Amanda Miller

Brimfield Road Race

Today was the Brimfield Road Race near Peoria, IL. The weather couldn’t have been any better. It was in the upper 70’s almost all day. Earlier in the morning it was almost cold. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn’t enough to be a factor in the race. I don’t know exactly how many women were in the field, but we lined up for 51 miles (3 laps). I liked the format of this race because the Women Cat 3’s were scored seperate from the Women Pro/1/2’s.

The first lap was pretty tame. I guess I didn’t realize it, but two girls were off the front for about 1/2 a lap on the first lap. I thought they were riders from a different race that we were catching. Shows how much I pay attention! There’s a decent hill where they had “Queen of the Hill” points for. It wasn’t all that steep because it was big-ringable every lap. That kind of helped weed out the field. This course was awesome. Several rollers to keep you on your toes. The views weren’t too bad either. This was by far my favorite road race I’ve done.

Anyway, eventually three Pro/1/2 women got off the front. A few people tried to do some chasing, including myself, but since we couldn’t get organized the break stuck. It included June who made the winning break at the Iowa City Road Race. Once I saw she was in it, I knew it was going to stick. I ended up doing quite a bit of work in the race, or so it felt like it. On the last lap, another girl and I duked it out for the “Queen of the Hill”. It was pretty tough. I didn’t realize it, but we got a huge gap. Once I realized it, it was too late and after we started getting or stuff together, the pack was on our heels. So I just try to sit in and save energy for the sprint the rest of the lap.

The sprint was one of the longest I’ve been in. At the end, I had nothing left in the tank. I couldn’t feel my legs and my head was beating to the pounds of my heart. I rarely push myself to these limits. But I ended up pulling out 3rd place. I’m happy with the result. I’m not a “road racer” so 3rd place makes me feel a little bit better. I normally miss a break or something else. My legs are a bit tired tonight, so hopefully they will feel ok for tomorrow’s crit. Not sure what that will be like. I’ve raced the crit before, but that was when they did the Women’s Cat 4’s with one of the men’s races. I think it was my first year racing. There are some pretty big fields here, especially in the Pro/1/2 men’s race. I was impressed. Anyway, that’s all I have for today. No pictures as of now. Might see if I can find some eventually. Have a good night!
-A

Brimfield Road Race

Today was the Brimfield Road Race near Peoria, IL. The weather couldn’t have been any better. It was in the upper 70’s almost all day. Earlier in the morning it was almost cold. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn’t enough to be a factor in the race. I don’t know exactly how many women were in the field, but we lined up for 51 miles (3 laps). I liked the format of this race because the Women Cat 3’s were scored seperate from the Women Pro/1/2’s.

The first lap was pretty tame. I guess I didn’t realize it, but two girls were off the front for about 1/2 a lap on the first lap. I thought they were riders from a different race that we were catching. Shows how much I pay attention! There’s a decent hill where they had “Queen of the Hill” points for. It wasn’t all that steep because it was big-ringable every lap. That kind of helped weed out the field. This course was awesome. Several rollers to keep you on your toes. The views weren’t too bad either. This was by far my favorite road race I’ve done.

Anyway, eventually three Pro/1/2 women got off the front. A few people tried to do some chasing, including myself, but since we couldn’t get organized the break stuck. It included June who made the winning break at the Iowa City Road Race. Once I saw she was in it, I knew it was going to stick. I ended up doing quite a bit of work in the race, or so it felt like it. On the last lap, another girl and I duked it out for the “Queen of the Hill”. It was pretty tough. I didn’t realize it, but we got a huge gap. Once I realized it, it was too late and after we started getting or stuff together, the pack was on our heels. So I just try to sit in and save energy for the sprint the rest of the lap.

