HARDENED WINTER WEATHER RIDERS FROM THE NORTH DESCEND UPON THE SOUTH!
 |
| Matt (5th) and Andrew (3rd) in Sunday's Crit. We'll get to this race later. |
The winter of 2017-2018 continued to take its toll on the North East of the United States. Dartmouth was scheduled to share a race with University of New Hampshire this weekend. However, due to inclement weather, Sunday’s race was cancelled. The team, receiving this news as the weekend approached, made the decision to go south to race in a neighboring conference, the ACCC. University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins would be hosting a Saturday Road Race and a Sunday Crit.
 |
| Adam showing off his roller skills |
 |
| Yiwei making his way around Saturday's race course |
 |
| Max in the Road Race |
Saturday’s race was forecasted to be beautiful, and what a beautiful day it was. Starting out with a balmy 67 degrees in the morning, before sunrise, we were more than happy to be away from the bitter cold of central PA. The race was a 7.8-mile loop of rolling hills through the countryside of Hunt Valley MD, with a steep and punchy hill just past the halfway mark. It started with the Men’s D race featuring
Yiwei Wang,
Adam Workineh, and
Max Skirpan. Their first loop was an ominous omen to the rest of the team as it was made clear no pack had been maintained because riders started to trickle past the start line. How bad was this hill? It turns out the hill had a 19% kick. With a gradual start, there was no way to carry any momentum into the steep section. Despite it being short, it was easy for the hill to take a toll on the legs. Each of the 3 riders made their way around the course in the early morning light, dodging the heat that would late come, each placed well throughout the field.
Evelyn Korbich in the Woman’s A/B race departed the start line next. Exploding on the infamous hill after repeated attacks, Evelyn worked with another rider for the next lap and made a solo effort for another lap. With thoughts of tomorrow’s crit in her mind, she decided to pull herself a lap early. Following Evelyn’s start by 5 minutes were
Matt McGauley and
Andrew Schlicht in the Men’s C race. Sitting comfortably with a fairly lazy pack for the first lap, the two took the time to get a feel for the different conference riders and course. It was the second lap that things heated up. Matt and Andrew sat at the very front of the group and dropped the hammer. This split the race in two groups: those that could hang with the ECCC riders and those that couldn’t. Matt and Andrew powered the break away of 6 other riders for almost the remainder of the race. A brake check leading to a crash prematurely cut short Matt’s time in the break away, leaving Andrew to finish the race with the remaining riders. Matt rallied after his crash and finished the race with the following pack.
 |
| Eli being bored at the start line |
Eli Bravo, with the combined knowledge of all the previous riders, then approached the start line to wrap up the day in the Men’s B race. What was originally a chill race, quickly changed at the base of the hill. Pace lines at 25 miles per hour and dropped hammers up the hill forced Eli to ride in what became a chase group for the remainder of the race. The biggest tragedy of this race was the fact that Eli’s hamburger feed didn’t work out. He managed to grab a bun, but not the patty. I suppose the team will need to start doing feeding practice. Tired from the race-day, sunburned from the sun, and exhausted from the 80+ degree heat, the team settled down for a well-earned sleep.
 |
| Adam in a straightaway from the Crit |
Sunday, the team started the day with the Men’s C race at the beautiful time of 8:00 AM. What was a grueling first few laps for both Matt and Andrew, ultimately resulted in the field splitting apart within a handful of laps. Finding themselves with 4 other riders, Matt and Andrew assisted in powering the lead group around the 8 corner dead-flat course. Taking a couple of points as the prime laps flew by, it was the end that had people on the edge of their seats in anticipation. The group of 6 came flying around the 2nd to last corner and Matt kicked for the sprint, making a gap between him and the rest. Rounding the final corner Matt sent his bike into the gutter, sending a jolt through him and the crowd, but he managed to stay upright and held the lead to the finish! Your one and only Matt McGauley with the Bucknell University Cycling Team jersey on his back came in first! He managed to beat second place by 1 inch, but a win is a win, no matter how slim the margin. This high carried on for the rest of the day.
 |
| Max in the Crit |
 |
| Yiwei in the Crit |
In the Men’s D field, Max, Adam, and Yiwei made themselves be know. Max and Adam hung tightly to a group that made its way around the course lap after lap while Yiwei worked with a collection of UMD riders just behind to make his way around. Max found his way to the finish line with the front group while Adam and Yiwei pushed themselves till the last lap. Having a strong team presence in a field makes any and all races more enjoyable. The mental and physical support that can be received from having a teammate by your side is one that often goes unnoticed by the crowd. Even though cycling is one of those sports where each person is making their own effort, there is something about being with a friend on the course that can’t easily be put into words.
Regardless, Eli in the Men’s B field was next to the start line. His field too, much like the C field, split apart within a few laps. Fortunately, Eli found himself in the front group and consequently picked up prime points with every couple of laps. As his race progressed, rain began to descend upon the road. The slippery conditions made everyone slow down for the corners, but no one let up on the straights, resulting in the pace remaining high. After some minor confusion involving a fire truck on the course responding to a fire alarm at a nearby frat house, Eli remained one of the 4 in the front group and finished with them out of a field with over 20 riders.
 |
| Eli rounding a corner in the crit (before the rain) |
To finish the weekend was Evelyn in the Woman’s A/B race. With rain still hitting the asphalt and a strong bone chilling breeze, it was a miserable start. But the race quickly heated up. A rider from Duke attacked extremely early, giving cause for a chase. Evelyn would help power a chase group of 5 riders until she could no longer keep up. Riding with a UMD student for the next few laps, Evelyn was able to find it within herself to drop the UMD student with 3 laps to go and solo to the finish. Over all, a mighty fine race day in my opinion.
This weekend, several stops were pulled from the ground to support the team. A pair of alumni,
Ward Prescott and
Alex Breakstone, made a appearance at both race days. Their attendance was greatly appreciated by all on the team as they provided excellent advice, support, and laughs. Another thank you goes out to the
Schlicht/
Pekot family. They were kind enough to house and feed 7 college students Saturday night and Sunday morning. The baked ziti from Saturday evening will be praised for ages to come.
 |
| Saturday Team Dinner (Left to right: Evelyn, Eli, Yiwei, Adams mother Taitu, Adam, Sous Chef Ray, Matt, Max, Andrew. Behind the camera: Head Chef Mary) |
Unfortunately, Papa K was unable to provide his services for this race weekend, but as you may know, this does not stop the team from making a few observations.
Observations:
1) No hot tub at the hotel. We’re disappointed.
2) Max needs to focus on the race, not giving thumbs up for the camera
3) There are dedicated lanes for hazardous materials on the interstate. How many dangerous chemicals are being transported around here?
4) Either Matt needs to wear Evelyn’s sunglasses more often, or he needs to start removing his valve stem caps.
5) UMD looks like Bucknell, but bigger.
6) Max is not shy.
7) “Why is the hauling van losing power?”
- Schlichty
Results:
RR
Crit
