Warren, MA
The topography of the Palmer Library Road Race defies all logic. The course features constant, highway-grade descents where speeds in the peloton hover between 40 and 45 MPH, but the corresponding uphill sections don’t seem to exist. The course is a 20-mile loop that’s done four times, and at the end of the race, you half expect to be marooned in some barren valley 3,000 feet below sea level, but instead, you’re back at your car wondering why you don’t have the bends.
On a cool and cloudy day, Kenda/Raleigh toed the line for the longest race of the season so far. The first lap was uneventful, save for the USCF official in the follow car pulling the entire peloton over to demand that everyone remove their vests so race numbers could be seen. This turned into a mass nature break before the group began rolling again. Most of the course lacks any semblance of a selective section so the first lap was like a large group ride, and everyone was able to catch up with old friends while rolling along the beautiful roads of central Massachusetts.
After the first pass up to the finish line (which does, in fact, feature an incline), the race began to heat up. Little moves would go on the few twists in the road, but they would come back on the fast descents since 70 cyclists descending en masse can overcome wind resistance on a downhill section with very little effort.
On the penultimate lap, Mukunda Feldman drew out the first significant split of about 12 riders. The group remained in sight though and individuals and small teams in the peloton who had missed the split slayed themselves to bring it back. Going through the finish line on the bell lap, Adam Sullivan went hard and the peloton started to string out. Jason Baer countered and the peloton started looking like a scatter plot. This is peloton-speak for “uncle!” so when Jason Beerman attacked after Baer, he got a gap and rolled a steady pace until he was joined by a group of nine, which included teammate Colin H. Murphy. This front group immediately started trading hard pulls and it was clear that this was the winning move, as it contained strong riders from well-represented teams.
With 5km to go, Fiordifrutta’s Josh Dillon, in an attack that was frighteningly similar to his winning attack two weeks prior at Turtle Pond, rolled away and took advantage of the hesitant chase to time trial his way to victory. Colin kept Beerman in contact with the group, but neither had the legs to do anything more, and they crossed the line in sequence, for 7th and 8th place.
The team continues to race aggressively and will be in attendance at the Jiminy Peak Road Race next weekend. Thanks, as always, to our supportive parents, wives, fiancées, and girlfriends for the cheers, the feeds, and the support this weekend!
Full results are here.