Crit #2

Second time out was a much improved experience over my last attempt at a crit. Much better. I completely credit the separate women's category - though it did involve a very early start time.

First 20min were brutally hard. The 1/2 girls are faaaast, and there were a lot of attacks, keeping the pace (and efforts to stay in it) high. The group finally came apart, with a small group coming off the back. My teammate worked hard to get us straightened out and into a paceline, which was great. She is a solid rider, and it was awesome to get to work with her in the group.

The teammate, however, being a wee slip of a thing, is not much of a sprinter, so she offered to lead me out. I, unfortunately, did not do it as I should have - came around too wide and probably a bit too early. I was nipped at the line by a junior, who took my teammates great wheel and ran with it.

Still, the effort was enough for 2nd in my category, and my teammate was good for 3rd. It is rare that I make it onto the podium, so I am really happy with this result. There are still lots of lessons for me - about following a wheel, cornering efficiently, sprinting properly, but I am also really happy to have had a good experience in a crit - staying up right, not getting pulled, working with other racers, and having an excellent cheering section.