The sprint was one of the longest I’ve been in. At the end, I had nothing left in the tank. I couldn’t feel my legs and my head was beating to the pounds of my heart. I rarely push myself to these limits. But I ended up pulling out 3rd place. I’m happy with the result. I’m not a “road racer” so 3rd place makes me feel a little bit better. I normally miss a break or something else. My legs are a bit tired tonight, so hopefully they will feel ok for tomorrow’s crit. Not sure what that will be like. I’ve raced the crit before, but that was when they did the Women’s Cat 4’s with one of the men’s races. I think it was my first year racing. There are some pretty big fields here, especially in the Pro/1/2 men’s race. I was impressed. Anyway, that’s all I have for today. No pictures as of now. Might see if I can find some eventually. Have a good night!
-A

Webster Groves Criterium

Made the journey to St. Louis again this weekend for the Webster Groves Criterium. The course was just under a mile long with three gradual corners and two sharper corners. There were a few slight inclines and a gradual downhill. The rain held off the entire day, even though there was a 50% chance. I doubt I would have raced if it was raining. I didn’t need another crash. My race was off at 2:15 for 35 minutes plus 6 laps. After getting a decent warm-up in, I headed for the start line. There were only about 9 of us total. It was Women’s 1/2/3/4.

The first lap was slow, the Mercy started attacking (they had two women, as everyone else had no teammates). I think the 2nd or 3rd attack stuck. It was kind of dumb that it stuck, but the gals from Mercy played their cards right. There were only two of us in the pack wanting to do any chasing. The other two solo riders wouldn’t do much. Not sure what that was all about. But we pretty much watched 1st place ride away. A few people attacked and the announcer through out some primes. I decided to go for one since 1st place was out of the question. It was for $50. Other than that, the race was pretty uneventful til the end.

The pace car came around us with one laps to go (for us) and the final lap for the leader. We were getting lapped. There was some confusion in the pack once we saw the pace car. “No we shouldn’t get lapped.” we were all thinking. That would mean this was it and we had to sprint. Unfortunately, the announcer thought the same (or so it was blamed on the announcer, but quite frankly…when does the announcer start running the race??) The first sprint lap, I came across the line 2nd. It was decided we should still go for the last lap since the rider never actually passed us. Everyone was looking out for people crossing the road. I was extremely confused and had really bad positioning. I didn’t want to crash again, let alone run into people. So coming in to the last corner, I sucked. I came across the line 4th overall. Bummer. Too bad they couldn’t have averaged out the sprint finishes…I would have got 3rd. Haha. I don’t know, the race was fun and all, but the end took the fun all out of it. It was a bummer that the official had to screw things up. I guess it’s our responsibility as racers to know the rules of the race. So things I learned today: If the pace car passes you, but not the rider, you still have one lap to go – according to this official. I wouldn’t be surprised if this rule would be changed by another official. I completely understand the officials ruling of taking the 2nd sprint lap as the final lap. I just really wish the announcer wouldn’t have said what he said. “Sprint, sprint, sprint, this is it!!” Anyway, it was fun racing and some stiff competition. The Missouri crew was very nice and apologetic. I think that’s all for now. Next up – Proctor Cycling Classic (minus the TT on Friday night). Have a good week!
-A

Webster Groves Criterium

Made the journey to St. Louis again this weekend for the Webster Groves Criterium. The course was just under a mile long with three gradual corners and two sharper corners. There were a few slight inclines and a gradual downhill. The rain held off the entire day, even though there was a 50% chance. I doubt I would have raced if it was raining. I didn’t need another crash. My race was off at 2:15 for 35 minutes plus 6 laps. After getting a decent warm-up in, I headed for the start line. There were only about 9 of us total. It was Women’s 1/2/3/4.

The first lap was slow, the Mercy started attacking (they had two women, as everyone else had no teammates). I think the 2nd or 3rd attack stuck. It was kind of dumb that it stuck, but the gals from Mercy played their cards right. There were only two of us in the pack wanting to do any chasing. The other two solo riders wouldn’t do much. Not sure what that was all about. But we pretty much watched 1st place ride away. A few people attacked and the announcer through out some primes. I decided to go for one since 1st place was out of the question. It was for $50. Other than that, the race was pretty uneventful til the end.

