Post by wcuracer on Apr 27, 2008 13:39:47 GMT -5
Well for starters we had the Greenwood Criterium which was the qualifier for the evening event. My goal was to not use a lot of energy because I knew if I qualified I would have another tough race coming up. Qualifying was easy. There was a huge break go up the road which basically was anyone who wanted in could have gotten in but I knew that wouldn't help me out later on down the road. So I set back and conserved and just sprinted for 19th which was top 35 so I was in. I sat in Z3 most of the race so I knew I was fresh. At the end of the race I talked with one of the WCU upcoming freshman coming in next year Andre. He really bumped up his training and seems to be on the right path to becoming a good cycling. He qualified for the Amateur event tonight as a Cat 3.
Well 5:45 finally came around and it was race time. ~ 30,000-35000+ people were packing the streets. It was so amazing just hearing everyone scream as we lined up. 2 years ago I had a fractured arm attempting this and don't remember much of anything. Boom, we were off. I knew to get to the front quick as there would be wrecks on this course. I finally made it to the front after a few laps. I made it so far to the front I ended up getting stuck pulling 3/4 of a lap but I was so into it I could have cared less. We were flying. I don’t think I have taken curves this fast in a long time. The Berkley team sent a man off in a break very early on with 2 other people. Sean (of team CTM) said not to worry the past 3 years has been a sprint. A few laps into it I see someone eat it in turn 2. A few more laps a few more people eat it in turn 2. A few more laps someone eats it in turn 4. A few more laps someone grabs my bibs and attempts to pull me down with him. A few more laps me and some guy pass off dirty words to each other. A few more laps the breakaway seems to be gone. A few more laps I tell Andre (Cat3) (the new kid coming to WCU next semester) to relax your doing great. Finally it’s the final lap. The breakaway was gone. I had good positioning ~ 8th or 9th. I take off sprinting with me shooting to the right side but I can't get traction. The pavement was so rough my bike was going everywhere. I think I might have passed all of one or two people which is awful for me. I ended up 10th which adds to two top 10's in two weekend + money. Oh so your wondering about Andre? Give it up for the kid (5th)! It looks like we will have another really good cyclist in the area very soon. He is very young but still learning. He did really well on positioning (better than me) he just fell backwards in the sprint but I think it’s tough when your that young to sprint against someone with more developed muscles. He said he really trained hard this year and I can really tell. It’s great to see someone with a drive coming in. He said he is going to stay away from drinking and smoking which seems to be the problem with our team here as it is.
Well 5:45 finally came around and it was race time. ~ 30,000-35000+ people were packing the streets. It was so amazing just hearing everyone scream as we lined up. 2 years ago I had a fractured arm attempting this and don't remember much of anything. Boom, we were off. I knew to get to the front quick as there would be wrecks on this course. I finally made it to the front after a few laps. I made it so far to the front I ended up getting stuck pulling 3/4 of a lap but I was so into it I could have cared less. We were flying. I don’t think I have taken curves this fast in a long time. The Berkley team sent a man off in a break very early on with 2 other people. Sean (of team CTM) said not to worry the past 3 years has been a sprint. A few laps into it I see someone eat it in turn 2. A few more laps a few more people eat it in turn 2. A few more laps someone eats it in turn 4. A few more laps someone grabs my bibs and attempts to pull me down with him. A few more laps me and some guy pass off dirty words to each other. A few more laps the breakaway seems to be gone. A few more laps I tell Andre (Cat3) (the new kid coming to WCU next semester) to relax your doing great. Finally it’s the final lap. The breakaway was gone. I had good positioning ~ 8th or 9th. I take off sprinting with me shooting to the right side but I can't get traction. The pavement was so rough my bike was going everywhere. I think I might have passed all of one or two people which is awful for me. I ended up 10th which adds to two top 10's in two weekend + money. Oh so your wondering about Andre? Give it up for the kid (5th)! It looks like we will have another really good cyclist in the area very soon. He is very young but still learning. He did really well on positioning (better than me) he just fell backwards in the sprint but I think it’s tough when your that young to sprint against someone with more developed muscles. He said he really trained hard this year and I can really tell. It’s great to see someone with a drive coming in. He said he is going to stay away from drinking and smoking which seems to be the problem with our team here as it is.