The Hincapie Spring Training Series is the "official" opening to
the race season, and provides an opportunity to test our legs against all the
region's biggest teams, and even some pro riders! The Donaldson Center hosted
both days of the first weekend, and both of those days presented completely
different racing conditions.
Unlike the warm spring conditions of day one, a cold, wind-driven
rain poured over us throughout the entire race on day two. In hopes of staying
warm and dry for as long as possible, Dylan and I got no warm-up in what turned
out to be a bad gamble. About half as many riders lines up as on the previous
day, including several dozen former and neo-professional riders itching for
early results. We ripped out of the gates and into the water like a speedboat,
with the wind and rain immediately taking tolls on us all. We fought to maintain
contact, temporarily dropped in a crosswind section but brought back by a heroic
effort from Dylan. A small break had established 15-20 seconds on the field,
with remaining teammates happy to defend them from behind. The pace slowed to a
near standstill, severely clogging the front. Despite having just suffered a few
heart attacks, I made my way to the front and took the first opportunity I could
to jump across to the break. In an effort to establish dominance, I immediately
took to the front of the group and took a pull. This ol’ silverback loves a
laugh, and that’s just what he got! As soon as I retreated to the rear of the
group, I noted that the field was chasing and would consume us within a few
seconds. Anticipating that the counter would be the move that stuck, I stood up
and tried to respond but my legs were rocks. I was unable to cover it, and
watched a group roll away. I jumped back into the already decimated field and
hoped that it would come back. It did not, and everyone seemed content to finish
together and chat. I rolled in for a top-20 finish.
The series’ holds its only criterium on the BMW Performance Center
test track. A crash in the preceding race delayed the start of our race by an
hour. Everyone was ready to roll and it was fast from the gun. The winds howled,
but criteriums generally offer predictable conditions. I covered practically
every significant move, really hopeful that something would stick. Luck would
not have it, and the race ended in a massive field sprint. Out of contention, I
opted to roll in with the field to fight another day.
Wanting badly to come out of the series with a result of which we
could be proud, five of us lined up at the River Falls Road Race with the hopes
of enduring all ten ascents of its arduous climb. My legs were aflame from the
first time up the hill on, and only once did I feel good on it. The rest of the
team appeared to feel the fatigue of the past few weeks and we did what we could
to cover attacks. With a few laps to go I came out of hiding to follow a few
wheels myself, but the riders I followed were heavily marked and those attacks
were short-lived. I felt my best throughout the last lap, but with speeds
exceeding 50mph, maintaining good position going into a finishing climb that had
already killed me nine times prior was not in the cards. I did move up, but
could not match the speeds of those already in front of me and the race ended
just before I could win it.
I look forward to our next race together, as we all have a lot to
learn from one another and I think we all expect great things from our
collective organization, including each of our generous sponsors, without which
none of this would be possible: Earthfare, Industry Nine,
Specialized/Cycle Sport Concepts, Highland Brewing, Mamacitas, Blue Sky M.D.,
DNA Cycling, Carbo Rocket, DeFeet, HD Coaching, Omnium Bodyworks, Peak 10, and
ABRC (check them all out on our facebook page!).
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