This was an after-thought race. I didn’t have it on the schedule until my coach called my attention to it. This is an un-sanctioned road race with A and B categories. It consisted of 6 4-mile loops with a 2 mile start/finish section.
Thankfully it was a sunny, albeit slightly hot day. Babs and the boys decided to make the trek down as none of us had ever visited Kennebunkport before.
After a decent warm-up, we got to the line to hear there was a motorcycle accident on the course and we would be delayed. This clearly was a textbook local event, but a good one! I choose to spin around with the boys while waiting.
Drake and dad talk strategy
Fenix breaks away
45 minutes later we rolled off the 2 mile stretch towards the loops. The pace was quick from the outset. “Team ADG” teammates Andrew Freye and Brad Perley were there. Freye was intent to get a good workout in and had his share of pulls. Brad is a local so he knew the course well.
In sum, the day was pretty tense for an informal race. The pack was uneasy to say the least. The PVC Elite group was mostly in control, setting up teammates for the sprint wins. I found myself in contention for the final sprint, finishing third without any intention of going for it. I think I just thought someone was going off the front!
So the pack stuck together until the 2 mile return stretch which was when all hell broke loose! There was heavy acceleration followed by slow downs, a vehicle coming in the opposite direction despite the road being “closed,” and plenty of elbow/shoulder/hip rubbing. I managed to stay amongst the top-20 as we mass-sprinted to the line. Brad timed his sprint well and was top-10 while Andrew stayed safe in the pack.
The 3 of us had a nice cool down ride around town and I joined the pit crew at an awesome local restaurant for a well-deserved burger.
It was a good time overall in hindsight, but slightly more stressful than I would have preferred.
Next up is the Maine Cycling Weekend.
No comments:
Post a Comment