The pace car came around us with one laps to go (for us) and the final lap for the leader. We were getting lapped. There was some confusion in the pack once we saw the pace car. “No we shouldn’t get lapped.” we were all thinking. That would mean this was it and we had to sprint. Unfortunately, the announcer thought the same (or so it was blamed on the announcer, but quite frankly…when does the announcer start running the race??) The first sprint lap, I came across the line 2nd. It was decided we should still go for the last lap since the rider never actually passed us. Everyone was looking out for people crossing the road. I was extremely confused and had really bad positioning. I didn’t want to crash again, let alone run into people. So coming in to the last corner, I sucked. I came across the line 4th overall. Bummer. Too bad they couldn’t have averaged out the sprint finishes…I would have got 3rd. Haha. I don’t know, the race was fun and all, but the end took the fun all out of it. It was a bummer that the official had to screw things up. I guess it’s our responsibility as racers to know the rules of the race. So things I learned today: If the pace car passes you, but not the rider, you still have one lap to go – according to this official. I wouldn’t be surprised if this rule would be changed by another official. I completely understand the officials ruling of taking the 2nd sprint lap as the final lap. I just really wish the announcer wouldn’t have said what he said. “Sprint, sprint, sprint, this is it!!” Anyway, it was fun racing and some stiff competition. The Missouri crew was very nice and apologetic. I think that’s all for now. Next up – Proctor Cycling Classic (minus the TT on Friday night). Have a good week!
-A

R.I.P. Lucky

R.I.P. Lucky

Decorah

Yesterday Dennis, Nick, Tracy, and I drove to Decorah to meet up with Andrea for some trail riding. I had never been there before. There sure is a lot of hills up there. Lots of good training in the area I’m sure. Dennis took us to a short trail on the bluff for a warm up. It was decent, but it had rained that morning so it was a little slick. After that trail, we headed to the good stuff. These trails are where they hold the night time trial in September (I think). Wow. I really do not know how to describe these trails. They are unbelievable awesome. We rode for 3 hours + and never crossed the same trail twice. I ended up with 23 miles for the day. Tons of climbing. Some fast, sketchy downhills, tight corners, log dismounts, you name it. These trails are by far the best trails I’ve ridden in the midwest. Hands down. If I had to make a list of the top 10 trails I’ve ridden, it would definitely make top 5, if not top 3. It passes up some of the trails I rode in Colorado. If you ever get the chance, check them out. They are marked extremely well with numbers. It’s hard to get lost actually. Just follow the number sequence and arrows. They have maps available, but I don’t think you’ll need them. The views were excellent and it was an awesome time. I’ll leave you with some pictures. Up next – Webster Groves Crit. in St. Louis, MO possibly. We will see how the week goes. Might try to get up to Decorah next Sunday again. Yes, it was that fun!

Ah the views. There’s actually a 4 lane highway just over the edge of this bluff. The trail pops right out here and if you aren’t careful and don’t know it’s coming…well I imagine you get the picture.

Dennis showing us the views. There’s a local dirt track off to the left. I don’t think I got it in the picture.

We decided we were getting a little hot and went to the Ice Cave to get cooled off. I’m a little nervous in tight spaces. This cave was way cool (literally). I didn’t want to leave.

Yikes, tight squeeze.

Nick and Tracy riding after lunch. See that big hill, yes that’s where we were headed.

Steep, long climbs. Some of them so steep we had to walk them. Ouch.

Decorah

Yesterday Dennis, Nick, Tracy, and I drove to Decorah to meet up with Andrea for some trail riding. I had never been there before. There sure is a lot of hills up there. Lots of good training in the area I’m sure. Dennis took us to a short trail on the bluff for a warm up. It was decent, but it had rained that morning so it was a little slick. After that trail, we headed to the good stuff. These trails are where they hold the night time trial in September (I think). Wow. I really do not know how to describe these trails. They are unbelievable awesome. We rode for 3 hours + and never crossed the same trail twice. I ended up with 23 miles for the day. Tons of climbing. Some fast, sketchy downhills, tight corners, log dismounts, you name it. These trails are by far the best trails I’ve ridden in the midwest. Hands down. If I had to make a list of the top 10 trails I’ve ridden, it would definitely make top 5, if not top 3. It passes up some of the trails I rode in Colorado. If you ever get the chance, check them out. They are marked extremely well with numbers. It’s hard to get lost actually. Just follow the number sequence and arrows. They have maps available, but I don’t think you’ll need them. The views were excellent and it was an awesome time. I’ll leave you with some pictures. Up next – Webster Groves Crit. in St. Louis, MO possibly. We will see how the week goes. Might try to get up to Decorah next Sunday again. Yes, it was that fun!

