Crit Nationals Recap

One word to describe the women’s pro championships:

WHAT!?!?!?

Yep, who knows what was going on out there.  Certainly not me.  It was a haze of suffering.  The course was actually not a crit course being well over a mile in length and about as wide open as you could get.   The rain was coming down before our race, so the roads were wet, but the course was not technical at all.  Geez was it hard though.  Somewhat shockingly so.  When I finally saw lap cards I was relieved.  Then I saw our time and was overcome with dread.  We still had another good 30 min more to race.  Unlike all of our crits this year which have been about an hour in length, the crit championships was 1.5 hours.  Allison Powers of NOW and Amanada Miller of Tibco broke away about 15 minutes into the race.  With two full teams not represented in the break, no one thought the two would stay away for so long.  Stay away they did....although the gap came down to 7 seconds in the end.  In the last laps, my legs said no more.   I was thoroughly spent after an hour and a half with no place for recovery.  For whatever reasons I kept getting gaped on the downhills even though I was hauling.  I finished 29th.   Allison took the victory, Amanda in 2nd, and Theresa Cliff-Ryan won the field sprint.    

All in all a great experience and an honor to compete in the event.  The women’s field outnumbered the men’s field  which was neat and equal prize money was offered to both fields.  Good stuff.  Many of us are hopeful the race modifies the course next year for the 2014 Pro Crit Championship to better highlight the skills and strengths of the crit racers in the country.  A great trip despite the suffering on the road, and a huge thank you to all of my sponsors who made it possible!  Also, much thanks to Vanessa Drigo, Diego Garavito, and his family who hosted me and cheered me on in the race.

Some photos:

The calm before the storm...pre-race ride in Charlotte

Start/Finish straight

Tune in live! Pro race 4:50 EST. go to High Point Cycling Classic!!!

Looking forward to...

Pro Crit Championships tomorrow in High Point, NC!  SKINourishment p/b Paceline Projects will line up to race at 4:30 PM EST.  Stay tuned!  *Also, SKINourishment's website launched today...go take a look!  I don't leave home without my Climb On Lip Tube or my Climb On Mineral Sunscreen- two of my absolute favorites!

Prairie State Cycling Series Recap

Hello- SKINourishment p/b Paceline Projects had a successful last four days of NCC racing in Chicago!  I was joined last minute by guest-rider Vanessa Drigo from the Rose Bandits squad and was happy to have a teammate in the races sporting the team's sweet Pactimo Summit kits.

Vanessa Drigo on the attack

The NCC races began in Beverly, IL Thursday evening. Luckily, Steven and Jose from SRAM came to the rescue with a new shifter.  The race would have been challenging without the ability to change gears on this fun, but not at all flat, course.   Huge thank you to SRAM once again for saving the day!  The bike was ready to race with about 5 minutes to spare, so I was slightly frazzled in the heat, wanting to get water, and maybe a warm up lap of the course before the whistle went off.  Luckily, I had enough time to do both.  Vanessa was aggressive early in the race, winning a generous prime.  I was a bit more conservative working on getting into the groove of the field and taking the corners.  Maybe it was the couple days off the bike before the race.... maybe all the travel.... but I felt strange on the bike and not at all smooth.  People were aggressive, especially with all the primes being given out.  In the final laps, Kelly Fisher-Goodwin from Fearless Femme attacked and held it for the win.  In the last lap the rain started to come down which made for a sketchy downhill corner into the finish.   Folks went down, or off the road to avoid the pile-up.  I managed to narrowly get around the crash and sprinted to the line for 10th.   

Friday we traveled to Elmhurst for the second race of the series.  I don't remember much of the race besides suffering in the heat.  After going for a prime, Carrie Cash from Pepper Palace and I had a decent gap and worked to get a break going, but eventually we were caught.  I didn't have much left in the legs at that point and couldn't contest the sprint.  Rolled in at 20th.  Recovered well that night in my super fun fort the Chiang's set up for me and made s'mores with Amelia and Elise.

The race tent!

The sweetest ride

Saturday morning, the girls took their mini motorcycle out to motor pace me down the street to meet up with Laura Van Gilder and Sara Tussey for a nice spin before our evening race in Lake Bluff.  We got to cheer on Michael and Diego in their races and appreciated a dip in the temperature compared to the previous day.  When our race started, it was pretty aggressive from the get-go.  Also, a very fun course with lots of corners.  Both Vanessa and I won primes.  Unfortunately, we were both out of position when the winning break went.  I moved up when the split happened and tried to bridge by myself, but was too late.   So, we raced in what was left of the field and had a lot of fun with the course.  In the final laps Vanessa was awesome with a lead-out.  She's so strong and such a great bike handler... it was awesome to be on her wheel.  I overcooked the second to last super narrow corner and did some mild off-road action though.  I didn't loose a ton of speed so when I got back onto the pavement I just took off.  Super early.  Maybe from 700 plus meters out?  Early.  I held it until right before the line when Kelly from the Fearless Femmes passed me like I was standing still.  I came in 8th for the day and Vanessa 12th.

