Peta Mullens (Seight) soloed to victory in Port Arlington, slipping away from the fragmented bunch with a mid-race attack. The Australian made her move as the pace in the peloton lulled following the fastest lap of the race. While the attack wasn’t the first of the stage, it was the only move with staying power.
Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle Down Under) led home the reduced peloton for second place ahead of Lauren Kitchen (Roxsolt). Kitchen’s podium assured her hold on the green sprinter’s jersey. Chloe Hosking (Wiggle Down Under), overall series leader and stage one winner, finished in fifth place to stay in yellow.
“I’m really happy with my form here and seeing as I’m only going to do a handful of road races this year because I want to focus on my Mountain Biking, getting a win already is great,” Mullens said.
“When I went broke away I was pretty knackered – I thought surely if I’m hurting the other girls are hurting and I went straight into tempo mode because I knew I didn’t have it in me to keep going that hard. So with four laps to go I actually eased up a bit then thought better of it as I don’t like to race that way and instead left it all out on the track,” Mullens said.
Today’s effort was Mullens’ best performance at The Bay Classic and is also her tenth consecutive year competing at the event.
Elite Women Stage 3 Results
Provisional
| Time/Gap | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 46 | Peta MULLENS | 45:53 | |||
| 2. | 1 | Giorgia BRONZINI (Wiggle Down Under) | +24 | |||
| 3. | 14 | Lauren KITCHEN (Roxsolt) | +24 | |||
| 4. | 10 | Elizabeth WILLIAMS (Orica-AIS) | +24 | |||
| 5. | 4 | Chloe HOSKING (Wiggle Down Under) | +24 | |||
| 6. | 42 | Miranda GRIFFITHS (Holden Women’s Cycling) | +24 | |||
| 7. | 48 | Tessa FABRY | +24 | |||
| 8. | 16 | Loren ROWNEY (Roxsolt) | +27 | |||
| 9. | 9 | Loes GUNNEWIJK (Orica-AIS) | +30 | |||
| 10. | 7 | Amanda SPRATT (Orica-AIS) | +30 | |||
| 11. | 53 | Nicole MOERIG | +32 | |||
| 12. | 55 | Kendelle HODGES | +32 | |||
| 43 | Shannon MALSEED (Holden Women’s Cycling) | +32 | ||||
| 45 | Racquel SHEATH (Holden Women’s Cycling) | +32 | ||||
| 54 | Lisa JACOBS | +32 | ||||
| 29 | Verita STEWART (Specialized Securitor) | +32 | ||||
| 19 | Kristy GLOVER (Bicycle Superstore) | +32 | ||||
| 15 | Carlee TAYLOR (Roxsolt) | +35 | ||||
| 20 | Tayla EVANS (Bicycle Superstore) | +35 | ||||
| 17 | Tiffany CROMWELL (Roxsolt) | +1:02 | ||||
| 13 | Joanne HOGAN (Roxsolt) | +1:02 | ||||
| dnf | 2 | Emilia FAHLIN (Wiggle Down Under) | ||||
| dnf | 5 | Jessica MUNDY (Wiggle Down Under) | ||||
| dnf | 6 | Georgia BAKER (Wiggle Down Under) | ||||
| dnf | 8 | Sarah ROY (Orica-AIS) | ||||
| dnf | 11 | Gracie ELVIN (Orica-AIS) | ||||
| dnf | 12 | Kimberley WELLS (Roxsolt) | ||||
| dnf | 18 | Emma VIOTTO (Bicycle Superstore) | ||||
| dnf | 22 | Nicole WHITBURN (Bicycle Superstore) | ||||
