Last year's Sturt Street criteriums were blazingly hot, with riders suffering through 40 degree heat.
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This year's couldn't be more different.
By the end of the elite men's race, the temperature had dropped to about 11 degrees, and almost 10mm of rain had fallen.
The riders faced a headwind on the climb up the hill, and the Lydiard Street hairpin claimed dozens of victims this year as the rain made the course slippery for even the most experienced riders, particularly on the white-painted traffic lines.
During the under 19 women's race, branding attached to the crowd barriers caught the wind and blew into a rider, causing a crash - young Chelsea Symons was taken to hospital and several other riders were involved.
The squealing of the brakes seemed to begin earlier in every lap as the elite riders took the corner with more and more caution, but there was still tactical racing and tight lines.
In the elite men's Sam Welsford won from a breakaway, while a photo finish in the slightly shortened elite and under 23 women's race saw Chloe Hosking walk away national champion.
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Cycling Australia's sports general manager Kipp Kaufmann said they were two deserving winners.
"It's different this year, usually it's hot, this year suited a different kind of rider," he said.
"But to have two track world champions, and Chloe Hoskings is one of the best in the world, shows the willingness to keep racing."
The rain was not unexpected, he added, and riders would have been prepared.
"Maybe there was a bit more rain than we were expecting, but it was within our plans," he said.
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"We've been dealing with it - the council helped us out with a special cleaning of the course (on Friday) morning so no oil was left on the course, and make it as safe as possible."
Several riders remained positive despite the rain, and commented it was a challenging but fun race.
The crowd numbers appeared slightly down on last year, though most were clustered undercover in front of Sturt Street's boutiques.
The Golden City Hotel's balcony seemed like the place to be - certainly, it appeared to be one of the driest.
The day began with the fixed gear race, on a modified course around Lyons Street in pleasant but cloudy weather.
One could tell who had been at the race all day by the footwear, as anyone wearing thongs was caught short as conditions deteriorated.
The event continues across the weekend with the prestigious road races in Buninyong, with para-cycling, under 19, and under 23 men on Saturday, and the under 23 and elite women and elite men on Sunday.
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