Should be noted this was a collegiate race, but I wore my WSI stuff. Had no idea that was unsavory/against the rules, showed up and the USA Cycling guy asked me if I had anything else to wear. I didn’t so he let me race anyway like a true first world anarchist.
I’ve done a few crits but this was my first road race. It should be noted that I probably logged less than 200 miles indoors this winter due to this thing called “running” (training for a marathon). When a few of my friends asked me to go, I was reluctant but caved. It turned out to be blast! I ended up making the beginner mistake of riding with the breakaway and pushing as hard as I could go for the first 1/3 of the race, then dying and falling back. I got passed many times to count.
I finished 21st out of 32nd and every second hurt, but its what my legs needed. The gods of cycling frowned on my running choices.
In regards to the course, it was pretty flat with only 400ish feet of climbing. It was pretty rough through many sections of the road, and a pothole the size of a small lake was located after a turn. Saw a guy eat it, wasn’t pretty. It was really windy, which meant you could pull for a solid 40mph then drop down to 18-19 when you turned a corner.
All in all it was a great race and a fun time! Looking forward to this season!