Saturday, September 11: Old Salem Criterium, Winston-Salem
The Carolina Cup weekend is typically a big date on the NC racing calendar, with many racers across the state wrapping up their seasons with the popular Carolina Cup on the second Sunday in September. Saturday of this weekend has typically featured a criterium in Winston-Salem, although the Walnut Cove crit of recent years was replaced this year with a new event, the Old Salem Criterium. Held in conjunction with a town festival, the race took place right in the heart of the historic Moravian settlement.
With our travel schedule making it difficult to get to Winston in time for the Cat 4 race, I chose to enter the Masters 35+ event. While I have raced in Masters events with just Cat 4/5 masters-age cyclists before, this would be my first time racing in an open masters field. For those new to all of these racing categories, the open masters field is often the fastest field outside of the Pro/Cat 1/Cat 2 field, and arguably more experienced. Thus, the joke that masters 35+ racers are just Cat 1/2s who finally got a job. Nevertheless, being a Cat 4 and just slightly older than 35 made me eligible to race in this category, so I paid my bux and threw myself to the wolves with the likes of Carolina Masters, Mock Orange Bikes, and so on.
Grinding up the 7% hill toward the start-finish stretch. With the A-listers working over even those who have earned their masters stripes on a weekly basis, my outcome was pretty much a given. Nevertheless, I considered it an honor to line up for my beating with some of the deepest race resumes in the region. The speed of the top half of the field was both sobering and inspiring. Being lapped several times over, I was inspired often. In actuality, with better form I would have hung with back of the field, and gaining more experience racing in this division is a goal of mine for 2011.
Cruising up the finishing straight toward the end of the race. Although I was the last finisher in 17th, I continued my effort through to the end of the race and took pride in not dropping out, which was the fate of 5 others in the race.
Amy entered the Women's Cat 3/4 race, which was held simultaneously with the Women's Cat 1/2. With PBR teammate and state criterium champ Bergen Watterson in the 1/2 field, Amy entered the race with dual goals of hanging with the 1/2 field to help Bergen and making life difficult for her 3/4 competition. The Old Salem course was dangerous, being short (0.5 miles), having tight corners, and having been repaved, oh, maybe once since the invention of the automobile. To make matters worse, the light on-and-off rain turned into a steady shower in time for the women to race.
As the race comes through the start-finish area after the first lap, Amy charges away from the other two in her field to bridge up to the 1/2 bunch. 
Heading up the finishing straight after catching the 1/2 group.
Carving through the 4th corner before hammering up the 7% hill toward the start-finish area.
Descending the back stretch of the course in an aero tuck.
While Amy would eventually lose contact with the 1/2 field, she never let up on the gas pedal, lapping the other two 3/4s multiple times. Above, one of her competitors tries to hang onto Amy's wheel after getting lapped, her facial expression saying it all.
Amy keeps the pressure on as she continues to solo away from her field with 2 laps to go.
Borrowing from Joe Parkin's excellent read, A Dog in a Hat, Belgian cyclists aspire to win with "no one in the picture." The video above captures Amy crossing the line with no one in the picture, in weather that would make any Belgian cyclist smile.
Post-race smiles from Bergen, who took second place in the 1/2 race, and 3/4 winner Amy.
The merchants of Old Salem were clearly thrilled to be hosting the race, and I can't count how many times I was asked about the race, if I was having fun, if I would come back, etc. As I was walking down the course at the start of the women's race, I had one such conversation with three ladies who stood in the doorway of their shop and watched every bit of the racing action for the day. When I mentioned that I was watching Amy, they immediately declared their loyalty to her and took it upon themselves to cheer loudly for her every time she came by. Once the race was over, we had to get a photo of Amy with her new fan club.
Sunday, September 12: Carolina Cup, Greensboro
The following day, we set out to the site of what was in 2009 my first race since 1994 and just the second road race ever for Amy. With the previous day's rain giving way to crystal blue skies, we were eager to measure ourselves against where we were just one year ago. The Carolina Cup typically attracts large fields of racers eager to end their seasons on a high note.
Amy toes the start line first for the day for the Women's Cat 4 rumble.
The Cat 4 field cruises by early in the race. Amy raced hard at the front of the field during the race, trying unsuccessfully to break away with others at the front. She did take a mid-race sprint prize, winning a pair of cycling socks. Don't laugh, cycling socks are important. Really.
Crossing the finish line in 3rd place. After the top part of the field stayed together for most of the race, a last-lap crash split things up. After finishing last in this race last year, Amy was thrilled to have finished on the podium and to have been a major protagonist.
Getting ready for the Cat 4 race. I struggled with my asthma all weekend, ending my season with a thud. Nothing to see here, move along.
Wanting to wring the most out of her excellent late-season form, Amy entered the Women's Open race at the end of the day to test herself against the Cat 1/2/3s. Above, Amy is keeping pace with the bunch as they wind through the uphill section of the back of the circuit.
Above is a short video of the field as they race through the section pictured above.
Amy stayed comfortable with the Open field and even stretched her legs at the front a time or two during the race. She dug deep and stuck with the race even as her energy was waning, crossing the line in 9th place, pictured above. She again raced with her teammate Bergen, who avenged a narrow defeat from yesterday with a stylish sprint win on Sunday.
It was a highly successful weekend for Amy, who tallied two podium finishes, including a win on Saturday, and a fine effort to finish 9th in a strong field in her second race on Sunday. As for me, I'm heading into the off-season with lots of experience and goals to work toward. We still have a couple of mid-week events (one last Ring of Fire and Lowes TT) before we hang up the road bikes and get ready for cyclocross.
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