Twilight Criterium aka SECOND PLACE!

Cole Hilton and I headed down for the one and only Eugene Twilight Criterium yesterday evening. My bike survived its trip on the top of the car and all was well. We registered. We warmed up. The race began.

Cole attacked from the gun. I countered it hard on lap 2 and got chased down. I attacked again and stayed away for a few laps. Cole countered it when I came back. Then I was tired and I sat in. I attacked again a while later and got chased down quickly. A few clever counter-attacks along with the Cole/Ivar moves strung it out pretty good, and before long there was a split in the group. I was in the second group, pretty sure that it was all going to come back together.

Cole rolled up next to me, “Is that the winning split?”
I shook my head, “No.”
A few minutes went by, and I started to think otherwise.

I punched it and closed half the gap with David Heritage, but my legs started to putter and I got a little stuck between groups. Cole came up and helped us the rest of the way. Five laps to go. I felt like I was going to throw up. Cole tells me everyone was cross-eyed and mouths-open at this point, and with 3 to go, he told me to attack. No. Not happening. At this point, I feel like I am going to die. Two laps to go. I should attack, but… but… One lap to go. Well, I can’t attack with one lap to go… everybody’ll chase me! So I attack with 750m to go, setting up the leadout for Cole. Hutch’s Junior guy goes around me, so I sit on his wheel through corner and throw down the rest of my guts right as our bikes come back upright. I can see the finish line. It’s right there. I’m so close. So close. It hurts so much. Cole comes around me, awesome! Another guy starts to come around, no no no no no… I don’t want to pedal anymore (even though I should take another half-pedal stroke) so I throw my bike. I look through to see the guy get 2nd… crap.

Cole is an awesome sprinter. I’ve never beat him to a Stop Ahead on flat ground. He got his Cat 3 upgrade at this crit couse because he can freakin’ push it, but he gets shot out the back when the road turns up. After a not-so-hot road season, he downgraded. After my badass 750m leadout that put him 3rd wheel with 200m to go… he really couldn’t not win. (Go easy on him, Kenji)

Seth May let me see the video. I got 2nd. By the bike throw. By less than half a wheel. Miriam took a picture. I’ll put it up when she sends it to me. SO AWESOME!

We came, we rode, and we got the one-two. Well executed. Good bike racing.

Here’s the file. 41min at 25.1mph, 264W avg, 312W norm, nine +1000W bursts (peak 1191), four or five solid attacks, and the best result of my career so far. Second, baby!