Concord, NH & Bow, NH

The New Hampshire double weekend is an exercise in yin and yang. Saturday’s criterium through the residential streets of the Live Free or Die capital is a nonstop barrage of vitesse, where the speed achieved by the peloton on the downhill section of the course is carried through the slight uphill chicane section. At the end of the day, the average speed of the crit was almost 30MPH.

This, of course, meant that the peloton raced hard throughout, and it was clear from the gun that CCB wanted to bring the race down to a field sprint. Kenda/Raleigh’s contingent of Jason Beerman, Adam, and Toby tried to muddle that plan, with Toby off the front for the first half of the race and Jason off for the second half. Indeed, Jason made a bid for solo glory, but was caught with 1.5 laps to go by the CCB leadout. C’est la vie. Results are here.

The next day was the Central NH Road Race which features what is arguably the most challenging race course in all of New England. The road is either going up at a slight angle or up at an extreme angle. The course profile doesn’t alert you to the fact that the course loop defies all physical laws and climbs to infinity.

Kenda/Raleigh lined up with Eric, Jason x2, Toby, and Adam. The neutral section, true to form, featured the main 2-3 mile climb done at a gentleman’s pace, which was nice. Immediately after the flag dropped, Adam went clear with a couple compatriots. The second lap featured a pace up the main climb which resulted in peak power numbers for everyone who weighed over 140 pounds, and the race was made. Toby drilled it to make the front group of 5 and the race was effectively over. In fact, on the next lap through, the race was literally over, as intense lightning storms ripped through the area and the officials cut the race in half. Toby sprinted for 4th out of the front group. Full results are here.