Race photos thanks to Michael!

Sunday, we were off to St. Charles for the last race of the series.  The course was interesting.  We crossed the water twice going over bridges, the start/finish was slightly downhill and not all straight, and in general the course was a bit windy and wide.  I went off the front after a prime and felt like I was blown backwards when I crossed the water heading onto the backside of the course.  I was relieved when I was joined by 3 others and then later on came a larger group.  Erica Allar (Care4Cycling) went by me, Laura (Mellow Mushroom) pulled through, and then I tried to pull after Laura, but could barely get around her.  The rest of the field followed soon after.  Despite more attacks, the field stayed together until the end.  Vanessa and I were game for another lead-out, but I lost her wheel and then we ended up on opposite sides of the field.  The last corner was slightly uphill into the wind and if there was a fast way through that corner, I certainly couldn't find it.  The sprint was further slowed down by an almost crash and seemed like I was starting the sprint from zero.  I finished 7th and Vanessa 8th for the day, and I ended up 8th overall.  Vanessa, Diego, and I ended the Chicago racing trip spending a nice evening with the Chiangs which included a concert by the girls.  Up early Monday to the airport-thankful to Diego for the lift so I could make my way home to UT.

Continually SO grateful for all the wonderful support I receive from sponsors, family, and friends. Pretty sure most made it in this shot from Elmhurst (Smith Optics, Road ID, Veloforma, Syntace, State Wheels, Gnar Lube, Pactimo, Prana, Outback Bikes, Honey Stinger, Arundel, Michelin, Bont)!  Note the absence of crazy tan lines thanks to SKINourishment's awesome sunscreen.  Arnicare kept my legs feeling good day after day.  Unofficial cupcake sponsor:  Pepper Palace Pro Cyclist Carrie Cash and Chris Roettger!  Last but not least, a HUGE thank you to the Chiang family for being so much fun, fueling us with Regina's amazing cooking, and cheering us on at the races.

Thankful for all the support! 

Boise

Hi all- Traveled to Boise, ID this past weekend to race in the Boise Twilight Crit.  I have to say, these past several weekends of "local" racing have been a nice break from all the time spent schlepping a bike box through airports which is a must for the majority of the racing season.   Matt and I drove to Boise the day of the crit and arrived with plenty of time before the race.  Laura Van Gilder had invited us to stay with her in Boise, so we settled in and then rode over to the course to  check-in for our race at 7pm.  The race was fun and pretty smooth...unlike last year when the clouds opened up spitting rain and people were going down left and right.  Exergy and Primal were the most aggressive and represented teams out there, with some dangerous breaks and lots of prime winning.  I got to where I needed to be in the last several laps and stayed towards the front.  With three to go I was on Tiffany Pezzulo's wheel, but then in the re-shuffling of 2 laps to go found myself no longer on a good wheel and in poor position.  Not sure what happened...regained some of the aggressiveness I lost in that 1 lap to get back up to the front, hauled it into the last turn, and sprinted to the finish not gaining or loosing much ground on anyone.  Finished 11th.  Clearly fighting for position in those last laps has been a challenge for me.  One of these days.....

SKINourishment p/b Paceline Projects and Mellow Mushroom spin through Boise

Coffee...bacon...gnar. 

After the race, we went to FORK...which is now a Boise Twilight tradition.  Enjoyed a great dinner and dessert :) with Matt and Laura.  Super awesome company and a neat place Boise.

The next day, we decided to stick around for the ID Crit Championships.  Matt and I went to BACON for breakfast, another Boise Twilight tradition.  After enjoying a tasty breakfast, I left with a maple bacon, oat, chocolate chip, and walnut cookie.  A treat for the long ride back to UT that may have been nibbled on here and there throughout the day.  The women raced with the masters guys and a lot of UT riders came out which made for an aggressive race.  The race doesn't offer any prize money, but usually offers cash primes.  I'm not oppose to this approach for local racing actually and think it makes for a fun racing atmosphere.  I was definitely wishing I was not alone in the race though, as it seemed like Primal and the DNA riders were going off the front constantly (with the guys too) and I was getting pretty tired out there in the heat.  I heard the bell ring for a prime and heard either 50 or 15, so decided to go for it and won it.   After multiple attacks, Tiffany went off the front towards the end of the race again and held it.  I came in 2nd for the field sprint.  Glad to get some water and into the shade.  After the race folks were wondering why I went so hard for the prime. Turns out it was a cookie prime.  Well, I'm all for cookie primes too... Kim & Jake's Cakes has sponsored cake primes before, and I've entered races solely to compete for those primes.  Watts well spent if you ask me.  So when I found out it was a cookie prime I wasn't bent out of shape that it wasn't a cash prime.  I'll admit though I was slightly put off when I went to collect the prime and was thrown a bag of melted subway cookies, like the leftovers from the volunteers' lunch cookies. Oh well, at least the course was good and the women raced hard.  Plus I did have some of my bacon and chocolate cookie left.  Delicious.

