Giddens breaks through pain barrier - May 2015

It was her final ride in New Zealand before heading back to her professional team in America so Wanganui's Hayley Giddens made sure she was up in the seat for a long time.

Giddens won the individual women's section of the Manfeild 6 Hour Cycle Challenge on Sunday, completing 223km around the 3km motor racing track. "I could walk [away], just not very fast," Giddens said of her physical state afterwards.

"Very challenging, I was probably too aggressive in my first two hours.

"I thought, 'oh my goodness, I'm in too much pain'."

Supported by coach Lyall Hastie, who had the water bottles ready, and her mother, Giddens worked to keep up with the 100-strong field, which consisted mostly of school and business house relay teams.

It meant she would be able to work in a bunch, but then lost them when the shift change happened and fresh legs took over.

Wearing the lucky horseshoe belly button ring her mother had gifted her, Giddens was determined to keep going for Mother's Day.

Another big help was Wanganui's Colin Wright, father of leading triathlete James, who rode with her as she tired when the day rolled on.

"I was in too much pain to be bored." Giddens was also able to put off using her asthma inhaler until the 190km mark, having worked out the best inhaler for her condition.

With a new trophy, Giddens will depart to rejoin her team in Wisconsin tomorrow.

One of her first races of the season is also one of her favourites - Iowa's Snake Alley Criterium, which includes racing up an 84m alley once named by Ripley's Believe It Or Not as the most crooked alley in the world.

Wanganui Chronicle article 12/5/15.