Millersburg Stage Race Cat 3/4

In the spirit of "more is less", here is my quick breakdown of the stage race, and links to others who have told the story much better then I could ever.

For an excellent read and a truly fine example of blogging, check out the bikerackheads.

Mike Festa.
I eat the world.
And the detailed report by GC winner Peter Warner.

It was fun doing a stage race with my brother, who was one of four Cat 3s in a field of 82 Pro/1/2/3 riders. (Although I raced the 3/4, 98 riders!)

Time Trial:

I had the aero cockpit setup on my road bike, and was planning on giving it my all, even though I knew it wouldn't net me any points against a strong 3/4 field. It was really exciting having your name, team, and hometown announced over the PA system before the 5 second beeps went off for the start. Probably got my adrenaline going too hard for the start. 77st out of 97, avg about 23.9 mph. My goal for next year will be to take off at least a minute of 10 mile TT time.

Criterium:

Video by Peter Warner
Helmet Cam by Ben Reynolds. Part 1 and Part 2 (see 10:20 for crash)

This was not a flat course, instead it was similar to the Tek Park Criterium, although not quite as steep or as long. The start was quick, and I spent most of the race clinging to the back on the descents, and moving up through dropped riders on the climbs. There was a crash that took out 3-4 guys on a tight 90 degree bend before the climb. The field responded by accelerating and I couldn't stay with them. I got pulled from the race about half way through, with 8 laps to go. Only 35 finished out of 98, there was that much attrition. Unfortunately pulled riders weren't placed, so no idea where I ended up. I'm credited with 36th, but only because the officials listed the dropped riders alphabetically. I'm a little disappointed that for the expense of a stage race, the pulled riders weren't placed properly.

The Pro/1/2/3 race was won by a solo escapee from the New Zealand Olympic Team.

Road Race:

Rain. It poured.

The course was actually a really nice 18 mile loop with some gentle rollers, but thankfully the rolling enclosure which allowed use of both lanes made for a good race, even with a massive field of almost 98 riders. The Amish cheering squad was great. I was feeling better on the second lap, but got so much road grime in my eyes that I couldn't see. Coming into the feed zone for the second time, I pulled off the back of the pack to try and get them cleared out, but the field did not let up on the pace and flew through the field zone. I chased for a few miles but my eyes were in a miserable condition and a hot cup of tea with dry clothes sounded so good that I turned around and pedaled back to town. After changing I heard about a massive crash that took out about half the field. See this report. I totally missed the helicopter.

In the end, a strong group of 5 got away, and a small field with many stragglers rolled through well after them.

I then watched the Pro/1/2/3 come through with one lap to go of their 90 miles. A small break had a big gap, followed by a group of about 20, and then I saw my brother pulling at the front of a third group of about 30. He looked good and was definitely putting in a lot of work. At one point, the New Zealand guy attacked solo from my brother's group, trying to chase up to the next group. My brother followed, but they were eventually brought back. In the end they managed to organize a good chase, and the entire field came back together for a big field sprint. He was sitting in a good position at the front, but some guy took a bad line through a turn and took out some of the leaders, including my brother. It definitely looked like he had a good shot at top 15, at least top 20. But fortunately he wasn't hurt, and neither was his bike.

Overall it was a fun experience getting my butt kicked with the Cat 3s. A well organized event, good volunteers, and strong competition. Maybe I'll do it again next year.