April 28, 2011
Posted by admin
Menlo Park Crit 2011
Red Peloton would like to congratulate both Jenny Gott and Dan Boyle on their first place finishes in this year’s Menlo Park Crit! Below is a race report by Jenny Gott on how her race unfolded.
Race: Women’s Category 3
Rider: Jennifer Gott
Arrived to Menlo park a little over an hour before my race – hit registration, grabbed my number and headed back to the car for my trainer warm up – I was worried all morning about racing – my typical fears of crashing or having a mechanical were swirling around in my head – I have been struggling with executing a good solid race for a few months now – positioning myself for the finish has been my biggest obstacle in addition to the fear of crashing or being squeezed out on a turn during a crit – my remedy lately has been to stay in front during the entire race which means pulling the peloton around for the entire race only to be passed in the last 50 feet by wheel suckers – so i was in need of a new game plan – Nina had specifically told me to race smart and this time she did not want me to pull up front at all – seeing as this seems a simple concept it is incredibly hard for me to be patient while in the peloton – riding smart means knowing which wheels will stick a break and which wheels won’t – sitting close enough to the front to be in touch with those wheels but not be pulling everyone around while waiting for a break – patience is watching the race unfold in front of you and waiting for the moment to put yourself in the right position to utilize your talents for a win – identifying this moment is key and requires experience, skill and I think a bit of luck sometimes – So I decided to consider this a training race and try these new tactics – i was not worried about the outcome – this was just another opportunity to try something new and gain experience – the menlo park course suited me well – the sprint to the finish was a long one which gave me an advantage – I would have time to position and I had the power to wind up my legs and really gain speed over the long distance – the race started off at a good tempo – turns were not too technical – I sat mid-pack and sometimes towards the back for the first few laps always giving myself an out in case a player went down in front of me – my corners were not efficient but it was warm up time – I watched the field and picked 2 wheels that I knew could stick a break – those were the girls I would follow and jump with if an attempt at a break went – as the race progressed I moved up to the top third of the peloton – always staying on a wheel and watching my two key players – there were a few opportunists off the front but they were soon swallowed up by our pack – as the lap cards were presented I began to ride more aggressive now staying top 5 – with 4 laps to go I focused on the final 2 turns and imagined where I wanted to be for the final lap – practicing my positioning a bit – I literally was talking out loud to myself – which i’m sure was amusing to my fellow competitors – i walked myself through the most efficient line through a corner – not to go too wide and grab a lead out wheel – final 2 laps one of my marked wheels broke and i went with her – she is an amazing time trialist and I knew she and I would work well together to get to the finish alone – but she sat up with a lap to go – the peloton was onto us and the speed/aggression grew – it was the final lap – so I worked to stay in the position that I had practiced before and accepted the fact that it would be a field sprint finish – in the past this idea always made me very anxious – field sprints often end in crashes thus I prefer a break away for more of a diplomatic finish:) BUT today I had a good game plan and was not afraid of the field – final two turns I was about 5th or 6th wheel back – coming out of the final turn I grabbed a wheel and patiently waiting as girls around me were jumping way too early – finally I couldn’t hold back any longer – I was eager to jump into the fun as the road ahead of me was getting shorter by the second – I may have gone a bit early but i knew i had a good chance to get by everyone – I jumped to the right and pushed really hard – then the “slow motion” moment hit – everything was in slow motion – i gained and passed the girls in front of me and then it was just me out there alone and the crowd roaring – at this point I was worried about being a lead out for someone else so I pushed even harder so much so my rear tire was off the ground a few times – (note: need to work on weight balance over my bike during my sprint) AND then there was the finish line and I thought to myself, ” I can’t believe I am going to win this race – I am going to win this race !” and then stop slow motion and I sped across the finish line first with the announcer in the background calling out the unofficial winner is Jennifer Gott riding for the Red Peloton – I had a few seconds to myself before the other riders caught up to me to congratulate me – in that moment I cried a bit out of amazement, relief, joy, pride, and happiness – all the hours of training and all the coaching and family and friends that believe in you – I finally put the pieces together and executed a plan – the rest of the day was a blur – upon exiting the course I was tackled by my teammate Soda with the biggest hug EVER! I got to stand on the podium which was amazing but again I had to over think that as well – just before getting on the podium I was full of all sorts of questions – when do I put my hands up in the air – is it one or two arms – how high – how long – do i grab my fellow 2nd and 3rd place hands- which camera do I look at -they should have an instruction booklet for this AND welcome to the mind of Jenny Gott – a split second later I was on the podium – I gratefully accepted my winnings grabbed my opponents hands and raised them up high – we all made each other stronger today and were examples of great women’s racing and that is ultimately why I signed up for this sport – so I’m off on another training ride hoping to revisit this winning moment again in the near future but before I ride off into the sunset – lol – I want to thank my competition for making me a stronger rider, my teammates for their great hugging abilities and having a camera at the podium moment, my coach Nina for believing in me, Jonathan Lee and Red Peloton team and all our sponsors for providing me with amazing encouragement and equipment, Ms Green for her encouragement before, during and after my race, and my family and friends for their loving support and God for giving me the ability to ride fast and strong for Him. And yes i realize this is a cycling race i have not won the Oscars but I really wanted to thank everyone because i couldn’t perform without any of you! So thanks!
 Dan Boyle - 1st place Elite Cat 3 |
 Jenny Gott - 1st Place Women's Cat 3 |
