The Race: Wilmington Grand Prix NRC Criterium

The Course: 25 miles, 25 laps

The Field: Pro 1/2 women

The Finish: 8th

As soon as I start talking about this race, it feels like I need to use lots of exclamation marks. It was fun! I felt great! I rode the corners well! I liked the climbs! I was in several breaks with the pros! I stayed at or near the front almost the whole time! I finally learned to hold my position! I hit a hay bale and didn’t fall over!

This could go on for quite some time. It was a very good race.

The best thing about this race was that it felt like so many of the things I’ve been trying to master all came together – my cornering felt smoother and I was able to keep my place near the front of the field through a combination of riding hard and guarding my position. When the field started moving, I didn’t get anxious and slip to the back. I even was in a two-person break with a Colavita rider for several laps (and got some much appreciated advice from her on how to work our break). It was so cool to look around during the race and see top riders like Laura Van Gilder and the Colavita and Tibco girls and to realize that I was finally figuring out how to ride up at the front with them.

That’s not to say that there’s not room for improvement, but I left the race feeling happy and ready to do it again. Finishing 8th in an NRC crit was just icing on the cake. And even more icing: I got my first caption on Cycling News and appeared in a handful of pictures!

As for the actual race: Colavita launched attack after attack while Tibco rode defensively and, with LVG and a few other riders, shut down the attacks. With about 18 laps to go, I ended up in a break with a Colavita rider, but the field caught us after several laps.

You can see video of that break here:

(Wilmington Grand Prix Break)

Kacey M. had a good attack that let her solo for a lap until Tibco and Colavita reeled her back. At three laps to go, the same Colavita rider from my break attacked, got a gap, and ultimately won by a few seconds. I took one of the last turns too wide and clipped a hay bale on the edge of the course hard, but stayed upright and sprinted to the finish to take eighth. Monika finished in the money in 22nd with a solid race, despite having sore legs and being concerned about the rapture.

The pictures of me at the start all convey how blah and anxious I felt, so we'll use this one instead.
In the break with Colavita. I did it JUST so Joe Jefferson would be forced to learn my name.
The top three, including LVG, fountain of cycling wisdom and endless podiums.

7 thoughts on “Wilmington GP: I loved this day.”

  1. just. awesome.
    i want to use exclamation marks too… “!!!!” about covers it 🙂

  2. That’s the way to go! Great hearing the announcer comment that you’re doing a great job.

  3. Hey, I don’t really know you, but I’ve been watching your progress which is quite impressive. I took a picture of you after the race talking to Laura Van Gilder. I’m assuming you were getting advise from one of the greats. That’s definitely the person to be talking to. I will send you the picture. Good job!

  5. Hell yes! YOU KICK ASS! Congratulations! You’ll be placing in the top three at these events before I can blink an eye and after that, the sky is the limit! I’m so proud of you!

  6. What were you doing waving at me in turn 2?!?! Don’t you know you were supposed to be racing hard?!?! 🙂

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