May 20, 2009

Trek boys almost win at Enumclaw

Enumclaw Stage Race is one of the oldest and most known bike races in the North West. It is so old that even our director, Matt Barth, gloated that even he had almost won this race back in his day. Cast beneath Mt. Rainier, this quaint little town offered, a beautiful landscape, quality racing, course variety and a plethora of raised domestic trucks. The following is the race through my eyes. If you prefer brass tacks scroll to the bottom for a hard-facts recap.


Stage 1 – 10km ITT
This Stage was a lot like a gear swap. The scene under the Red Truck tent was one of wheel trading, bike switching and helmet sharing. I even think Marsh was trying to convince someone to lend him their skinsuit. After all was said and done, we all had the opportunity to ride the course with at least some form of aero equipment and managed to put 3 guys into the omnium points: Nic 8th, Rob 4th, Jamie 1st. Woot woot. This was my second ride on my new TTX and it is really rad.

The overall GC men's Cat 1/2 went to Dave Vukets of Trek Red Truck Racing presente by Mosaic Homes while the women's GC went to Stephanie Roorda, Jazz Apple Cycling Team.


Stage 2 – 60 min Crit.
8 corners, 1 Mile, Several sewer grates and a boat load of omnicron points. Our goal was to try to get Nic, Rob or I as high up as possible to gain VALUABLE points. At the halfway point Rob was out on his own picking up some prime points, cash and the hearts of female spectators. Eventually he was brought back and the heat turned up. Going into the last lap it was all together. Noiler, Brooks, and myself were on the front. Those two killed themselves for me and I managed a 4th in a bunch sprint. Considering that there were two super technical corners in the final meters, and I corner like a 45 year old triathlete in the aero bars drinking from an aero drink while feeding from a bento-box, 4th in a bunch sprint was acceptable. TTrizzle and Thusty Trombone also jumped into the top 10 grabbing some serious points.

Shower. Wait for food. Deal with poor service. Dinner. Sleep. Breakfast. Team Meeting.


The team meeting:
Barth sat at his throne in the middle of the hotel room as we all awaited his instructions, perhaps even a detailed and elaborate plan to win the race… He spoke: “Just kill it, crush it. We need to hit it and roll it.” We all looked around and then Rob piped up… “could you be more specific?” We all laughed, but that was all the specifying he needed.


Stage 3 – 115km
5 laps of a varied course that included a 3 mile climb of just over 1000ft. Right from the beginning nature was calling me. The pace was neutral for the first few kms so I drifted to the back… only to have the neutral end and watch as my teammates started to throw it down and establish an early break… after a flurry of attacks A.Thuss and Tweak (Nic) were kickin’ it new school up the road with Aaron Schooler. The break lasted two laps and Adam was able to grab both sets of KOM points moving him further up the omnium ranks. The absorption of the early break set the stage for a counter attack. Robert Lesley Britton, capitalized, and instantly established a solid gap. The pack lulled and I couldn’t have been happier, my bladder was FREEEE!!! After a bit of hesitation we came through the start-finish area with spectators yelling “2 minutes!!” A few teams started to show signs of worry and organized themselves on the front. A well established chase was on. After 15 or so km of chasing we rolled through the feed zone with spectators now yelling “3 minutes!!” Rob had single handedly added another minute to his gap. SNAP!

Eventually Rob took the win solo. Behind the race for omnium points was on. Vuckets and myself crested the final hill in a select group of 6, we managed to isolate and rid ourselves of Jelly-String-Bean Routely and finish 4th and 5th. Routley however stuck it out to finish 6th and claim just enough omnicron points to take the overall. I guess now Rob and I can also tell the story about how we “ALMOST” won Enumclaw.