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   June 11, 2009 Nature Valley Grand Prix The first day of the Nature Valley Grand Prix, held in and around Minneapolis, Minnesota, brought two stages: an individual time trial in the morning and a criterium in the evening. The Webcor Builders Cycling Team came fully represented with eight riders for the first time since Redlands. The time trial (TT) course was held along the Mississippi River with views of downtown St Paul across the water. The course was 6 miles in total, starting out flat for 2.5 miles, then a u-turn which brought us back 2.5 miles where we passed the start line, and continued on for a bit before the finishing half-mile climb. The skies were grey and the roads wet; with just a light rain, the course was a bit more interesting, but certainly not dangerous. The time trial marked two important points for me: my first race back since I broke my collarbone 5 weeks ago and my first time on my time trial bike (except of course for a short test ride around the neighborhood the previous day). I was happy to be back with the team and racing, but, in some ways, it felt like the season was starting anew. My TT bike, although lovely, felt quite foreign, which reminds me why it is so important to have specific TT training. Given all this, I think it’s fair to say I was tentative; I need to get to know my machine and become familiar with time trialing again. Fantastic results were achieved by the team. While Kristin Armstrong, gold medalist in the Olympic TT, rode an impressive time to first place, Webcor earned 3rd, 6th, 7th, and 10th place out of 118 racers! Having four riders in the top ten put us in an excellent position for the Downtown St. Paul Criterium. We knew it was going to be fast, aggressive, and exciting racing because this was the stage that offered the most time bonuses. These time bonuses were available on three intermediate sprints and at the finish, so it was important for us to gain precious time, possibly moving up a rider in the fight for General Classification (GC), and to prevent other teams from gaining time on our top riders. We had ambitious goals and were excited for some serious racing. The criterium course was a basic rectangle shape, 1.1km long, and was run clockwise so all of our turns were left turns. That made it easy to keep track of things! The start/finish line was on a slight downhill, while the 3rd and 4th sides of the course were slightly uphill. The climb wasn’t steep or long, but it was significant enough to make things more challenging! From the gun, the race was fast, and Webcor riders were constantly in the action. Alex Rhodes, who finished the TT in 6th place, was keen on bonus seconds to move her further up in GC and she had help from Gina Grain and Nikki Butterfield, in particular, to make this happen. Our other top riders, Erinne Willock, Katheryn Mattis, and Rebecca Much, were up front the entire time to assist if needed and to keep an eye on key players from other teams. Spectacular results came in every sprint as Webcor was always represented by Alex, Gina, or both! And, after incredibly aggressive riding, Gina finished third place claiming a spot on the podium. Alex mopped up enough bonus seconds to move to 3rd place in GC and Erinne sits just behind her in 4th place. Katheryn and Rebecca also maintained their top-10 ranking, so it was a great team race. It’s exhilarating when the team comes together with a great performance, and it’s hard to not be a key player in the team’s success. Coming back from a broken collarbone is a challenge, and I know that I need to have a little patience. This race has drawn so many great competitors that it will be a hotly contested race each day, and it will be hard for everyone. And, day one is only day one… there are four more days remaining and better results may come… In the mean time, it is wonderful to know that our team is doing so well. Janel |