Conquer The Canyons
Published by Jenna Shoemaker April 23rd, 2007 in General, Road Biking, Triathlon
This weekend I competed in the Conquer The Canyons Stage Race in Westlake Village, CA. It was a 2 day event comprised of 3 stages: Uphill Time Trial and a Circuit Race on Saturday and a Road Race on Sunday. I raced in the Women's Pro 1,2,3 category, a field of about 30 women, and as a 3 was a bit nervous about how the whole race would unfold.
The first stage, the uphill time trial was 4 miles long with 3 different climbs. I had a bit of trouble finding my rhythm on the first hill but after descending fast I found myself climbing to the top of the second hill quite easily. The final climb was the toughest of the three with headwinds and a steeper grade. At about the 1/2 way point I caught up to a rider in front of me who had started 1 minute ahead of me, however, as I passed her, I was passed by the rider who had started 30 seconds behind me. At the end of the stage I found myself in 17th place only 1 minute behind the overall leader.
Only a few hours later I raced in the second stage of the day, the 40 minute circuit race. The course was great, flat and fast, but no one was able to get away from the field. Circuit races always make me nervous because if someone is going to crash it generally will happen in the circuit or criterium race. Fortunately, we all stayed upright and I found myself in 17th place still only 1 minute behind the overall leader.
On Sunday, it was time to tackle the challenging road race course. An undulating 7 mile loop containing a number of rolling hills and a massive 1 mile climb each lap that was sure to test even the strongest riders. For the first 3 laps, the pace was easy, so easy that we were actually reprimanded by the race officials for riding so slowly. After being neutralized a number of times, so that other groups on the course could pass us, we were finally allowed to race and told that the stage had been shortened by one lap because of our sluggish pace. The whole field was still together because we had all been prepared to climb the mountain 5 times, not 4. I decided I would test my legs and I attacked just before the bottom of the massive hill, about 4 miles from the finish. It shattered the field and also shattered me. I put my head down, composed myself and built into the rest of the climb and picked off a number of riders along the way. Ultimately I ended up crossing the line with a chase group only 1 minute 4 seconds down on the winning group of 8.
I finished the stage race in 16th place 2:15 behind the race winner. I was very pleased with my overall effort and with my fitness. I am excited to take my cycling strength and to translate it into some fast riding on the ITU circuit!!
Next up: Ixtapa Pan American Cup on May 12th.
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