Ride All Weekend

As usual for Northern California, there were two racing opportunities and beautiful weather this weekend. On Saturday, Bicycles Plus hosted a criterium in Folsom and and Sunday was the famous Cherry Pie Criterium in Napa. Two very different style of racing though they were both short and fast. Early in the week I had planned to race the BP crit, since it was close to home and I had several Rio Strada Racing teamates who were going to be there. Then, while at my parents' house on Tuesday, planning for our amazing trip to Japan to celebrate my brother and his wife, they lay on the news:working cows Saturday morning and wouldn't I please help? Since I lived with them for over a year and they are incredibly supportive of me and my bike racing there was no way I could say no. BP Winter Crit out, horses and Cherry Pie in.
Saturday morning arrived and I got my horse, Tardy, out and ready to go. He really is a gorgeous animal and I have finally gotten back into riding him this year. This is a pic from a couple weeks ago.
 
Everything went smoothly, except for the time he took me under a tree because we were going in the opposite direction of the other horses helping. Minor freak out moment! Loping into a tree and yanking on the reigns, and there was a large branch he was headed right for that would have completed scraped me off. Luckily as I started to crunch into the smaller branches he stopped and I backed him out. Thank goodness, because I was really sure I was going down. The rest of the morning progressed smoothly, cows moved into the corral and I was excused to go and watch the rest of the crit! 
When I arrived at the crit I learned that my teammates had an awesome race for the women's 4s. One of the women even one after an early crash! I was so proud to be a Rio! After a while I spun off down the bike path to try and keep my legs loose for Cherry Pie. I was definitely taking it easy, as my legs and butt were feeling the 2.5 hours on the horse that morning. Hit the foam roller before bed and was ready to go!
Then I was running terribly late to Cherry Pie, standing in reg in street clothes 10 minutes before the start. I finally talked them into giving my my number, went back to the car and my bike had been run over! And my car had been broken into! And then I work up and it was 4:00 in the morning! AHHHHHH! terrible pre-race dreams. Yuck!
I actually arrived on time to the crit and got a great warm-up and was on the start line with the biggest field I had ever raced with. They combined the Junior Women and there were 35 of us. The race started downhill and was blazing fast from the start. The last crit I raced, Cal Aggie in William Land Park, I spent way too much time on the front, trying to get the pack to pull in a two person break. This race I was determined to stay protected and race smart. With that big of a field there was some sketchy movement around the turns, but I stayed near the front and those women were racing smart. We came up the (moderate) hill after a couple laps and it was a prime lap! I stayed protected all through the course, took a good line on the final left hand turn and was in the top five at the chicane. I jumped out of that, up the hill and got it! My first prime ever! Yes!!! There was no one around and I actually started to feel like I could do well in the race, which I have never felt in a crit before. I was spent after sprinting up that hill for the prime though, so I tucked back into the pack and waited. That has been one of the hardest things for me to learn in road racing, is to wait and let others do the work. I didn't go for anymore primes, just hung in until the bell lap. Then I started moving up gradually. Took the same great line out of the sweeping left and was in the top 10 for the chicane. Coming out of it, I got around and was sprinting for the top with two other women! We were all evenly matched with nothing left and I couldn't get an edge on them. So I was stoked on my top 3 finish! Then I found out one of the girls was a Junior, whose field was picked separately, and that I had finished 2nd!
So awesome! 2nd came with some cash (much needed for the gas out to Napa) and a delicious cherry pie from Model Bakery ! 



Here is me on my first Criterium podium along with two of the spectacular ladies I raced with!
So overall a fantastic weekend! I think I like this road racing stuff.