So Sublime…

After a week off the bike resting and spending time with family in from out of town, it was time to get back on after my victory at 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo. Unfortunately, I had some work to do on my road bike and spent little time sleeping the night before!

I had also just received some positive news from our teams’ title sponsor, so I was happy to show off our kit just minutes up the road from their dealership.

It was a chilly, but clear Willamette Valley morning as I drove across town to the Sublime Sublimity Circuit Race. We rolled west onto a brutal course with relentless short climbs, some rough roads and even a little winter wind. The race was five laps for a total of 63 miles and finished with a super-steep 20+% kick! With little time for warm-up the talented local field immediately raced hard and I hung on to the back of the group after dropping my chain on the hardest climb of the circuit. Things began to settle down midway through the second lap and I rolled to the front to see how things looked. The brisk early pace seemed to have tempered the groups’ ambition, so I pressed a little and opened a sizeable gap.

I bridged across to the lone leader and immediately dropped him on the next climb. After a lap I had 50 seconds lead, and assumed an aero position to see how long I could stay out front. I maintained a comfortable tempo and increased my advantage to nearly two minutes. At the end of the fourth lap, the now motivated chasers trimmed my advantage to 50 seconds. With a lap to go, I became focused on making the break stick and increased my pace. With less than a half-lap to go, I was up but nearly 90 seconds and cruised in for easy win–thankful not to have to sprint on that final hill!

It was my first CAT 1 race, my first victory on the road in over 10 years, and nice to win so close to home! Sublime indeed…

Photo Credit: Pat Malach, www.oregoncyclingaction.com