AusCycling under 19 road nationals boosts cyclist Eddie Worrall's confidence

It comes after the Warrnambool teenager finished 21^st in his first AusCycling under 19 road race in Ballarat on Saturday.

Worrall, 16, finished the 104.4-kilometre Buninyong-based course three minutes and 49 seconds behind winner Dylan George.

The emerging cyclist, who is also adept on the track, said the 267km 'Warrny' was a long-term goal. Riders must be 18 to compete.

"I'd absolutely love to Melbourne to Warrnambool when I am old enough," he said.

"It is definitely a race I will be targetting. I have done a few training runs about 200km but not a race that long, so it would be a big challenge."

Worrall said he was "pretty chuffed" with his performance at the road nationals.

He said the course was testing and a tyre puncture was an added complication.

"It was a nine-lap circuit and the break went up the road about two laps in," Worrall said.

"Everyone chased them back slowly and people started getting left out the back as the pace went up.

"The last two laps most of us were all together and then I got a flat rear tyre.

"These things happen when you're racing, there was nothing I could really do about it so I just had to solider on." The Emmanuel College student described the course as "savage".

"It is a pretty brutal course. It is about a 12km circuit and there is a really big hill, from basically the start line to halfway and then it's a nice hard technical descent," Worrall said.

"In our race it was mid-teens (temperature-wise) and started raining about halfway through.

"It was a little bit sketchy on some of the corners, I'd just take it a bit easier."

Worrall said he was content with how he performed among elite company.

"I was one of the top-five bottom-agers," he said.

"The people here are the best in Australia, from every state the best riders come and just fly.

"I was really happy with my positioning in the bunch. I was always near the front of the group, found good positions and going into the corners I was always on the front and I never got boxed in."

Camperdown's Bailey McDonald (+49.53) finished in 47^th while Warrnambool's Noah Morton recorded a did not finish result.

Camperdown export Grace Brown won silver in the women's road race on Sunday.

Brown finished 1.16 behind winner Sarah Hoy, who completed the course in three hours, one minute and 52 seconds.

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