Over 70 Cat 3 racers lined up Saturday afternoon to tackle 15 laps of the infamous Snake Alley Criterium. It was a warm day as me and Carson C. watched the other races. I ended up in the third row, and was pleasantly calm and ready to roll, though suspicious that I wouldn't be able to get a good placing up the hill of the first lap due to how many people were ahead of me.
The sprinkling began and I could hear riders letting air out of their tires... good call. This race is one great big attack for every lap, especially from the start. I wasn't thrilled to be rolling up the snake mid-pack, but was excited when I made it up the hill without getting mixed up in any crashes. This was especially noteworthy because rear wheels were sliding out from under riders all over the place due to the moist cobbles.
Enjoying my accomplishment I then looked down the road and heard a very loud explicative come out of my mouth. The leaders were already around the first corner. Are you kidding me? It felt like I was already out of the race and it hadn't really even started yet.
Well the rain didn't help matters much as far as descending goes. I am sure I was losing a little ground there compared to some, but for the most part, playing it safe insured that I would finish in one piece.
Speaking of that, only 37 finished, and the referees weren't pulling people this year so some of those were lapped riders. That should give you an idea of the chaos that many participants experienced.
Several spectators were great about cheering me on and letting me know that I was still in the money. Each lap they encouraged me and told me my place. That really helped.
I bounced around from 15th to 23rd towards the middle to ending parts of the race. Each time up the snake was a new challenge as riders were still dumping their bikes from time to time, mainly due to the loss of traction. You have to maintain your focus until the very end.
On the last lap two riders attacked my position. Luckily, the last part of the race suited my strengths and I actually pulled off an out of the saddle sprint to regain my position which turned out to be 19th and within the payout parameters.
This is a truly unique race in which you have to be a good climber, brave descender, skilled bike handler, aggressive attacker, powerful on the straights and able to race well under pressure. You also need a little luck and a great start. Hmm, a little bit of everything. If you have a weak area, it will show in the results
Congratulations to Carson Christensen for his win at the Cat three level. It was also cool to have a 1st place snake alley brick spend the night at my house and hear his tales of glory. The top guys were from Iowa and five of us made the top 20 despite the extremely competitive regional field.
The sprinkling began and I could hear riders letting air out of their tires... good call. This race is one great big attack for every lap, especially from the start. I wasn't thrilled to be rolling up the snake mid-pack, but was excited when I made it up the hill without getting mixed up in any crashes. This was especially noteworthy because rear wheels were sliding out from under riders all over the place due to the moist cobbles.
Enjoying my accomplishment I then looked down the road and heard a very loud explicative come out of my mouth. The leaders were already around the first corner. Are you kidding me? It felt like I was already out of the race and it hadn't really even started yet.
Well the rain didn't help matters much as far as descending goes. I am sure I was losing a little ground there compared to some, but for the most part, playing it safe insured that I would finish in one piece.
Speaking of that, only 37 finished, and the referees weren't pulling people this year so some of those were lapped riders. That should give you an idea of the chaos that many participants experienced.
Several spectators were great about cheering me on and letting me know that I was still in the money. Each lap they encouraged me and told me my place. That really helped.
I bounced around from 15th to 23rd towards the middle to ending parts of the race. Each time up the snake was a new challenge as riders were still dumping their bikes from time to time, mainly due to the loss of traction. You have to maintain your focus until the very end.
On the last lap two riders attacked my position. Luckily, the last part of the race suited my strengths and I actually pulled off an out of the saddle sprint to regain my position which turned out to be 19th and within the payout parameters.
This is a truly unique race in which you have to be a good climber, brave descender, skilled bike handler, aggressive attacker, powerful on the straights and able to race well under pressure. You also need a little luck and a great start. Hmm, a little bit of everything. If you have a weak area, it will show in the results
Congratulations to Carson Christensen for his win at the Cat three level. It was also cool to have a 1st place snake alley brick spend the night at my house and hear his tales of glory. The top guys were from Iowa and five of us made the top 20 despite the extremely competitive regional field.
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