Next on the calendar... Prairie State Crits in Chicago.  4 days of crit racing starting tomorrow!

A little California Sunshine

Hello all- back from a very brief adventure in southern California!  Matt and I packed up the car Friday afternoon and began the trip south shooting for Vegas.  Got to Vegas and we weren't especially interested in stopping.  It's very hot in the desert.  The record temp reading on our trip was 115 degrees.   Yeah.  We pushed on straight to CA.

We stopped for the night conveniently close to the San Dimas tt course which meant I knew exactly what my pre-race ride was going to be like the next day.  Fun and not at all flat.  It was also hot, but not 115 and the roads were closed to cars which made for a sweet ride up Glendora Mountain Rd to Mt. Baldy village and then down to the Claremont area.  

The rest of Saturday was spent enjoying a delicious meal with east coast friend who just moved out to CA, Robbie King.  Very fun to catch up with him and they were good natured waiting for me to make very difficult decisions when it came to my dessert.  Frozen yogurt with over 20 toppings to choose from...not an easy decision.  If you're interested...in the end, my final combo was vanilla frozen yogurt with brownies, coconut, caramel, and rainbow sprinkles.

Perfect post-ride recovery nutrition

Sunday, woke up fairly early to make it across LA to Manhattan Beach and try to catch the end of Peta's (new friend made at ToAD) race.  Not too much traffic until we got to Manhattan Beach.  Parking... geez.  Unfortunately I missed her finish, but still was able to catch up with her- she's a fun lady.  The Pro Women's field was a little on the smaller side-- there was a large CA contingent with several teams well represented and a handful of solo riders like myself.  There were many gift primes from race sponsors, essentially every lap.  I won a one night stay at the Hyatt- fancy, fancy.  Despite the constant opportunity for primes, the race was a little on the mellow side.  Or maybe a long ride in the mountains works well for my legs before a crit?  More likely, the lack of representation in terms of numbers from big teams, no cash primes, and a fast/wide and non-technical course meant that the race wasn't the hardest race we've done this year.  Heading into the last lap I got myself into good position.  I had Laura Van Gilder's wheel heading into the last sweeping corner, but lost it to Sam Schneider who didn't stay long on the wheel and attacked along the outside of the final corner.  That moment of reshuffling and not being committed meant I lost the good position in that one corner and was in the worst position into the last 200 meters or so of the finish.  I passed a couple in that last bit, but was kinda kicking myself for not being more aggressive.   I finished 8th for the day.  Erica Allar, Sam Schneider, and Laura Van Gilder went 1, 2, 3.    

Made a quick exit from Manhattan Beach...stopped long enough to get a quick picture of the ocean....then hauled it home to SLC.  

Next crit battle?  Boise Twilight Crit on Saturday.  Yep, that's handmade armour.  Chain mail made with re-purposed can tabs by friend Josh...pretty impressive. 

Allan Butler Crit

Hello all,
Not too much time this week to sit down to write...or ride for that matter.  Busy busy.   Quick little snippet though...

Last Saturday, Matt and I drove north to Idaho Falls for the Allan Butler Crit.   We've done the race for several years now and it's always a fun one.  Unfortunately, few people travel for this one which is a shame because it's a great course (lots of corners but very smooth and you can keep a good speed and flow throughout the race) and the people are awesome, and the prizes are good too.  Fireworks for primes?  I certainly wouldn't play with fireworks, especially in this arid climate....but folks here like their firework celebrations a seemingly daily event in Utah during July.  Anywho.   I  dig the sentiment.  What better prize for a rider lighting it up in the race?

So, no women came.  What a different perspective racing when you already know you'll win!  Maybe I was being presumptuous... what's the likelihood that I would crash myself out of the race though? :)  Not worried about results whatsoever, I HAD A BLAST.  Its been a little bit since I've had that much fun in a race.  They put me in with one of the guys fields and I enjoyed it.  There was a break that went on to win, but our group was good and worked together well.  On the last lap I attacked into the second to last corner, lead into the last, then unleashed the sprint which I haven't been able to use in quite a long time, and won the bunch sprint.  The sprint felt good and the crowd liked it too.  Lots of cheering from the Idaho fans,"You go girl!"

Matt's race was also fun to watch...well kinda... the rain came in and literally every lap there was a crash... a littler nerve racking.  They stopped the race and re-started when the roads cleared a bit.  Matt was in the break of 3 that stayed away, so we left Idaho with some neat trophies.  Oh and the Great Harvest on the course MADE me take treats for the ride home.  Yum.

On another note, Vanessa Drigo and boyfriend Diego are in town.  Fun to have them stay with us on their trip across country.   Connecting with them again in a few days for Manhattan Beach GP in California!  Until the next report... stay Gnar everyone!

I wish this picture was scratch & sniff so you all could experience the delightful  scents of vanilla and coconut greeting me as I opened this gnar package from Gnar Lube.  Go check out their stuff!  It's awesome and super fun.