Tour of Hilltowns by Emma
Tour of Hilltowns
Presented by the NCC
August 7, 2004
60 mile road race
Windsor, Mass.
It was supposed to be a perfect race for me—hills, more hills, and lots of opportunity to play. Well, either the 4-mile climb 21 miles into the race was too much for me or I was just having a bad day (it can happen).
The first 20 miles was simple. I and 3 other riders (including Kimille Taylor from CRCA/Radical Media) took turns setting the pace for the women’s 4 field of 23 eager pedal pushers. There was lots of chatter within the field and I couldn’t wait for things to get interesting enough to silence the group. Once the climb began, the field spread out. I was with the front pack of about 6 riders for the first 2.5 miles. Then, I got tired and the front riders suddenly got faster. Oh no! The rest of the field was far back and the billy goats kept getting farther away from me. What’s a Swanky to do? “Just breathe and pedal and you’ll live,” I thought.
I finally made it up the hill and was time trialing alone fighting strong, gusty winds to catch the front pack. Two riders (Karen “Legs” Ulrich from Setanta and Kathleen McGuffin of Waitsfield) caught up with me and the three of us worked diligently for 30 miles of wind, hills and leg tearing flats (Karen was doing the leg tearing and I was the tear-ee) trying to close a 4-minute gap to the front pack. Needless to say, we didn’t. The last 6 miles before the finish was another long climb and Karen and the other rider decided they wanted to travel light, leaving me to finish the race alone. My whole body ached and my lungs burned, but I finished 14th place. Karen finished 11th and Kathleen 13th.
Presented by the NCC
August 7, 2004
60 mile road race
Windsor, Mass.
It was supposed to be a perfect race for me—hills, more hills, and lots of opportunity to play. Well, either the 4-mile climb 21 miles into the race was too much for me or I was just having a bad day (it can happen).
The first 20 miles was simple. I and 3 other riders (including Kimille Taylor from CRCA/Radical Media) took turns setting the pace for the women’s 4 field of 23 eager pedal pushers. There was lots of chatter within the field and I couldn’t wait for things to get interesting enough to silence the group. Once the climb began, the field spread out. I was with the front pack of about 6 riders for the first 2.5 miles. Then, I got tired and the front riders suddenly got faster. Oh no! The rest of the field was far back and the billy goats kept getting farther away from me. What’s a Swanky to do? “Just breathe and pedal and you’ll live,” I thought.
I finally made it up the hill and was time trialing alone fighting strong, gusty winds to catch the front pack. Two riders (Karen “Legs” Ulrich from Setanta and Kathleen McGuffin of Waitsfield) caught up with me and the three of us worked diligently for 30 miles of wind, hills and leg tearing flats (Karen was doing the leg tearing and I was the tear-ee) trying to close a 4-minute gap to the front pack. Needless to say, we didn’t. The last 6 miles before the finish was another long climb and Karen and the other rider decided they wanted to travel light, leaving me to finish the race alone. My whole body ached and my lungs burned, but I finished 14th place. Karen finished 11th and Kathleen 13th.
posted by liz @ 6:08 PM
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