State Champ Road Race Recap

First off-- Kathleen your pictures are totally the best and we are super lucky as a team to have you as such a devoted parent and helper. Thank you. We could not have had such a successful weekend without all your tireless help. THANK YOU!!!

Also to Mark and Kathy ( Nathans parents). They let me borrow their car so as to make it possible to get everyone to the race. THANK YOU!!!

So how did it go? Well if you look at the pics you can tell. We did incredible. After being shut out from the top spot of the podium during the crit champs, we came back to claim two state titles. Lizzy and Logan both earned new jerseys, unfortunately though their jerseys wont fit me, so only they will be allowed to wear them.

The race is brutal, with incredible climbs that make Gates pass look flat and short. I ended up driving behind the race with Donovan because he was not feeling well, and really just tailing Lizzy. I knew that if we were there to encourage her that she had a real chance. So I can give a real good play by play of her race and really just anecdotes about the others so here we go.

Lizzy's race-- An 18 mile point to point. So start and go 18 miles to the finish. The start of the race was a long 8 mile false down hill. The boys and girls of the 13-14s road out together with the 10-12s as well. Lizzy always being a bit timid to ride in the pack dangled off the back of a pace that was not too fast. Then came the first hill. Approximately a 2 miler at 6%. The group of older boys went to the front and started setting a pretty good pace that really stung out the group, Lizzy again off the back. By the top of the climb she was about 10 seconds behind the 3 Yuma girls. The decent though allowed her to catch up again. At this point Donovan and I were just hoping she could hang for a bit longer because then climb #2 came. Much longer maybe 4 miles long and really just as steep. As the climb started Logan went to the front of the pack and set a pace that left him with only Kenny Polley to deal with. As for Lizzy she again fell behind the three Yuma girls who at this point were being led out by one of their male team mates. Lizzy soldiered on though about 5 seconds behind the girls falling into her own pace. And then it happened. The Yuma girls started to crack one by one they started to really have to throttle back so they could have enough energy to keep going. Lizzy however found her groove and quickly made up the little bit of time she had to passing two of them.
So now it was her, Andrea and a random Yuma boy who was setting pace for the girls. As soon as I realized this I told Lizzy to get behind the Yuma boy and let him do the work. But wouldn't you know he too was about to crack and Andrea could just not hold on any longer either. When this moment came though Lizzy runs into the Yuma boys rear wheel then gets tossed to her right running over rumble strips and then bumps into Andrea, and amazingly she stays up.
( Thanks for the skills Hunter!!!) The adrenaline from this though sparks her to then come around everyone and get to the top of the second climb with about a 30 second gap. Once she gets to the top though I inform her of her gap and she kind of starts to freak out. Looking around and getting nervous. However she settles down, and she holds onto this lead till the top when the boy from Yuma is able to catch her. So now we have a 30 second gap and a 7 mile down hill to go. The Yuma boy at the top of the climb then decides to get in front of Lizzy and tries to drop her on the down hill. Little does he know thought that Lizzy has ridden my wheel many a time down Mt Lemmon. So try and try as he might to drop Lizzy she just keeps hanging on, all the while building a huge lead over her competition. By the end of the race she had about a 3 minute lead and road over the line on her own. A job really well done. Most exciting too that her brother got to watch the whole thing with me cheering her on the whole time.

Logan had the same race however over the last climb he was all alone with Kenny Polley. They then road the last 7 miles together and right before the finish there was a good rise of a hill much like the Greesewood sprint hill we race over all the time. Logan timed it perfectly to get the win. Kenny took the the first charge and Logan just waited for his moment and upon his strike he was able to take by about 20 feet. He as pumped, and well deserving.

I am super proud of the two.

As for the 17-18s. I did not get to see much of the race. I am going to try and get one of them to write about how it went. Kramer finished 4th, Marcos 7th and man was he close to finishing even better. Pablo and Nathan road and suffered together.

Max and Alex also road in the 4s race. I really did not see any of it and can't speak to too much of it. However I also will ask Max to write something for everyone.

Great, Great, Great weekend everyone. I had a blast and the China Buffet was well you know almost as good as my pudding at the end.

Thanks El Grupo!!!

Oh and to Donovan for being such a big help through out the day, and really I hope to never do that with you again D.