Masters Nationals

My impressions from Masters Nats. I hope other AMD'ers will add their perspectives (and photos).

Masters Nats were amazing: intense preparation, nervous anxiety, emerging confidence, joyous exhilaration, exhaustion, and then pride and relief. Getting to know some of our far-flung teammates was terrific, and the camaraderie and mutual support amongst this group of accomplished athletes was exceptional.

The support from the team was appreciated deeply. While old injuries prevented him from attending and receiving our thanks in person, Wyatt's arrangements worked flawlessly in spite of our attempts to screw them up. I know everyone will join me in thanking Wyatt not only for arranging the accommodations and transportation, but even more for bringing together such a wonderful group of riders and encouraging us to work as a team.

Our equipment was exceptional (and our team kit way more stylish than the rest)! In particular I would single out my Trek Madone road bike for its superb handling, light weight, and ability to absorb hits from large potholes. The Bontrager stuff worked great, too.

As for results, we had 19 top-10 placings in huge fields (including a 1st and a 3rd for Best All-around Rider), which I believe is far more than any other team. We hauled in three 1sts, two 2nds and three 3rds. Seeing Kent win the 50-54 crit in a huge bridge and sprint effort was just beyond belief. And witnessing Wayne overcoming Lindsay Blount and Malcolm Hill for Stars & Stripes in the finishing climb in the road race was inspirational and instructive.

My own highpoint was the road race, which I have selfishly summarized in this clipping from USA Cycling:

"With over 100 riders, the men’s 45-49 race got moving quickly and held a pace of over 23 miles per hour throughout. With that pace and more than 6,000 feet of climbing over the entire course, several riders were forced to drop back in the early going. After the long nine-percent climb on the third loop, 11 riders were able to go off the front leaving a strung out field behind. Approaching the last lap, Marco Hellman (Larkspur, Calif./AMD-Discovery Channel), William Thompson, Jr. (West Hartford, Conn./CCC-Keltic Construction-Zanes Cycles) and Jeff Braumberger (Mansfield, Ohio/Texas Roadhouse) went off the front of the lead group. After a couple of riders unsuccessfully attempted to bridge up, Thurlow Rogers (Newbury Park, Calif./Sonance-Specialized) finally joined the leaders. Building a 30-second gap, going into the 10-kilometer finishing stretch up to Seven Springs Resort, the four leaders were working hard. During that 1,402 feet of climbing, Thompson slipped back from the group and eventually the three leaders were separated by around 15 seconds each. Rogers, the reigning road race world champion in this age group, pushed strong through the finish, completing the 91-kilometer course in 2:25:59.08 and winning the national championship. Hellman also finished hard, winning the silver at 2:27:00. The other two leaders were swallowed up by the chase group in an exciting finishing stretch."

Thanks are due as well to Kevin, who worked the defense when I escaped on Lap 3 of the RR, and who put up with my snoring and mindless chatter for 7 days. And special thanks to Larry for his positive thinking and adult supervision.

Best of luck to our AMD-Discovery Juniors, who race soon; and to Wayne, who will join the Elite Road Race on Monday.

MickH