Ah the views. There’s actually a 4 lane highway just over the edge of this bluff. The trail pops right out here and if you aren’t careful and don’t know it’s coming…well I imagine you get the picture.

Dennis showing us the views. There’s a local dirt track off to the left. I don’t think I got it in the picture.

We decided we were getting a little hot and went to the Ice Cave to get cooled off. I’m a little nervous in tight spaces. This cave was way cool (literally). I didn’t want to leave.

Yikes, tight squeeze.

Nick and Tracy riding after lunch. See that big hill, yes that’s where we were headed.

Steep, long climbs. Some of them so steep we had to walk them. Ouch.

Tour de Winghaven

Since there weren’t really any Iowa races today, a few of us Atlas members decided to head for O’Fallon, MO (a suburb of St. Louis). It was the Tour de Winghaven. I must say, it was a well organized event. The fields were decent sized and there were tons of volunteers. I was impressed. We arrived to the St. Louis area in the rain. It would continue raining until after my race was over. It wasn’t a down pour like Snake Alley, but enough to make it sketchy.

My race was at 12:30, but didn’t start until 1:00, and was 9 laps (each lap was approx. 3 miles). There were 16 women in the field. I recognized a few (Emilie Duchow, Molly Vetter-Smith, Kathren Walburg, and Samantha Schneider). The first lap was really tame. We weren’t able to pre-ride the course so everyone decided to take it easy to get familiar with the corners, especially since it was raining. The course had two gentle slopes and a decent uphill for the finish. There were two round-abouts on the course, which made things even trickier.

There was a “King of the Mountain” (or Queen in our race) competition. That split things up each lap as there was basically a sprint every time we came up the hill. A few people attacked and there were a few times people were off the front. Nothing stuck until the end. I actually was off the front for a lap with the eventual winner. I guess she’s a pro-triathlete. Anyway, she attacked on the 2nd to last lap and stuck it. We couldn’t real her in. It almost seemed like no one wanted to work. I noticed that a few times during the race. When I got off the front with the triathlete, we really didn’t attack, just kind of rode away.

Since the course was sketchy, I made note of the people who were slowing me down in the corners and tried to stay in front of them once we came to a corner. Sometimes it didn’t work and I ended up chasing to get back on. Spent a lot of energy doing that.

The last lap came and I found a decent sprinting wheel. Coming through the last corner, which happened to be part of the round-about, a rider lost control of their bike and went sliding in front of me. I grabbed the brakes, making sure not to lock them up. Unfortunately the rain also caused my bike to slide out from underneath me. I went sliding across the pavement. I quickly jumped to me feet and checked out my bike. It was alright so I headed up the final stretch of hill. By this time there was a group of 10 or so of us. I think a total of 4 or 5 girls went down in the carnage. I know at least one got back up and finished.

I ended up 9th after crashing. Not what I was hoping for at all, but considering the conditions, I will accept it. Yes, I was pretty annoyed that I wrecked again. But hey it happens. In both my wrecks, I feel like I had no control over avoiding them. I suppose that’s what has kept me at racing. I came out of the crash pretty good. Just a little road rash on the right leg. My bike came out decent too. My shift levers were crooked and scratched up, but fixable. I really wish that it hadn’t rained for my race. I hate racing in the rain, but since we drove 3 hours to race, I felt obligated to.

