Palmer Road Race, Mass. 4/29/07

[A two-race weekend, if you didn't read Maria's Sturbridge report yet, scroll down and read that first! —Liz]

This course had more climbing and was a little longer than Sturbridge. Two 20 mile loops with a slightly uphill finish.

Nancy came to the race, so there were 2 of us in Red and Black. So great to have a teammate in the field.

The first lap was uneventful. We kept a steady pace and the pack stayed together.

The second lap was more fun. Nancy put in some wicked attacks to wear out the rest of the field. Then a women put in another attack. I jumped on her wheel and tried to work with her. The field caught us though. I knew we wouldn't get away, but hadn't been going very fast during any other part of this race, so it was good to get the legs moving before the sprint.

We did the last turn and Nancy was trying to keep me from getting boxed in. She was moving me toward the front when suddenly she had no legs left. I went around her and snuck up the right side trying to get a better position. It seemed like I was in the middle of the pack when the sprinting started. I was frustrated by my positioning, but put my head down and charged. I got third, close to second, but a top 3 nonetheless. How did I pull that off ? 2 days of no wheels to draft off at the finish, yet 2 of my best finishes. Huh?

As NYC women, we did well. There were 4 of us from 4 different NY teams in the top 10. I got 3rd, Ashley from Radical got 4th, Kendall from Razorfish got 5th and Martha from Metro got 9th. Nancy came in close behind at 11.

Martha and I celebrated with egg sandwiches at a local bakery before heading back to the city.

Sturbridge Road Race, Mass. 4/28/07

FINALLY!!!! I won my first road race.

I was told that Sturbridge was a tough race with a dangerous finish. The race is 5 times around a 7 mile loop. If the pack was still together, it could be 45 girls sprinting downhill for the finish line. The finish is known for crashes and after crashing last month, I wasn't looking forward to this race.

Brent, my new coach, gave me an excellent talk the night before and encouraged me to take chances at the finish. He of course didn't want me risking my skin, but emphasized to not hold back and to just go for it.

I was terrified during most of this race, and yes...I even considered pulling over and just getting lunch from the food stand. Some of the riders were so unskilled and I was constantly trying to move away from them. On the second lap some women's handlebars behind me got a bit tangled and I heard a long shreek that ended with the dreaded sound of metal and pavement. I moved more forward in the field, determined to get through the fear and finish the race in one piece.

On the last lap, I asked a rider how many more laps. She responded it was the last lap and that is why we were going so slow. Glad I asked! I thought we had 2 laps left. And I am lucky she didn't lie.

I knew I had to move up to the front of the pack, but not right up front for the sprint or I would create a great leadout for someone. As we did the last turn before the finish, everyone was jockeying for position. Then I heard it. A crash behind me. This shook me up, but I used that energy to just focus on getting through this scary finish. Suddenly I could see the finish line up ahead and I was not where I wanted to be. I made the decision to fight and do something about it. The Boston team had two lines of 3 girls, a couple of very organized leadouts,impressive. But they left a small space between the two lines. I could see the finish line maybe 75-100 meters ahead, I got low into my drops, stood up and went for it. Somehow I passed them all. I was thinking "could I actually be winning this??" I saw the finish line, but kept going just to be sure. Seconds later a rider named Heidi rode to my side and congratulated me. I had to swallow hard so I wouldn't start crying. (geez, I am so emotional sometimes) She said I won, but I was convinced someone must have outsprinted me on the sides. Maybe I just hadn't seen them since I was so focused.

I rode easy to the car and made my recovery drink. Martha from Metro rode up a bit later and asked how it went. I told her I think I could have won. She was happy for me, but I asked her not to say anything until the results were posted. We got some food and rode to see the results. My name was next to the number one. I was in disbelief. Martha took a photo of the placings, but we laughed later when we realized they were in pen and the photo wasn't proof since we could have written them ourselves. The win seemed more real though when Ashley from Radical told me she saw the finish and saw me cross the line first. We celebrated with a few sweaty hugs amongst the NY girls.

All, in all....a day full of surprises. The cycling gods were with me, my head and legs were finally communicating and the rest days that I took Thursday & Friday helped me be fresh. I am still shocked, but the photo at the finish is the proof! I wanted to finish so bad that I won. How funny is that?

Maria on NYVC

Go now, read a great interview with Maria at NYVelocity.

She rocked her races last weekend, and people are starting to realize how good she is! And she's ours, all ours!