SHE never expected to be in the top 10 but on Sunday, Alex Banner created history in the 2023 Rockley Cup.
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Banner won the Bathurst Cycling Club road race ahead of Tim Roebuck and Luca Telfer in second and third respectively, in turn becoming the first ever Bathurst female winner of the race.
She said "climbing isn't really my thing", so she understandably wasn't feeling too confident going into the race that features three major mount climbs.
"When Tim and I got to that final climb and we realised no one had caught up to us, we still thought people were going to come flying past us at the last minute," she said.
"It was a surprise to the very end, until we actually got over the line."
Banner was full of praise for Roebuck.
The pair of them worked together for the entire race, battling constant headwinds, but it was ultimately Banner who finished ahead of Roebuck with only a millisecond between them.
"I knew we had to stick together because riding into that wind as a solo rider is just hard work. Working together makes a big difference," she said.
"We made it up the first climb of Mount Rockley together and then we we just tried to stick together.
"I think that's actually the reason why we did come first and second.
"As we turned at Rockley and came back, we obviously started to see all the other riders and lot of them had split on that climb and were riding solo, which would have been really hard work.
"So while there were some exceptional riders in the field, I think it was purely the fact that we stuck together the whole ride that made the difference."
it was the first Banner had ever competed in the Rockley Cup, after missing out in last year's race because of sickness.
She said she was both "excited" and "overwhelmed" to have won the race.
"Having seen some of the names on the trophy, there were some strong women riders in the past," she said.
"I feel very privileged and lucky that I've actually managed to be the first Bathurst women to win it.
"I don't consider myself anywhere near the calibre of some of the other women who have had their name engraved on that cup. I was very excited and overwhelmed to be honest."
Banner thanked the organisers from the Bathurst Cycling Club for putting on an "exceptionally well run event" and for all their "support and encouragement".
"It can be scary putting yourself forward to race but they always do their best to ensure everyone is safe and supported throughout the whole race," she said.
Jenna Gallagher won the Pebble Cup, while Orange's Will Ward won the Little Rock Cup.
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