by admin | August 3rd, 2009
Way to finish out the Montana road race season!
Team Delphine had great representation at the State TT in Opportunity on Saturday; Cat 1/2/3 Champion, Amy Frykman AND Cat 4 bronze medalist, Laurie Shammel.
Kim, Graham and Mel also raced and rode strong for 40K.
Laurie Shammel, Kim Popham, Amy Frykman, Graham Austin, Mel Melendrez
On Sunday, Mollie, Mel and I (Patricia) threw down for the Zootown Throwdown, a crit in downtown Missoula. The race was fast, it was hot! It was an all women start (Cat 1/2/3 and Cat 4), NRO riders were there in force (I think they had 6 riders?). In the women’s Cat 1/2/3 field it was Geraldine, Tamara and Kelly (NRO), Lisa Curry (GAS), Jenni Gaertner (Riverstone Women’s Cycling), and I. Before the race I talked with Lisa and we decided to team up (go team Bozeman!) because we knew NRO would be working us over. The dynamic changed when I got to the line and Jenni was there (she is a Cat 1 rider and fantastic crit racer).
First lap = prime lap! Way to get the race going, Radley.
Patricia Dowd
So, the “gun” went off, I took off. Lisa and I went off the front. She took the prime. After a few laps, Geraldine took off. Nobody chased her down. She rode solo, and to victory. Tamara, Jenni, Lisa and I duked it out for the rest of the race. Admittedly, I was on the front of our chase group for most of the race. Not the best strategy, but I was not going for a win. I had other goals. I felt great and was happy to set the pace for the race. I won a prime, sprinted, sat on Jenni’s wheel for a few laps. Sat on Lisa’s wheel for a few laps. Hung back with Tamara. Drank water, poured water over my head.
With 2 laps to go, I was still on the front. I decided my role in the race would be to deliver Lisa to the line for the sprint. We chatted. I rode. I delivered Lisa. She won our group sprint. Followed by Jenni, Tamara, then me (we were all within a few bike lengths of each other). It was super fun! I loved the race. I won a prime, a few free beers (and got carded at Sean Kelley’s when I collected my prized beer!!!) and closed out the season strong.
Mel Melendrez, Mollie McKiernan
Mel and Mollie represented Team Delphine with class yesterday, riding strong in 95+ degree heat and helping out newbie rider, Tawyna Morgan.
Road season is a wrap. Way to go Team Delphine women who rode training rides, rode benefit rides, participated in community events, raced the local bike races, and raced Montana and regional races.
–Patricia Dowd