Memorial Day Criterium – Morgan Hill

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Race: Memorial Day Criterium – Morgan Hill

Place: 1st M45 4

Teammates: Mike B., Mike M.

Ave Speed: 25.1 MPH

Field: Around 60 w/ M35 & M45 combined

The sun came out for the 10:00 start of the Masters Cat 4 race, so it was nice and warm for this reptile. Nice big field with two excellent teammates to boot. The first two laps were fast and it was breezy, so I just focused on staying tucked-in to the peloton to conserve energy. Mike B. was pulling of the front… There were four premes with guys off the front for each one, but fortunately none resulted in a break as the field was pretty keen on pulling them back each time after crossing the line. Mike M. nearly won one with a big sprint against a Webcore guy. Overall it was pretty fast pace with M35’s pulling off the front. My strategy was to keep an inside line and near the middle or towards the front of the pack. Before I knew it I notice the lap paddle at 8 to go, so I started to focus more on position in the pack while staying out of the wind as much as possible. With three laps to go I’m really looking to be in 5th position or better without catching a lot of wind. The front of the pack takes off on the final lap and I pull off the front with ¼ lap to go. It was my plan to make the jump and hold on for dear life. I go into the final turn in first place and on the pedals at around half way through the final straight to the finish. Three M35’s catch me in the final 75 meters, but still good enough for first place in my age Cat!