6/4/06 by Ben Kuhlman
Today, we had our first scheduled focus race, the annualy Race for Alex. The weather was decent for the 4-5 race, around 55 degrees with a steady 10-15 MPH breeze. We had a great turnout, 10 of the 30 riders in the race! The race was five laps of a roughly 4.5 mile loop with a long, gradual climb towards the end of each lap. It was great to see so many of our team members there for a great cause. We organized a bit before the race, setting our plans and goals for the race. On the first lap, we were going to send two riders off the front to see what would happen. After the long decent across the railroad tracks, we did just that. Two miles later, Noah G. was able to stay away solo, about 15 seconds up on the field through the start-finish. If he would be caught, I was to counter immediately with another teammate. Noah was NEVER caught, though, so we sent single riders up the road the next two laps. First to go was Doug W., carrying a Stark Velo rider with him. They made contact as the Allied Decals group (now 8-strong at the front) blocked and tried to slow the field. This worked out to where the break had about 30 seconds going through the second lap. As I was near the front, Brian R. asked if I could block when he tried to bridge solo. I went up to the front with him and as soon as he was first wheel and I was second, I gave him a nod and he was gone with no reaction! He flew up to the break while a few of us slowed the field even more - so far things were working out perfectly for ADRT. Now we had incredible numbers, so we just sat on at the front and controlled and covered anything that looked serious. Any time I could see the break up ahead, I would get to the front and soft-pedal, much to the chagrin of the other teams represented in the field. After talking with the team, I decided to try to break the spirits of the pack chasing - each time up the climb I had a go until someone would catch on. I did this the last three times up the hill, with an MVC rider responding. as well as the other Stark Velo rider. At the end, we took 1, 3 and 4, and I finished 8th in the field sprint! The break eventually took just over 2 minutes out of the field, with Brian R. taking the win and Noah G. 3rd followed by Doug W.- great race guys!
Thanks for reading,
Ben