US Pro Road Championships = Awesome (Part 2)

Sunday was the road race. The day started with a fairly large breakfast at the Holiday Inn Express. It was a continental breakfast, with plenty to choose from. I went with cereal, a bagel with peanut butter, banana and something else that I can't remember right now. Either way, it was too much, as I would later find out.

Lisa and I decided to go for a run, and it was clearly not long enough after breakfast. I was still stuffed to the gills and running with what feels like a stuffed, distended stomach sucks. We ran pretty fast and went 5 miles. It was pleasant. The trail we ran on was called the Swamp Rabbit trail, kind of a funny name, but a very nice place to run.

Once we got back to the hotel and I was able to take care of the gastrointestinal issues I was experiencing, we got ready to go to the road race. Our hotel was right at the end of what you might call the "downtown" area. Nicely done Mom! So, it was just a simple walk from the hotel to the race course, well, the part that went through downtown.

We got to the course and started figuring out a good place to sit. We had a map, and we were trying to figure out where to sit. There was a spot on the course where the riders would come through twice on each of the circuits through the city. We figured out where this spot was and went to get a coffee and snack down by the start/finish. This race had a pretty sweet set up. There were these VIP tents that had TV's in them and there was a big screen TV by the start/finish line.

After our snack, we waited by the start/finish line as the riders were coming through to sign in. We saw Matthew on his way to sign in and he came back so we could talk to him before the race. We also got to see some of the other guys riding to the sign in, like George Hincapie, Levi, Jason McCartney, Chris Horner and pretty much all the other guys!

After a quick word with Matthew, he got set to go as they were calling up the riders. We made our way to our spot to watch the beginning circuits. In the first few laps the main field was looking pretty relaxed. I am sure the first lap was mostly for the fans as they came by quite slow. There was a break right from the get go. The eventual winner came from this break, but, we wouldn't know that for some time. After the three circuits, they went out on the big loop which included 4 trips up Paris Mountain. I have no idea what the climb is like, but, it is roughly 2 miles long, averages 10% and I believe is close to 15% the last few kilometers. It isn't a piece of cake, this is for sure.

The breakaway started as 4, then quickly dwindled to 3. They were able to gain an advantage of close to 17 minutes. In bike racing, that is HUGE! There were various reasons for the huge gap, however, it would seem the most consistent reason was the fact there were no radios allowed in the race. Many people, well racers, have said this was the reason. There are some good aspects to not having radios, it brings racing back to the old school, however, things like this happen. Either way, Team Radioshack wasn't going to chase the break. Ben King, the eventual National Champion, rides for Trek Livestrong and will ride for Team Radioshack next year. There were other teams in the race though that could have chased...BMC, Garmin, etc. I initially thought Kelly Benefits should have chased, but, I see in the picture they had a guy in the break, which would mean they wouldn't chase.

Before the race, Lisa got a text from Matthew with the plan for the day. It went something like "Chris and Levi are protected riders, I am going to attack on the 3rd time up Paris." We were hoping to be able to see the TV, so after they went out on the circuits, we moved toward the start/finish line. The TV was showing the race, but, because of the break, they were only showing the break. Which was cool I guess. They did only have the one camera, and you can't just forget about the break.

The break stayed together for the first lap and a half. We later found out that the 2nd time up Paris Mountain, Ben King just rode away from his companions. Once he was on his own, he was still able to keep a good gap. Ben King continued to rock the course and apparently Team Radioshack's plan still went as scheduled. We were getting updates about what was going on from a lot of people, Lisa's parents, Eric and my buddy Luke. We were told Matthew attacked, got a gap, caught the two dropped breakaway guys and was closing in on Ben King. We later found out this was completely false.

We were confused when the group came through the city. First it was Ben King, about 6 minutes later the two dropped breakaway guys and shortly after that, the main field. Matthew was in the field and we were totally confused as to why. I had thought the plan had worked: other teams were forced to chase because Matthew went off the front, they would eventually catch Ben and it would leave room for Levi to attack on the last time up Paris Mountain and bring it home for the win. Not so, however.

After all was said and done, Ben King won with a super human effort. He was out from the get go, and was on his own for 50 miles! It was crazy hot and his ride was extremely gutsy and very impressive. Congrats to him!

After the race my family, Lisa and I got to meet Levi, Chris, Jose Acevedo and Jason McCartney. All very nice guys who are quite cool and seem to be some cool people to be around. I was pretty set after this point. I had hoped to meet Levi by the time we left so I was good to go. We went back to the hotel, I downloaded my pictures and we hung out for awhile.

A short while later Lisa got a text from Matthew inviting us to dinner with the team. What? Really? The team? Awesome! So, I decided I should take a shower and we got set to go. We walked down to the restaurant to meet them there. We got to the restaurant plenty early so they wouldn't have to wait for us. Eventually they got there and we went in.

I have to say, sitting at a table with the team was cool. Not only is it cool that my brother is part of the team, but, cool that we were able to see who he "works" with out of the "work" environment. It was a great time and I am very thankful for the fact we were able to be there with them. Thanks Matthew! I got to hear some pretty cool stories from Levi and found out that there is no one right way to set your cleats. I also learned that even pro cyclists have similar problems to what I have when I ride. Clearly, their problems are a little more important than mine, but, it is still interesting to listen. Ben showed up and we got to toast him and his win. He is a great guy and definitely a future talent.

All in all, the trip was very awesome. I was very happy to get to see my brother and hang out with him for a little while, as well as my sister-in law! It was an awesome time with the family too! I am extremely grateful to meet Jose, Levi, Chris and Jason as well as Ben King. All super cool guys!

It sucked to leave, mostly because I won't get to see Matthew and Lisa for awhile and I miss them. I won't miss the heat and humidity of South Carolina, this is for certain!

Picture 1: Matthew
Picture 2: Matthew and Lisa
Picture 3: The initial breakaway
Picture 4: Levi in the field
Picture 5: Matthew in the field
Picture 6: Ben King on the way to his win.