldwide.

To Sam Monardo, Justin White, Tony Smith, Laura Wilson, Emily Smith, Mick Brown, Dan Purkis, Tim Webster, and all the team from Specialized both past and present, it’s hard to choose words big enough to express our gratitude. For a whole decade “youve been” by our line-up, ready and able to support us for as long as we had the will to keep turning the pedals.

No challenge was ever too great and no need ever proceeded unanswered. You are the true meaning of special in Specialized Women’s Racing and the personal affections that have been formed are so far above and beyond that of a sponsorship.

For me it has been all about the person or persons. Like with any unit environment, the most integral part of making things labor was the relationships between those involved. Whether it was between equestrians, family members, faculty, patrons, episode organisers, or supporters, the culture within the team has worded the team’s legacy. I have relished the opportunity to work alongside so many fantastically talented and enthusiastic individuals who have left a lasting thought on me.

To Poppy( Ian) Jensen, Lauren Hooper, and all the staff and voluntaries who have worked with the team over the years, I couldn’t have done any of this without you. Your dedication to helping others for nothing more than personal satisfaction has been so greatly appreciated by all. Lastly to our DS Mark Brady, you have been the linchpin of the team and we are fortunate to have been inspired and guided by your precious knowledge and pragmatic leadership. I am so grateful for your support.

It has been an honour to create a small part of Australian cycling history. To have rendered a platform that granted so many beings so much enjoyment leaves me with a tremendous impression of respect. I will miss the camaraderie of the team, but I am satisfied that after 10 years I have given all that I could to progress our beautiful boast and I look forward to watching into the future as the next generation of units and expertises emerge.

Thank you to our fans and followers. It has been an incredible ride and a advantage to share our expedition with the Australian cycling community and beyond.

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