Event: Land Park Criterium
Category: M35+ 1/2/3
Date: March 6, 2004
Place: Middle of the pack
Field: ~95
Team mates: Santiago

It was off to Sac-o-tomatoes for the Land Park criterium and my first race for this season. This is a course that everyone describes as a large loop with no corners. Well, there are corners but they are so gradual that you barely think about them. They also cause more problems than you would imagine. With two lanes of width and gradual corners, everyone stays bunched up the entire course. Into and through the corners you can have ten riders side by side. Lots of surging, swerving, stupidness to throw into the mix.

That’s how the race went. Around and around in a big mass of 95 riders. Several primes were thrown in to keep the action up. I tried for a few of them but my timing and sprint legs aren’t awake yet. Need to shake out the snowboarding legs.

At four laps to go there was a group of seven or so just off the front. I decided to gap and yelled over to Santiago to get on my wheel. He dropped in and I pulled forward and then off the front. We bridged across and settled back in. But this group quickly slowed and the pack swallowing us back up. I recovered for a lap but also worked to hold my position. On a lap to go I found myself about 25 back. Way too far if I wanted any chance. Then Larry Nolan dropped in in front of me and I hopped on his wheel. He’s very smooth and quick to move through the pack. He was intent on getting into position and setting himself up for the sprint.

Just before “turn” three he surges to the outside to make a sweeping pass to the front. I’m just behind following his lead. But as we come around the corner we are blocked by a slower rider that has pulled off and is just soft pedaling along. Larry swerves, loses his momentum, and then is stuck farther back from the now surging lead group. I also get trapped but I then attempt to move to the front. But that little blockage loses me enough speed and places that I’m stuck behind a wall of riders.

I decide to hold my position and safely ride it in for a clean finish and start to the season.

Cheers!