I came into Friday not really sure if I was racing either the Swan Island Criterium Saturday or the Salem Fairview circuit race Sunday, much less both.  But both it was, and I’m glad I did.

As a newly minted cat 3 I’m not particularly worried about getting top results immediately.  Instead, I’m much more focused on working for the team and making some other teams take note of my number.  I think that might be happening, as after yesterday I had several riders from other teams recognize me today.

First up, Swan Island.  It’s a short criterium course about 1 kilometer long with two 90 degree corners and a gradual 180.  Our race was 45 minutes plus two laps.  I came into the race wanting to take a prime and then work for another teammate in the final sprint.  The race started off fast and fairly early on I figured out that they seemed to be calling primes out every other lap.  As such, I decided to attack off the front of the race on a non-prime lap and then hold on for two laps to take the prime.  The first time I did this I caught another rider up the road and we worked together for a lap, and then he fell off my pace.  I got caught by another rider that had attacked off the front and ended up getting worked over as he sat my wheel and came around me in the sprint.  I knew this was going to happen, and tried in vain to shake him off my wheel.

A few laps later I went again, this time coming into a prime lap just before we got to the finish line.  I was making an educated guess that it would be a prime lap and was happy to hear the bell as we came through the finish line.  This time I managed to get away, catch the one rider up the road and promptly pass him, and stay away for the rest of the lap to take the prime.  I now have $25 to spend at Quiznos!

After winning the prime I rested up and then got back to the front to make sure things stayed together for Robin in the final sprint.  I chased down a few attacks and found myself a good spot near the front.  With just over one lap to go, Ironclad (another team) brought a leadout train to the front of four riders.

Note: It’s important for this recap to understand what a leadout train is.  Basically, at the end of a race the pace will intensify and speed up drastically as everyone tries to make their way to the front of the race to position for the sprint.  A lead out train is a team that lines up several riders in front of their sprinter they want to win.  They get the pace extremely high at the front of the race so that no one can come around them.  The lead rider of the train goes until he starts to lose speed and then peels off for the next rider to continue the high pace.  If it’s done correctly, the last rider will peel off just as the sprint is beginning giving their team’s sprinter perfect positioning and a clear shot at the win.

If it’s done correctly being the key part of that last sentence.  Ironclad brought enough guys to the front and coming through the finish with one lap to go I had Robin sitting in perfect position – 4 ironclad riders, myself, and then Robin.  You can see the lineup in this photo (I’m hiding behind rider #4, you can see my helmet).

Anyway, so things were fine and dandy and my plan was to come around the leadout train just before the last corner to give Robin his own leadout into the sprint.  Things went wrong when Ironclad’s lead rider never peeled off and the pace started to die down at the front.  A huge swarm of riders came around them to the right side, and I tried to go around them to the left.  As I started to pass them, they moved left and forced me straight into a sewer grate on the side of the road.  I made quite a scene of bunny hopping the grate as my back wheel came down on the far lip of the grate and I half-bumped the Ironclad rider next to me.  I managed to sprint back up to near the front of the race, but at that point I’d burned my last match trying to get to the front and had nothing left to give a leadout.  Robin  managed to still take 4th, which was great.

Salem Fairview Circuit Race took place today (in Salem, not surprisingly).  It’s a 1.9 mile course with a gradual rolling uphill and downhill, followed by a flat section (with a tailwind today) into the finish.  The race was 50 minutes plus one lap.  We had a great turnout from Team Oregon, and I had 9 teammates in the race.  My plan was to attack and attack some more in order to make things interesting at the front.  That’s pretty much exactly what I managed to do.  Swan Island was all about attacking wisely and then recovering.  Today was more about attacking with reckless abandon and throwing the whole “recovery” thing out the window.

I attacked immediately from the start of the race and ended up going the first three laps plus a bit solo off the front (nearly 6 miles).  I was caught by two riders that bridged up to me – a Hutchs team rider and teammate Robin.  We stayed away off the front for another two laps, during which time I won a prime uncontested ($10 plus a coffee table book and t-shirt today).  As soon as we got caught I got myself back to the front and one lap later I was attacking off the front of the race again.  This one didn’t stick.  I attacked again.  Didn’t stick.  Then I chased another attack, but couldn’t get clear of the pack.  After spending nearly the first half of the race off the front, I was digging deep, but I refused to stop attacking.  Anytime I got near the front of the race I mustered whatever I could get out of my legs and attacked again.  I think all told I ended up attacking or chasing at the front 8-9 times in 12 laps.  I’d pretty much blown myself up with two laps to go and just struggled to hang on going up the climb.  The last lap I actually fell off the pace on the climb and had to give it everything I had left just to get back into the pack on the descent.  I came into the finish towards the back of the field, but we did have a teammate take 2nd.

I had a blast trying to kick my butt as much as I possibly could, and I don’t think I’ve ever been as spent after an hour long race as I was today.  I got back to the car with my legs shaking and mild dizziness.  And I’ve now won 3 primes in my last 3 short-course races I’ve done!

Check out our team at the race today:

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