Hot conditions prevailed yesterday here in Augusta as James and his Mid-South team mates threw it down in the criterium event. Did I say it was hot? By Arizona standards it wasn't awful. It was very humid though and many riders succumbed to the beat-down the elements handed out. All fields had multiple riders drop out as the heat and brutal attacks kept coming and coming.
Our plan for this race was the martial arts on bike approach. We knew that we were up against some real monsters out there. Kids who could put out pro numbers. James wanted to get off the front early but I convinced him that would be playing to their strength. He had to allow their own strength to hurt themselves like the martial artist. Your foe attacks you and he is twice your size. You cannot oppose him weight upon weight. Instead, let your attackers weight and momentum be the force that delivers the blow. James had to play his biggest strength against these. He has great power to weight numbers but he doesn't have the power output that allows him to hit the wind and overcome the force of drag like them. So James needed to use his smarts and knowledge of the field along with incredible toughness to weather the storm. He had to allow their confidence in their strength to sap their strength.
We began with icing long before the race right up to the start trying to keep his core temp down. Staging began about 20 minutes from the start which forced 140 kids into a corral shoulder to shoulder. Some teams had huge umbrellas to shade their kids. I stood next to James and poured water over him. His buddy from Michigan Alexey slid up next to him and they had a nice chat which eased some of the tension.
When the race started it was menacing attack after menacing attack from lap 1. This tested the field as many dropped immediately. James rode well not taking part in these early moves content to let them spend down their reserves. The look on all the riders faces indicated this race had everyone on the rivet. James drifted to the back third of the field for a time but his race knowledge told him he needed to find a way to move forward.
The problem with being at the back is the whipsaw effect of the big field slowing at the corners then accelerating again forces the tail gunners to sprint again and again to get back on wearing them down. Another problem is when big nasty attacks come there is no where to go. If you slide back at all you are off the back and you'll never get back on. Race over.
It went on for over 60 minutes. His team mate Daniel Eaton was off the front working in a two man break that lasted several laps before he dropped his partner and was brought back. A great effort. Danny stayed near the front after, (a testimony to his strength), but missed the three man break that ended up getting the top three spots. Daniel nabbed 9th while James's other Arizona team mate, Owen Graves, nabbed 11th! Some pretty good representation for our state. James finished 46th with many strong national riders in his rear view mirror.
Due to his size, the TT and criterium are not James's strength. He needs hills. Better yet, he needs mountains. Well, no mountains here but we do have hills tomorrow, so his best shot at a high placing will come there. He will have to pound the field with the other climbers and look for opportunities to move away in a field split or break. There are lots of big powerful kids who can motor through the wind in this field and they have had their days here. Tomorrow will belong to the lighter, skinny kids if the course has some decent elevation.
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