Somerville

Yesterday, I celebrated Memorial Day by finishing my first NRC crit! YAY!

Mitch and I lined up for the Tour of Somerville yesterday in Somerville, NJ. I had a pretty brutal week of training last week, but my legs and my brain were feeling good, so I had decent confidence going into the race. The big teams were out in some amount of force - Colavita had 7 women on the line, Team Type 1 had 3, Tibco had 2, Verducci had a bunch, as did Kenda and Fruit 66. So, essentially, it was going to be a tough one.

I LOVE the course. As much as I normally say that I dislike 4-corner crits, I realize that the reality is that I dislike SHORT crits. The longer they are, the more I like them. Somerville is a 4-corner crit, but it's 1.25 miles in length, so it feels a lot more like a circuit race. There are long straights that allow you to get a rhythm and a sense of the pack before they sweep through another turn. I like that kind of a 4-corner crit!

photo courtesy of Marco Quezada

I felt really good at the start. I actually had a decent position from the start heading into the first turn, even though I started near the back again - because I was inside for the first turn, I was able to move up pretty quickly. I held my position pretty well, though I was in the back half for most of the race, I did move up to the front a few times (once because I heard Mitch behind me say..."Sarah - MOVE UP!"). I managed to stay safe and comfortable through the entire race until the last lap. I lost the decent position I had gained with 3 to go and found myself gapped off the back behind some riders who had started to sit up. I tried to gun it around them, but the field was setting up for the sprint and had already moved too far away. So, I gritted my teeth and just kept drilling it. I finished strong - meaning that I NEVER sat up - and was so pleased to have officially crossed the line on my first NRC crit in 39th and Mitch was 50th. I know that 39th might not sound so great to some, but I'm just glad that everyone kept the "rubbers on the ground" as Mitch's mom would say, and that I finally accomplished a goal of finishing an NRC Pro Crit.

The best part of the day - photos to follow from Sara - was that we unknowingly parked next to the County Jail. So, basically, the entire time that we were near our cars, we had to listen to inmates BANGING on their windows to try to get our attention. It was funny at first, then a little creepy, then just kind of annoying! I mean, really...what exactly are you trying to get us to do? Flash you? Come in and hang out? Become your favorite pen pal? What? No idea.