USA Cycling Masters Nationals: Race Recap!

I haven’t done a race recap in quite a while, and what better way to break the rut than by recapping my weekend in Milwaukee, WI where I snagged a national championship jersey?! The USA Cycling Master’s National’s races were held in conjunction with Tour of America’s Dairyland crit week this year. They hosted a crit, time trial, and road race for us older folks! Let’s dive right in.

The Time Trial

My first race of the weekend was on a Monday afternoon. The Time Trial. A 12.5 mile all out effort that would require control, pacing, and suffering. I didn’t realize how badly I wanted to do well at this event until the morning of, when my stomach was roiling and I felt unsettled no matter what I was doing. With hours to go before the race my chest felt heavy and I was working myself into a mild frenzy.

We arrived at the venue several hours early as I needed to be there by a certain time to claim my bib number and find parking. After that, it was a lot of waiting around and continuing to let the anxiety build! I read. I scrolled social media. I stood up, sat down, and was a jumble of nerves. When it was finally an acceptable time to begin warming up I found myself being able to relax as I know had a purpose to the next hours.

It was hot. 90 degrees with 10-13 mph winds. I sat on the trainer in the shade of our van with ice packs down my jersey doing my best to keep my core cool while I opened up the legs and elevated the heart rate for the upcoming event. After the first bit of warm up it was time to make final preparations and roll to the start line. Nerves were subsiding slightly.

I got to the start with plenty of time and watched as the group before us began their races. We would start into a headwind. It was one big rectangle so we’d experience all wind angles. Our group was finally called to line up; I was the last person in our group which I liked. I had athletes ahead of me to use as a carrot. We began, and each rider went off 30 seconds apart.

Clipped in and ready to go, my countdown began. 5, 4, 3, 2, GO! Pressure on the pedals. That was the only thought I allowed in my head. Keep the pressure on the pedals. Watts were a bit hot to start and I knew I’d need to settle in to a more manageable effort soon. I passed one rider. Crosswind. Tailwind. Crosswind. I passed a second rider. On the second lap (I had 2.5 laps) my husband was standing along the side and yelled out “7 seconds down!”. I had no idea whether he had actually said 7, or 27. I decided if it was 7, I had a chance. That renewed my spirits and the confirmation to keep the pressure on the pedals. I soon came into a turn and had to ease off as I approached another rider at the same time. Small panic that I’d lost the valuable seconds I needed with that slow up, so it was big power out of the turn.

I could see a rider up ahead, and instinctively knew that was the person I needed to gain the time on, but legs were screaming with the final half lap to go. It was a battle to keep the pressure on the pedals, and to shift to find a more comfortable gear as the burn intensified. And where was that finish line?! C’mon, c’mon hold it together! I kept telling myself.

Finally, I rounded the last corner. Legs screaming, body over it, I somehow kept going. As the finish line came into sight I attempted a “sprint” and rolled over that finish line absolutely smashed. Now, it was a waiting game as results were uploaded.

A few moments later confirmation was made. One second. I’d taken the win by one second! Relief. Joy. Disbelief. All the emotions quickly rolled through me. I’d finally raced. All out. Nothing left. A truly proud moment. The best part? The Kringle I got in addition to the beautiful stars & stripes jersey!

The Road Race

Now, if the time trial was the most epic thing, the road race can definitely be classified as the opposite. Our race was the following morning, a sunny Tuesday 30 miles South of Milwaukee, on a rolling course. We would do 5 laps for a total of 45 miles.

We lined up with 30 plus riders, including a pro triathlete in the field. The pace was high, but due to the number of riders and lack of a good spot for a breakaway, our group stayed together for the entirety of the race. One big peloton rolling together for lap on lap.

When we finally approached the last bit of the race, the pace picked up as women started sprinting for position with over one kilometer to go! I stayed in the draft. As we got closer it was evident this was going to be sketchy. Women could not hold their lines. They’d ridden too hard, too early and were shooting off left and right while riders behind had to dodge the chaos. I tried my best to stay out of the fray, but that cost me as I couldn’t keep consistent pressure on the pedals for this massive sprint field. I ended up with 6th in my division. I was happy enough with that. My only regret is not earning another Kringle!

Final Thoughts

The weekend in general was so fun. USA Cycling puts on a very nice event and everything ran smoothly and efficiently. It’s also nice because it is one of the few times I get to race against a bigger field of strong women. Both my husband and I truly enjoy Milwaukee. Great food, great places to ride, and an enjoyable city to visit. Until next time!