We waited in anticipation under the shelter of the trees for the road race to get underway. About 15 min after the first group set out - elite men - we would roll out over the gravel parking lot.
The day started at 36 degrees, it was a hot one. We rolled out of the parking lot as a group, following the lead moto, turning left onto the road. The first lap started out spicy, punching it up every climb, every one standing up trying to make their way to the front. There were a lot of attacks within the first couple laps from the Glotmen and the Crit Nasty team, We had a small roster so our plan was to play it safe until about two laps to go in this long 99 km road race. (side note, this was my longest road race ever! Well so far...)
Unfortunately within the first lap there were two big crashes; the group didn’t go down but two riders were out. One of the crashes cracked Gabby’s front fork on the right side so she went back to the support car who reassured her that it was fine to continue racing. Skeptically she did, but in the end that fork was badly damaged. Glad she finished safe and sound.
Anika and Holly both had mechanicals which meant they were off the group. The race continued to be punchy up the climbs, but the closer we got to the finish the less frequent the attacks became and the steadier everyone got, watching each other ready to jump at any move.
The road race ended up in a bunch sprint, the top three up the climb took the podium spots but I ended up getting boxed in as a result of poor positioning going into the base of the climb. I was squeezed towards the back of the pack, but at the end of the day I am happy to come away with 5th place as a junior in the elite category and repping the Junior Canadian championship jersey! Proud to be racing under the red and white colors of the Trek Red Truck Team