Race Report: Ventura SR Cat 3

The Ventura Stage was a mixed bag of results for our 3's team of Daniel Katz, Adam Masters, Joseph Patterson, and Greg Wootton. However, the race venues were fantastic. The downtown events on Saturday drew impressive and enthusiastic crowds.

Prologue: Fast and fun. Pre-riding the course would have be useful. By the end, Dan and I were sitting comfortable within eight seconds of the leaders at 4:03 and 4:04.

Criterium: The NOW squad hit it hard from the gun to thin the field. An early crash mid-pack took out the top two riders on GC as well as Adam, but Adam fought his way back on and contested the final sprint. Dan was less fortunate; he took a bold line between the barriers and a big dude in the final sprint and ended up all over the pavement. His collarbone and a metal barricade broke each other; we all wish Dan a full and speedy recovery. Adam and I ended up 12th and 10th, 19 seconds off GC.

Circuit Race: The pace and the temperature warmed up quickly when the group hit the climb. The big guys disappeared, but the noticably-thinner pack stayed together until Adam made a move for the KOM half-way through the race. His attack annihilated the field and formed the winning breakaway. The group of six or so, including Kendall's brother Morgan, Adam, and myself, put forty seconds into the field within one lap. Adam faltered at some point and I struggled on the 7th time up the climb, but I clawed my way back on and survived the 8th climb with the lead group. The ultimate winner snuck away on the last kicker through the feed zone. I played my strongest card, for better or worse, and waited for the sprint instead of chasing him down and dragging the field. I won the sprint for second place in honor of Katz.

GC: The field was so shattered by the road course that first loser in the circuit race was good enough for first loser in the general classification. I finished second overall. That puts me over the minimum upgrade points after six cat 3 races in two months...but I am not yet strong enough to contest the elite level. Perhaps in time.

- Joe Patterson