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The last race of the spring season passed by a few weeks ago. I was pretty excited to race but I knew the fields would be small. It was one of the hottest weekends ever after 3 straight weekends of races.
The womens 3/4 and womens 1,2,3 field managed a combined total of 10 riders. A lot of the big names were gone. I was feeling good. In the warm up my legs weren’t even tired. I was stoked to race and felt confident that I could pull out a win.
Saturday’s course was near a mile long. The finish was at the top of a little hill with a sharp corner at the bottom. From there we climbed up to the final sharp corner about 500 meters out from the finish. At 300 meters there was a small bend, a little incline, and a straight shot to the finish line.
For the first several laps 1 rider was constantly attacking. She attacked on the downhill after the line and took a bad line through the sharp right turn. She rolled hard off the road but luckily the field avoided crashing. She didn’t rejoin the race.
With her gone the race lost its excitement. No one was strong enough to solo off the front so we kept a steady tempo.
1 lap to go: I was ready. I fought for 3rd wheel around the final sharp corner. As we straightened out the field panned out to 4 abreast. We were all looking at each other. As we made it to the bend i jumped hard. I got the gap and held it to the line. My first win as a pro,1,2,3.
Sunday’s course was harder. It was a 35 mile road race with a few of Florida’s harder climbs. I was excited and nervous.
For the first lap I sat in the field. I was watching everyone seeing who was strongest. On lap two I launched an attack on the big climb. I got another girl with me but we didn’t work together and the field shut it down.
The race was pretty much the same every lap. I raced attentive and towards the front and got in some moves that had a chance at working but got shut down. With 1 lap to go I started to conserve for the finish.
At the start of the final lap I could feel my legs tighten up when i would stand. I knew the sprint would be super hard. From the final corner I was first wheel. It was a little too far and I got passed by 1 rider. I still managed a second place but was slightly bummed that I didn’t pull out a win.
It was nice to kind of end on a high. I have a couple months off of racing and then the fall season. The only big race left is the State Road Race. Maybe I can snag a jersey this year! =)
Ciao
Well after a few weeks of down time the races have finally started up again. I had competed in the State Crit as my first cat 2 race but an untimely cold left me with a result that was more than unsatisfying. In the week leading up to the Melbourne weekend I was hungry to race, dying for a win, and stoked out of my mind.
The course was in an uncompleted subdivision. It was pancake flat with hardly anything to block the wind. It was about 2 1/2 miles long with the final corner over 1000 meters from the finish. It was a long drag to the line with a stiff cross wind from the left.
At the start I was super nervous. I can’t remember the last time I was that nervous/excited. Something was different about this race, in my mind something had clicked. I was ready to go. In the past couple races I have blown trying to get into the break only to find that when the sprint comes around I’m spent. My race plan was RACE SMART. If I missed the break, I missed it, but I was going to well in that finish.
From the gun there was an attack. Everyone looked to Tina Schofield (Team Z-Motion) and Julie Jerue (unattached) to pull it back. The two man break had gotten a sizeable gap in the tail wind but Tina went to the front and hammered it until the field was back together.
The next lap was uneventful. All the girls were looking around waiting for the move to happen. Half way through the 3rd lap it did. Julie went. She had a decent gap and the field slowly jumped to close it down. Tina reacted fast. She was soon up the road with Julie and in about 5 minutes the field shutdown.
The rest of the race was rather slow. Any chase attempt was blocked by Julies 2 teammates in the field and no one was seriously committed to chasing down the breakaway. I settled in for the sprint.
As we came up on the final corner I was boxed in. I slid to the back and hammered around the field in the corner up to 3rd wheel. I was tucking into the field hiding from the wind. I was set. Around 600 meters to go an attack went up on my right. I quickly jumped onto her wheel and got ready to go. Around 300 meters the line just came into view the girl in front of me was fading. She pulled to the left and I jumped. I could see shadows behind me but I just kept focused on the line. It hurt really badly, but a final lunge for the line, and I'd won my first women’s 1, 2, 3 field sprint.
My finish was good enough for 3rd. It still isn’t the win I’m gunning for but it sure did feel good. I learned a lot in the race, gained some confidence, and I can’t wait to get out and race again. My next race is not for 3 weeks. I’m going to be getting in solid training and can hopefully get a good finish put together.
ciao
