Anything Can Happen (Depauw Race Report)

This weekend was a little insane. The weather was crazy and there were highs and lows all around. With the race being only an hour and a half away we were able to stay in Bloomington, in our own beds, at night which was a wonderful luxury.

Saturday had us leaving town at 6:30 to make it to the road race course in time for the start of the women's B race and men's C. A wreck in the men's D race had delayed the day and the snow and cold was creating miserable conditions. Being the idiot that I am I managed to lock the keys inside the car, causing some problems for Ashton and Andy, the two B and C racers who had ridden up with us. Fortunately everyone got out on the course more or less comfortably. The Cutters were very graceful in letting me hide out in their car while a race between the Sheriff, AAA and my parents occurred to see who would get there to unlock it first. Seriously, I owe that team cookies or something.

The IU Women were well represented in the B race, with Aryn (ChiO) coming in second, Ashton (SIBH/Teter) in fourth and Rachel and Kate (Theta) finishing somewhere around 10th (I think). The Men's C race saw Cameron (SIBH/AEP) and Aaron Starkston (DU) coming in the top five.

The women's B race coming through on their second(?) lap.

Fortunately AAA arrived with 1.5 hours to start time and Emma (SIBH/Teter) and I were able to kit up and do a couple down and backs on the road before joining the entirety of the A men and women in the firehouse to stay warm until the last possible moment. As the pack headed out I knew we were graced by Cyclocross World's competitor (US Collegiate National Crit Champion) Kaitie Antonneau as well as the usual teams of Marian and Lindenwood. IU was vastly outnumbered and the lack of large hills meant attacks flying every few minutes. A break of Ashley James (Lindenwood) and another Marian rider escaped off the front, leaving the pack to fight for third. My teammate Melissa (Riley/Wing It) was showing her strength on the front, helping to chase breaks as well as attack. I would like to think I was doing the same though it has become clear to me that I still have a ways to go to comfortably maneuver in the pack. Emma was able to hide well in the pack, and as we came up to the finish line all three IU girls were able to place in the top 15. Melissa went one better than that and came out with an 8th place finish following a fairly sketchy sprint.

The IU men had mechanicals and issues with the cold as well, with Paul Smith (Motion/Delts) finishing somewhere in the top twenty.

The cold and snow took a toll on everyone's mental stamina and so the TTT saw Ashton, Melissa and I duking it out against four person Marian and Lindenwood teams (two TTT teams for each program). Despite cold conditions and a strong headwind on the way back to the finish we were able to claw our way to a 3rd place finish, out of five. The guys team faced similar struggles and managed a 5th place finish. A huge shout out to my teammate Ashton for dragging herself through the cold, and to Melissa for pulling when neither Ashton nor I could manage in the last half mile. Seriously both were beasts (I mean that in a nice way).

Snow at the start of the TTT 

As a team we headed for dinner (at a place I will not name), and it was nice to relax somewhere warm and let the stress and cold from the day melt away (as well as the snow)! The next morning saw a slightly more civil wakeup hour of 7:30, with us arriving for Ashton's Crit on time (no keys getting locked in the car today). The sun was out and there was no snow, providing warmer conditions than the day before. Ashton did wonderfully, finishing a strong third in her race.

Ashton's Third Place Finish

The women's A race started much better for me this week. Anticipating the fast start helped a lot and although I was not able to make the jump to the winning break I was able to help chase back a few moves, though Melissa was clearly the stronger IU girl in the race. Again, my timidness in the pack put me in some badly blocked positions when I needed to be able to chase girls down, but it was a learning experience. I finished with the main pack, nabbing an 11th place with Melissa taking 8th again!

Drew (SIBH/Sig Ep) enjoying the Men's A race from his makeshift recliner

The IU men worked hard to get something together but in the end did not make either of the breakaways, with bridging attempts coming from Paul, Turner (Theta Chi), John Becker (Motion/ Theta Chi), and Kevin Depasse (Nuvo/ Cutters). Kevin took the field sprint and 8th overall. Alex from Wisconsin rode a wonderful race, and was clearly a crowd favorite as he came through for 6th? and Lindenwood did well, taking 1st and 3rd. Other IU guys in the top 20 included Paul (12th), Turner (16th) and Charlie McClary(19th).

The escape from the chase group for Wisconsin