A few, but not all of you know that I'm up in Minnesota racing the NVGP with the local team, Grandstay Hotels Cycling. I'll try to recap some highlights from the madness that has taken place so far...
Stage 1: Time Trial
I have a love/hate relationship with this race. It's the first TT I've done where we started on a starting ramp...which was pretty awesome. Everyone was racing their road bikes because, in an effort to make all teams equal, the promoters decided to limit racers to one bike for the entirety of the race. I got up to speed and cranked along. Christian Helmig (Elbowz) was starting 30 seconds behind me, so I was very motivated to stay away. Apparently I was going pretty fast, but with the rain and legs that hadn't been raced in two weeks, I felt sluggish. The TT finished on Ohio St, which, after a right turn, heads straight up to the finish about 1 Km later. Unfortunately when I shifted into the 39 chainring my chain fell off. I got it back on after a couple of tries, but lost all momentum going into the hill. When all was said and done I was placed 7th in the race for the amateur jersey...about 14 seconds off the jersey.
BTW-5 of the top 7 in the amateur jersey contest are Texas racers. Just sayin...
Stage 2: St. Paul Criterium
FAST. This was a technical crit that mixed pavement, potholes, bottleneck corners, and lots of other sketchyness into one crazy race. Positioning is obviously important in something like this. I got a slow start was close to the back. I pretty much stayed there as people blew up around me until 6 laps to go when the break was caught and the United boys when to the front and drilled it. About half the field blew off the back at that point. I faught until 2 laps to go when I was about 20 seconds off the back of the field. The officials made me quit....
Stage 3: Cannon Falls Road Race
Let me just say that we averaged 30 mph for 66 miles. That's including hills, wind, gravel, sketch roads, and an ultra fast five-lap finishing circuit. United Healthcare controlled the race all day. It's pretty cool to watch something like that firsthand from a racer's prospective. Those guys were putting out WATTS all day long. Coming into the gravel I was sitting midpack, which would have been okay, but I went into the corner hot and now there're pieces of grass sticking off my bike. I rode it out and got onto the peloton as quickly as I could, but still lost position. The road went on to a narrow bike path-like section where pot holes and bad pavement was more of a rule that the exception. A right turn at the bottom of the hill took us onto the 1.9 mile circuit through town we completed five times. It was all any of us could do just to hang on. Jelly Bellies threw down hard while they tried to position themselves for the win. United Healthcare was on their wheels and ultimately came around in the final lap to take the win. I held on until there was a half lap to go. About 20 guys got held up in a crash and although I was nowhere near it, one of the guys trying to get going again cut me off into a curb so I had to slam on the breaks. I got gapped and couldn't get back onto the peloton. Fortunately we all finished with the same time, so I didn't lose time.
Thank you to everyone at Grandstay for the support and inviting me to race this weekend!!! I'm having the time of my life!!!
Watch tonight's race in Minneapolis (7:45 pm), tomorrow in Menomonie, and Sunday in Stillwater @: http://www.naturevalleybicyclefestival.com/live
~ Adam
