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Nalley Historic Roswell CritRace: Nalley Historic Roswell Crit After having a really bad race at the Knob Scorcher at Twilight the day before, I made a last minute decision to head to Roswell, my town (!), and do the first annual Nalley Historic Roswell Crit. I pumped myself up hard for this crit on the way down. I was also tired, having gotten very little sleep the night before and having to get up early to do my volunteer hours for the Raccoon Mountain Road Race that Team Peggy put on. I scooted out a little bit early, drove like a mad woman to get back to Roswell, ran by my house to drop off my mountain bike and grab my Nalley-Eagle jersey, and drove to Historic Roswell. I tossed my bike clothes on and proceeded to get lost, I mean try to find registration. With the help of about two dozen people, I found registration at the far end of the course. I tossed them a check and signed the waiver, ran back to my car, and then spun around to warm up for a few minutes. The course was about 3/4 mile long with 5 left hand turns. The start/finish line was on a very long straight-away with a slight downhill grade and a tailwind. The first turn was fairly sharp and narrow as was the second. The other two turns were "moderate," and turn 5 was very wide, and it was easy to swing too wide. Across several of the turns, cobble crosswalks presented a slight challenge. The back stretch was slightly uphill into a headwind. The final part of the course brought riders back onto the long straightaway towards the start/finish line. They called the Cat. IV Women and Juniors to the line. Looking about, I only recognized two of the other women-Robin, one of my Eagle teammates, and a Bubble Before the race, Robin and I discussed strategy, and she agreed to lead me out for the sprint. After Steve, the USCF Official started us, one of the other women immediately went to the front. Robin went on the attack and reeled her in by the second turn. The Bubble went to the front and picked up the pace. Within half a lap, Robin, the Bubble, and I were off the front with the Juniors and the other women behind us. The Juniors sat behind us until we came through the start/finish for the first time. Tired of our pace, the top Juniors, including another Eagle, blew past us. I was still sitting on the Bubble's wheel, conserving my energy. Why waste energy if you do not have to? My legs were a little tight from the race at Tsali, and I was not going to work any harder than I had to. Even at 23 mph, I was not breathing hard. On the other hand, the pollen was bothering Robin badly, but she worked through it! What a trooper! After several laps of sitting on the front, the Bubble pulled off. I glanced back to see no one behind us but one of the Juniors. I sat up and brought the pace down a little bit. I glanced back at Robin before picking it back up after Turn 1. We were now about 12 minutes into the race. I held the lead going by the start/finish. Robin moved to the front on the backside. She joked that she wanted to hear her name called out over the PA. Robin held the lead for another lap or so before we both moved to the back to let the Bubble take her turn pulling. For the next two to three laps, we rotated evenly. The pace never got really high, but we were never in danger of being caught by the other women. I looked back several times, saw no one behind us, and our lead kept growing. Before I knew it, they were calling 5 laps to go. It sneaks up on you when the race is only 30 minutes long. We picked up the pace just a little bit, feeling the eagerness to get to the finish. I had to decide if I wanted to try to go for a solo with a few laps remaining or sprint for the finish. I opted for the sprint. Even though my legs felt better, I didn't know if they would hold out for more than a few minutes because of the race the day before. The Bubble was on the front, and Robin and I were sitting behind her not wanting to work hard. We went back over the plan. We stayed at a steady pace until two laps to go. Suddenly, the Bubble decided she'd had enough, and she pulled off without warning. I swerved slightly to miss her, and I was back on the front. Immediately, I sat up and brought us back to about 15 mph. It was such a nice day, why not enjoy the weather for a lap! With one lap to go, Robin got on the front and picked the pace up again. I was right behind her with the Bubble third. I'd been scouting where to start my sprint from; I did not want to do it too early and blow before the finish line. Coming into the final turn, the Bubble pulled to the inside of Robin. I made a slight mistake and went to the outside. Within half a second, I was 2 bike lengths off of the Bubble. A quick sprint put me back on her wheel. I heard her breathing hard, but my heart rate was still low. About half way down the straight, I decided to make my move. Time to see if the sprint drills are working! I put my hands in my drops, came to her left, and pumped my legs as hard as they would go. After a second of standing I sat back down and powered away. About 10 feet from the finish line, I did not see her on my wheel. I put my hands up in the air in victory. I never thought that I would get to do that in a road race. As they say, there is a first time for everything. Who ever would have thought that a mountain biker could go into a breakaway in a road race, stay there, and win the sprint. Wow! That's about all I can say. Upgrade points! Next goal on the road: Cat up for 2003.
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