CT Criterium Championships and New England Regional Championships

Posted by mandy on July 14th, 2010

Sam took this photo early in the race with his iphone. I'm still searching for the photos from the many pro photogs that were out...

I'm down and out right now with a case of the Summer sickies, so what better to do than get some inside work done and chat online with friends?!

A good bike-racer friend of mine and I were chatting yesterday on the merits of ugrading cycling categories. She is one of the strongest riders I know and has a number of great results under her belt. She suffered a catastrophic accident this Spring (Breaking her hip and more) due to some poor bike handling by another rider. It was awful, especially since it came after an overall win just days before.

Currently, we both race as Category 3 riders. Over the past 2 seasons, we've gained enough points to upgrade, but have opted to gain more experience racing rather than always getting our butts kicked by the big girls. She asked me what I thought and I told her:

1. Being a 3 is great because you have a lot of flexibility - you can race in a straight 3 field, you can race in a 3/4 field or you can race in a Pro1/2,3 field.

2.Being a 3 can be dangerous b/c sometimes you are lumped with brand new racers. As much as I love encouraging new cyclists, I also have a real desire to avoid crashing.

3. Do you rise to the occasion when racing with better riders? I like to think so. When Silke Wunderwald, Andrea Myers, Anne Marie Miller, Mo Bruno Roy and others (All pros and some current National champs) show up, it makes you up your game. Am I in the same league as those women? Not at this very moment, no.

And here's where the conversation changed. My friend identifies as a Road Cyclist. I identify as an Ultra-Distance Triathlete/runner/swimmer. I love road racing, but I think I love it b/c I don't put too much weight on it. Of course I always want to do well, but am I broken up if things don't go my way? Not at all.

I almost died laughing when someone told me I'm a good sprinter. Wow, really? Because I have never done a single thing to do that well. What I do know how to do is to go hard. To go hard consistently and for many hours at a time. Then get off the bike and run a marathon. That's what I train for. The rest is all fun.

Ultimately we decided that yea, it would be cool to say "I'm a Cat 2", but is it really worth it? Maybe if my goal was to race for a pro women's team, then maybe it would be. Heck, maybe it is worth it to just get to race with a higher caliber rider - to eat some humble pie and be pack fodder for a bit.

On second thought, I probably should not be making decisions when home sick...

Mandy Braverman

Triathlete

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