 |
| RIDER DIARY: JAMES BLAKE AT NEBRASKA STATE RR |
|
|
| Written by James Blake | |
| Monday, 12 September 2005 | |
|
Revolution Cycling Team had a good showing on a day where the wind could pull the snot right out of your nose. Gusts must have been up over 30 mph as riders made there way around the 12 mile loop. In Cat IV men, Anthony Petrillo pulled out an 8th place finish on their 4-lap (50 mile) race. In Masters 35+ (a mix of all categories--tough!) Eric Buhs got 8th. Three Revolution riders were going for the state championship in Cat III, James Blake, Steve Cross and Mike Campie. They combined the III's and I,II's, making the pace high during the first lap of the 72 mile race. After the I's II's broke away, a group of about 10 riders, including all 3 Revolution riders hung together most of the race. At one point Steve Cross dropped his chain and had to solo an attempt to regain the pack, and then he went off the front. Steve's ability to move where he wanted was a precurser to the finish. On lap 6 with about 7 miles to go, Steve made his final solo attack and held off the field by a fair margin; almost catching the I,II peloton and earning his first Nebraska state title in the III's (3rd overall). Meanwhile, Mike and James were in the pack and set for a pack sprint. James cramped up with about 12 miles to go and had to chase about 1/4 mile to catch back up. Coming into Lieber's Point for the final 400 meters, Mike was almost in a crash with fellow rider Ryan Legg who skidded out. He regained composure and won the pack sprint to earn a 3rd place finish out of Nebraska riders (5th overall). James was cramping badly, but pulled out something to sprint for 10th place catching Kaos rider Tommy Ralston at the line. Interesting to note, out of the 23 riders that started in Cat III, only 11 finished! Enough said about the conditions. Also, thanks to Mike Campie's wife, Sara, for feeding both James and Mike during the race. At one point, she handed Mike a bottle, picked up a loose bottle in heavy bike traffic, and ran to catch James delivering another fresh bottle. Amazing work! You can follow the Revolution Cycling Team at www.revolutioncyclingteam.com |
|
| Last Updated ( Monday, 12 September 2005 ) |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
