We rolled out from Hanover and got a solid start to our season with a minor car accident in front of Robinson Hall. Someone in a hurry got scratched by the front of the sprinter van. It was quite the spectacle seeing North Main St. almost shut down by the Cycling Team vans and trailer. This bodes well for us, I think; we'll get the van mishaps out of the way early!
Rutgers University hosted the Scarlet Scurry with a leg-busting Prologue ITT, a Criterium, and short-circuit Points Race. A HUGE thank-you to the Rutgers squad and promoter for all their hard work. Running a race is no easy feat!
The ITT Prologue was held in the coolness of Saturday morning on a pancake-flat course; standard fare out-and-back with no wind. With only two miles of ground to cover (<5 minute for the faster categories) it was as good a time as any for us to break out some V02 power. Having only done base/tempo work to this point in the season, it hurt a lot. But that's OK. The suffering is good.
The ITT Prologue was held in the coolness of Saturday morning on a pancake-flat course; standard fare out-and-back with no wind. With only two miles of ground to cover (<5 minute for the faster categories) it was as good a time as any for us to break out some V02 power. Having only done base/tempo work to this point in the season, it hurt a lot. But that's OK. The suffering is good.
The sun came out and the wind roared during the Criterium outside of the Rutgers stadium. The wind dramatically altered the nature of the course; a technical turn #4 could have been enough to advantage a breakaway. Unfortunately, a strong headwind and crosswind discouraged any attempts to break from the front of the race. While a strong Princeton rider was undeterred in the Men's A field and won off of a long solo breakaway, almost all other categories came down to small-group field sprints. There were some really impressive team tactics in the Women's C race with Ellen Anderson '12 and Rosalie Lipfert '13 forming a Dartmouth chase group of two riders on a long breakaway. They got too much of a leash and the chase didn't succeed, but it was enough for them to finish alone for a solid podium finish for Rosalie and a fourth place for Ellen. The Men's B field was strong and stacked with four of Dartmouth's finest. Zach Parker came in strong in the top ten and Ben Grass won with a solid finishing sprint! Major kudos go to Will Boylston for a courageous final lap pull to reel in a breakaway and deliver Ben to the finish line! Our Intro Riders got a solid taste of pack handling and criterium strategy...the intro clinics that the ECCC are putting on are absolutely world-class.
Saturday night meant an early bedtime after an exhausting day of racing. This was only aided by a prolific Chipotle-burrito-induced food coma. Can I get a show of hands...who else races bikes just to eat a lot of really delicious food? That's what I thought.
Sunday would bring rain and cold to the racing. It's not ECCC spring racing without rain and cold, after all. Hopefully this will earn us a sunny weekend at L'Enfer du Nord in April. I digress...the points race was HARD. A one-mile course that was composed of fast, sweeping turns on good pavement and one leg-busting climb. The race was a hellish hill repeat workout and the nature of the points race made for some brutal selections and hard uphill sprints every four laps. Excellent racing across the categories to be sure. Yet again, Ellen and Rosalie worked together on a chase in the Women's C field. These girls are already showing their ability for racing in their first weekend!
We packed up the van/trailer and began a long drive through the "wintry mix" that dumped snow and ice on the Upper Valley this weekend. It's sad to return to this after seeing a sunny day in the 50s at Rutgers...but our time for nice weather will come. Spring break training in Luray, VA is a week away!
Notable events and results from the weekend after the jump:
Seven podiums, and two wins for the weekend. We're fifth in the ECCC standings, second in Division II, and second in the Ivy League. Not bad for the opening weekend!
Send your thoughts and prayers to Matt Nichols '13 who took a bad spill in the Men's A Criterium this weekend and will be off the bike for a bit. He's a scrappy racer and is such a strong presence and example for his teammates. We wish him the best in recovering and getting back in the saddle.
Prologue ITT
Ben Grass - Men's B - 4th
Rosalie Lipfert - Women's C - 2nd
Ellen Anderson - Women's C - 6th
Justin Stroup - Men's D2 - 8th
Daniel Holmdahl - Men's Intro - 3rd
Criterium
Daniel Holmdahl - Intro Men - 6th
Ben Grass - Men's B - 1st
Zachary Parker - Men's B - 9th
Rosalie Lipfert - Women's C - 3rd
Ellen Anderson - Women's C - 4th
Points Race:
Daniel Holmdahl - Intro Men - 1st
Ben Grass - Men's B - 3rd
Will Boylston - Men's B - 6th
Kelly Everhart - Women'sB - 4th
Rosalie Lipfert - Women's C - 2nd
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| Justin Stroup looking good in Men's D2. He's also rocking our new Hincapie team kit! |
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