Derby Days Extravaganza

A quick trip report.... yesterday Redmond, WA held the 65th Annual Derby Day Crit - the longest consecutive bike race in the States. They gave away over $8000 in prizes - so it draws a large local crowd. The course has four corners and is under a mile - the roads are really good and this year we had excellent weather - not too hot not too cold and most importantly no rain!

This is my second race since I've Cat'd up and am now racing with the big girls. My main objective was to stay in the pack and not go for any primes - so that I would have enough kick in the final sprint to actually go for a high placement. It was tempting - when the bell rang for a $100 prime I seriously considered it. But it was all about racing smart and tactically I did just that. In the final lap I moved up positions - sitting in third place and then we rounded the last two corners and I was nearly pinched out. It slowed my momentum just enough to stagger me back to 7th place. But not bad considering this was a tough crowd - some of the best racers in the PNW - let alone the country (annette hanson). I'm absorbing the racing tactics again like a hungry sponge and am excited to be playing so nicely with the big girls. :)