Three Team Velo Girls members travelled to Wisconsin to participate in the legendary week of bicycle races -- Super Week! They'll be racing everyday for eight days -- 6 criteriums and 2 road races. Here's the first report from team member, Jill Eyres:
The NorthShore University HealthSystem Grand Prix
Evanston, IL -- July 19, 2009
Cat 3/4 Women
Our first race at Superweek was in downtown Evanston, not far from where I grew up. Eighteen laps of a flat, mostly counter-clockwise course, with reasonable pavement but a couple of slick and depressed manhole covers interrupting what would otherwise be good corner lines. It was a combined Cat 3/4 race, with about 30 racers starting.
It was a fast race! After the start, there was a lot of movement in the pack and unsteady lines in corners. Between the headwind from the north and getting squeezed out on corners, I got dropped off the back soon after the first lap. I worked with two others -- including a Dolce Vita -- for a couple of laps, and then we picked up a fourth girl as well. I was struggling, though, and at about six laps to go, they dropped me.
When the main pack passed me with two laps to go, I was happy to see Emily still hanging in there. I was desperately hoping that I would get pulled, but no such luck -- I had to finish the rest of the race by myself. But I finished, safely, and so did Dana and Emily, despite a crash that took out a couple of girls in the main pack at some point. Emily and Dana celebrated with a free massage in the vendor tent area; I had to settle for Chicago pizza :-)....
~jill
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