At the end of September, when the days get shorter, we cyclists head south to warmer climes. In Croatia, for example, it is still warm for longer in the fall. The 3500 km² peninsula on the Adriatic, Istria, is largely Croatian. This is where the famous Istria300 cycling race takes place. However, there is no weather guarantee there either. According to the weather forecast, rain and cool winds were expected in the week leading up to the race. The tide turned as the race approached. And so I was “short-short” in the starting block with the other starters on the morning of the race.

The Istria300 has been held in Istria since 2021. The event will take place in the beautiful port city of Porec, where the brand new Bike Center Porec opened this year. The Istria300 Ladies had already premiered in 2023. For female starters at the Istria300, there are special features such as a group ride for women only together with the Istria Ladies or a participant cycling kit for women. The kit design for 2024 was chosen by the 2023 participants. And this year, it was once again possible to vote for one of the three potential ladies’ kits for 2025. The motto of the event was: RIDE YOUR LIMITS. There are always three routes of different lengths to choose from. These are Istria155, Istria235 or Istria300, whereby the exact kilometers of the respective routes do not correspond exactly to the name of the race. Participants on all routes start together at the start in the port city of Porec, where the routes also finish. During the race, you can still decide which route you want to take at the appropriate junctions. The Istria300 was sold out again this year.

As I had been ill for a whole week immediately after the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon at the beginning of September and was also unable to train a week before the Istria300 due to a cold, I was initially unsure whether I would be able to start. However, as I felt well again the day before the race, I decided to tackle the Istria155. I felt very good throughout the race and took it easy on the short but frequent climbs.
Throughout the race, it makes sense to form groups so as not to have to fight the wind alone. The climbs are generally short. Unfortunately, there was a certain phenomenon this year, which was also reported to me by other participants in the race: Many riders were unwilling to take the lead in their respective groups. While other riders rotated and took turns in the lead, these riders hid behind others. So it often happened that I took the lead and closed gaps. As a small woman, I absolutely pedal less watts than a man and find it harder to reach high speeds on the flat. I don’t know whether it’s a kind of selfishness on the part of some riders or simply a lack of physical fitness that makes them refuse to lead a group.

It was a very dangerous moment for me this year. After the last refreshment station, a long descent to the sea awaited the participants. A group is particularly valuable here. As the group I was in was going quite slowly and not all the riders were leading, we were caught by another group. The formation of the group was somewhat lost. I was riding in the middle of the group. There was another rider in front of me, behind me and to my right. A cyclist caught up with me from behind and cycled to the left of me at the same height before suddenly pulling to the inside for no apparent reason and touching me. I got a bump and staggered to the right against the other rider. From there, I was thrown to the left against the other rider. Our gearshifts jammed and I got my left index finger stuck in his gearshift because he was braking. Our wheels touched. We both swung apart and in an attempt to keep our balance, we collided again. At that moment I thought that neither of us would regain our balance and we would crash. I thought: “ok, that’s it now”. Our bikes touched a second time and we both swayed again. The whole thing happened very quickly. Nevertheless, we both managed to regain our balance. The rider who touched me first didn’t touch me accidentally or “just a little”, but clearly pulled to the right. He also complained loudly to me during the incident. To this day, I still don’t know why this rider pulled to the inside. During the race, there were many riders who did not complete an overtaking maneuver, but instead stopped pedaling halfway up and cut into the front wheel of the rider being overtaken in order to catch the slipstream of the rider in front without having to accelerate any further. No hinting with your hand, just cutting in. In this case, however, there was no space in front of me. Everyone was driving tire to tire. I could neither swerve to the right nor brake hard. After the race, some of the riders in this group came up to me, including the rider who was directly behind me in this situation and the rider to my right. They all confirmed that I was completely powerless and that the other rider was clearly at fault. I would generally like to see more care and consideration from some cyclists. I can’t imagine what would have happened if I had crashed at that speed. In the end, I was delighted to come 8th out of 238 women on the short course.