| dnf | 23 | Hayley JONES (Bicycle Superstore) | ||||
| dnf | 24 | Margeaux THOMPSON (BikeBug/Next Gen) | ||||
| dnf | 25 | Sarah KNIGHTS (BikeBug/Next Gen) | ||||
| dnf | 26 | Jessica LANE (BikeBug/Next Gen) | ||||
| dnf | 27 | Georgina BEECH (BikeBug/Next Gen) | ||||
| dnf | 30 | Sophie MACKAY (Specialized Securitor) | ||||
| dnf | 32 | Elizabeth DOUEAL (Specialized Securitor) | ||||
| dnf | 33 | Jasmine MCMILLAN (Specialized Securitor) | ||||
| dnf | 35 | Stephanie LORD (SUVELO Racing) | ||||
| dnf | 37 | Emily COLLINS (SUVELO Racing) | ||||
| dnf | 38 | Georgia WILLIAMS (Novotel Geelong) | ||||
| dnf | 39 | Sara FERRARRA (Novotel Geelong) | ||||
| dnf | 40 | Julia KALOTAS (Novotel Geelong) | ||||
| dnf | 41 | Chloe MCINTOSH (Novotel Geelong) | ||||
| dnf | 44 | Ruby GREIG-HURTIG (Holden Women’s Cycling) | ||||
| dnf | 47 | Ellen SKERRITT | ||||
| dnf | 57 | Samantha DE RITER | ||||
| dnf | 59 | Laura VAINIONPAA | ||||
| dns | 21 | Brittany LINDORES (Bicycle Superstore) | ||||
| dns | 31 | Claire TREMBATH (Specialized Securitor) | ||||
| dns | 34 | Marissa MADDEN (SUVELO Racing) | ||||
| dns | 36 | Karen ELZING (SUVELO Racing) |
- Number of starters: 48
- Riders abandoning the race: 26
Intermediate Sprints
Intermediate Sprint 1
| 1. | 14 | Lauren KITCHEN (Roxsolt) | 3 | pt | ||
| 2. | 1 | Giorgia BRONZINI (Wiggle Down Under) | 2 | |||
| 3. | 46 | Peta MULLENS | 1 |
Intermediate Sprint 2
| 1. | 46 | Peta MULLENS | 3 | pt | ||
| 2. | 45 | Racquel SHEATH (Holden Women’s Cycling) | 2 | |||
| 3. | 14 | Lauren KITCHEN (Roxsolt) | 1 |
General Classification
PROVISIONAL After Stage 3
| 1. | 4 | Chloe HOSKING (Wiggle Down Under) | 26 | pt | ||
| 2. | 14 | Lauren KITCHEN (Roxsolt) | 24 | |||
| 3. | 10 | Elizabeth WILLIAMS (Orica-AIS) | 20 | |||
| 4. | 46 | Peta MULLENS | 19 | |||
| 5. | 11 | Gracie ELVIN (Orica-AIS) | 17 | |||
| 6. | 1 | Giorgia BRONZINI (Wiggle Down Under) | 12 | |||
| 7. | 9 | Loes GUNNEWIJK (Orica-AIS) | 12 | |||
| 8. | 42 | Miranda GRIFFITHS (Holden Women’s Cycling) | 11 | |||
| 9. | 7 | Amanda SPRATT (Orica-AIS) | 8 | |||
| 10. | 37 | Emily COLLINS (SUVELO Racing) | 6 |
Sprint Ace Competition
PROVISIONAL After Stage 3
| 1. | 14 | Lauren KITCHEN (Roxsolt) | 12 | pt | ||
| 2. | 13 | Joanne HOGAN (Roxsolt) | 5 | |||
| 3. | 46 | Peta MULLENS | 5 | |||
| 4. | 11 | Gracie ELVIN (Orica-AIS) | 3 | |||
| 5. | 1 | Giorgia BRONZINI (Wiggle Down Under) | 2 | |||
| 6. | 4 | Chloe HOSKING (Wiggle Down Under) | 2 | |||
| 7. | 9 | Loes GUNNEWIJK (Orica-AIS) | 2 | |||
| 8. | 45 | Racquel SHEATH (Holden Women’s Cycling) | 2 | |||
| 9. | 7 | Amanda SPRATT (Orica-AIS) | 2 | |||
| 10. | 43 | Shannon MALSEED (Holden Women’s Cycling) | 1 |
Teams Classification
PROVISIONAL After Stage 3
| 1. | Orica-AIS | 52 | pt | |||
| 2. | Wiggle Down Under | 38 | ||||
| 3. | Roxsolt | 31 | ||||
| 4. | Holden Women’s Cycling | 13 | ||||
| 5. | SUVELO Racing | 6 | ||||
| 6. | Bicycle Superstore | 5 |