French Broad Cycling Classic

The French Broad Cycling Classic is a 3-stage omnium that takes place in the greater Asheville area. The race is one of the highlights of the NC/SC racing calendar and draws nearly 1000 racers from the Southeast. Amy's Performance Bicycle Racing team circled this date on their racing calendar as a major team race for 2010, so after recharging our batteries at the Outer Banks for a week, we headed up to Marshall, NC for the omnium.

Friday, July 16: Cane Creek Time Trial, Marshall, NC


The first stage of the FBCC omnium was a 20k (12.2-mile) time trial along the French Broad river. The out-and-back course is generally flat and fast, and Amy was well-prepared for the course after her efforts in the Lowes Time Trial series. Despite our week of leisure at the beach leading up to the race, she crossed the line in 32:44, placing her in 4th place out of 21 competitors in the Women's Cat 4 division.

Saturday, July 17: Liberty Bicycles Road Race, Marshall, NC

In 2009, the FBCC replaced the Saturday criterium with a road race designed to showcase the very thing that makes cycling in Asheville what it is: mountainous and challenging. The Asheville Bicycle Racing Club (organizers of the FBCC) devised a punishing 40-mile route featuring a climb over Murray Gap and finishing atop Walnut Creek gap for a total of 6100 feet of climbing. Having previewed the course a handful of times, we knew we were in for a hard day in the saddle.


The first selection of the route actually occurred during the first 10 miles of the route, which consisted of a mostly uphill grind to Mars Hill. This resulted in several racers simply dropping out of the women's Cat 4 race, turning around and heading back. Although Amy (pictured above 300m from the finish atop Walnut Creek road) lost contact with the front of the race during this first stretch, she battled on to finish 24th after 2 hours and 40 minutes of racing.

While I did not contest the overall omnium, I did jump in on the road race in the men's Cat 4 division. In hindsight, I may have been a bit too relaxed following a week at the beach, and I limped home in last place at 55th.

Sunday, July 18: City Of Asheville Criterium, Asheville, NC

The omnium concluded with a criterium staged in South Asheville. While flat compared to the previous day's route, it nevertheless consisted of a long, gradual uphill stretch for about half of the 1.1-mile circuit. With the air thick and humid from daily thunderstorms and legs still smarting from the previous day's torture, a challenging contest lay ahead. The women's Cat 4 field started out at a steady but relatively moderate pace for their 35-minute race, and the field mostly stayed together for the first few laps. Just as the field was beginning to increase its speed, two riders went down, and Amy was caught behind and a gap formed. Left to chase mostly by herself, she was unable to catch back on to the field despite a furious chase and finished 13th.

In what was only her second omnium, Amy finished 14th out of 37 total competitors, anchored by her excellent time trial result. In addition, Performance Bicyle Racing had an outstanding weekend, with the elite team landing 7 top-10 finishes among the three stages, a win in the Sunday crit, and a second-place in the overall women's Cat 1-3 omnium.

The four photos above were taken by Paul Christopher. Please visit Christopher Graphics Event Photography to view additional photos of the FBCC, as well as photos of other cycling events from the area.