It was a good time and I definitely recommend you all to do it next year. There’s a huge purse involved. The Pro/1/2’s raced for $10,000 20 people deep. First place was $2700. In the Women’s Open race, we raced for $1000 10 people deep. First place was $500. This race was one of the higher pay-out races I’ve been in. Anyway, that’s all I have for now. Thanks for reading! Up next: Not sure?? There’s nothing in Iowa this month for some odd reason so I’ll be doing quite a bit of traveling. Proctor Cycling Classic is at the end of the month. Not sure though what I will do the weekend of the 24th. I’d like to go to Nature Valley, but you have to be a 2 to race. I’m not one yet. Maybe someday!

Tracy at the front in the Pro/1/2 race. He grabbed a point towards the “King of the Mountain” competition in the 60 mile race.

Dan Schmatz took the overall win in the Pro/1/2 race.

Tour de Winghaven

Since there weren’t really any Iowa races today, a few of us Atlas members decided to head for O’Fallon, MO (a suburb of St. Louis). It was the Tour de Winghaven. I must say, it was a well organized event. The fields were decent sized and there were tons of volunteers. I was impressed. We arrived to the St. Louis area in the rain. It would continue raining until after my race was over. It wasn’t a down pour like Snake Alley, but enough to make it sketchy.

My race was at 12:30, but didn’t start until 1:00, and was 9 laps (each lap was approx. 3 miles). There were 16 women in the field. I recognized a few (Emilie Duchow, Molly Vetter-Smith, Kathren Walburg, and Samantha Schneider). The first lap was really tame. We weren’t able to pre-ride the course so everyone decided to take it easy to get familiar with the corners, especially since it was raining. The course had two gentle slopes and a decent uphill for the finish. There were two round-abouts on the course, which made things even trickier.

There was a “King of the Mountain” (or Queen in our race) competition. That split things up each lap as there was basically a sprint every time we came up the hill. A few people attacked and there were a few times people were off the front. Nothing stuck until the end. I actually was off the front for a lap with the eventual winner. I guess she’s a pro-triathlete. Anyway, she attacked on the 2nd to last lap and stuck it. We couldn’t real her in. It almost seemed like no one wanted to work. I noticed that a few times during the race. When I got off the front with the triathlete, we really didn’t attack, just kind of rode away.

Since the course was sketchy, I made note of the people who were slowing me down in the corners and tried to stay in front of them once we came to a corner. Sometimes it didn’t work and I ended up chasing to get back on. Spent a lot of energy doing that.

The last lap came and I found a decent sprinting wheel. Coming through the last corner, which happened to be part of the round-about, a rider lost control of their bike and went sliding in front of me. I grabbed the brakes, making sure not to lock them up. Unfortunately the rain also caused my bike to slide out from underneath me. I went sliding across the pavement. I quickly jumped to me feet and checked out my bike. It was alright so I headed up the final stretch of hill. By this time there was a group of 10 or so of us. I think a total of 4 or 5 girls went down in the carnage. I know at least one got back up and finished.

I ended up 9th after crashing. Not what I was hoping for at all, but considering the conditions, I will accept it. Yes, I was pretty annoyed that I wrecked again. But hey it happens. In both my wrecks, I feel like I had no control over avoiding them. I suppose that’s what has kept me at racing. I came out of the crash pretty good. Just a little road rash on the right leg. My bike came out decent too. My shift levers were crooked and scratched up, but fixable. I really wish that it hadn’t rained for my race. I hate racing in the rain, but since we drove 3 hours to race, I felt obligated to.

It was a good time and I definitely recommend you all to do it next year. There’s a huge purse involved. The Pro/1/2’s raced for $10,000 20 people deep. First place was $2700. In the Women’s Open race, we raced for $1000 10 people deep. First place was $500. This race was one of the higher pay-out races I’ve been in. Anyway, that’s all I have for now. Thanks for reading! Up next: Not sure?? There’s nothing in Iowa this month for some odd reason so I’ll be doing quite a bit of traveling. Proctor Cycling Classic is at the end of the month. Not sure though what I will do the weekend of the 24th. I’d like to go to Nature Valley, but you have to be a 2 to race. I’m not one yet. Maybe someday!

Tracy at the front in the Pro/1/2 race. He grabbed a point towards the “King of the Mountain” competition in the 60 mile race.

Dan Schmatz took the overall win in the Pro/1/2 race.