Frustrated by her race rivals' lack of ambition, cyclist Julia Hawley decided to take matters into her own hands in Saturday's road race at the Pan-Am Games.

It was lap four in the 85 kilometre race on the streets of Santo Domingo when Hawley grabbed the bull by the horns and made her move.

"I tried a little attack and nearly got away," said the 39-year-old.

Unfortunately, the rest of the field opted to sit tight and no-one took up the Bermudian's challenge, meaning her efforts were fruitless.

"It was a pretty good move but it was unfortunate that no one came with me," she said. "I actually got a decent gap but it was difficult to maintain it as the course was so straight and flat.

"I had to try it and from a racing perspective, I think it was good."

As it turned out, Hawley was drawn back in and eventually finished the seven-lap race in 22nd position in two hours, 21.29 seconds, ten seconds behind winner and gold medallist Joanka Gonzalez of Cuba. Janildes Silva of Brazil took silver and Yeilin Fernandez of Cuba bronze.

Hawley's courageous move, though futile as it turned out, drew praise from pre-race favourite Clara Hughes of Canada.

"Clara said it was good and so I felt pretty good about that," said Hawley. "OK, today it didn't stick but one day it will and it's good to know that I can do it."

As races go, it was pretty uneventful with the pack's fear of Hughes largely to blame.

"Everyone was marking Clara and it just made it very negative. It didn't matter what she did, everyone just followed her," said Hawley.

"At one point there was a group that got away containing the major countries. But then some of them started attacking their own riders. It wasn't very good as far as race tactics were concerned. It was like riding a criterium in the States, it was like attack, attack, attack and everyone was just pulling everyone else back."

At that point Hawley said she knew it was going to come down to a sprint finish.

"I was hoping I could actually try a little attack on the slight uphill approach to the finish, but the thing was by the time we turned the corner they (the leaders) were already going full tilt," she said. "You then just have to go as hard as you can, but realistically it was a sprinters' race at that point."

Hawley, a mother of two who turns 40 next week, believes she still has a couple of years of international racing left in her and if her Pan-Am performances are anything to go by, the best maybe yet to come.

In the past 12 months alone she has seen competition at the Commonwealth Games, the Island Games, the `B' World Championships and here in the Dominican Republic.

"I was in the race today and I was thinking to myself I really love bike riding and I love racing," she said. "I still feel really strong, so I think I have to set some good goals next year and see how it goes."