Planet Bike riders Anna, Kristin, and Mark made the trip out to Princeton, New Jersey for the second weekend of USGP racing. Both races classified UCI C1 which meant field sizes were huge and talented - 80 starters for the men, 50 for the women. Rain in the days leading up to the races created muddy conditions on the 3K course. Many sections of the thick mud were unrideable and racers were forced to dismount and run. Bike changes were critical and mechanic for the weekend, Chris Kreidl, did a great job in the pits and taking care of the bikes pre and post race.
Pictures from the trip and preride of the course
Pictures from Saturday's races - muddy, 68 degrees, windy
We decided to lower our tent after seeing Colavita's get trashed in the wind
Mark and Driscoll over the flyover
Mark gets a clean bike from Chris
Womens race - Anna was involved in a crash on the first lap and tweaked her knee. She was forced to abandon the race. After getting caught behind riders dismounting for an early mud section Kristin worked her way up to finish 14th. While enjoying the conditions she was not a fan of all the running.
Mens race - Mark rode a strong race start to finish. At one point in 7th place for nearly a lap he fell back slightly to settle into 9th place just behind Jamie Driscoll. An excellent finish amongst fierce competition Mark held onto a 9th place finish.
Post race bike cleanup
Sunday's races - similar conditions, thicker mud, 47 degrees, windy. Riders bruised and battered from Saturday's conditions.
Wells, Powers, Wells ride the mud
another group runs the mud
Womens race - Following a bad start Kristin moved her way up and was dangling off the back of the group racing for 10th place. Unable to stick with that group she fell back to 15th by the final lap and finished in that place. Anna had a strong race and was able to rebound from her crash the previous day. She finished 19th.
Mens race - After just over a lap and riding near the top 10 Mark suffered a flat tire and was forced to run even more of the course. After a quick bike change from Chris Mark worked his way back up to the top 15 and was able to finish a solid 14th place.
1 comment:
after looking at the picture from the hotel parking lot with the bike in the stand, i've decided my legs are comically short.
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