Ready for the Road Race

The Team Belladium women completed their final omnium of the 2011 season. The first race of the weekend was a 4-mile point-to-point time trial at the top of Raccoon Mountain in Chattanooga, TN. The P/1/2/3/4 women’s field boasted 37 women, one of the larger fields for the event. The Team Belladium women finished in the following places and times:

Kat: 4th, 9:37
Parri: 7th, 9:42
Cali: 17th, 9:57
Kailin: 18th, 9:58
Anna: 19th: 10:03
Lisa C: 23rd, 10:23
Shelly: 26th, 10:35
Valerie: 30th, 10:43
Jonell: 36th, 11:16

The second race of the weekend was the criterium. The Cat 4s had their own race, with 18 women lining up at the start line for the 35-minute race. On the three-corner course, no one in the 4s field was able to get away until three laps to go, when a break of 3 happened. Lisa, Anna, and Valerie were just behind the break in the chase group, and they finished 6th, 7th, and 8th, respectively. Shelly and Jonell finished in 12th and 14th, respectively.

A couple hours later, the P/1/2/3 women had a chance to race, and 20 women toed the line for the start. Again, due to the wide, non-technical course, no one was able to make a break stick despite the numerous attacks throughout the 45 minutes. By the final lap, the field was still 16 women, all desperate for a win in the field sprint. Cali finished in 7th, in the best position for Team Belladium. Kailin came in 11th, Kat was 14th, and Parri was 15th. Though these weren’t the results the women had hoped for, the aggressive nature of the race and the elite-level tactics left everyone in high spirits.

The final event was the road race on Sunday, another point-to-point race that finished at the top of Raccoon Mountain and included a Queen of the Mountain (QoM) climb and another significant climb leading up to the Raccoon Mountain climb. Shortly before the QoM climb, the field split into two groups: Kat, Parri, and Cali were in the lead group; and Anna, Valerie, and Kailin were in the chase group that stayed within sight of the lead group through the middle climb.

As the lead group neared the final climb, Kat pulled away from the field she was with and climbed the mountain a few hundred meters in front of her nearest challenger. She won the road race in decisive fashion and finished as the 2nd overall female in the omnium. Parri (6th) and Cali (10th) weren’t far behind. In the 4s race (though all women started together), one Cat 4 woman was in the break with Kat, and Anna was in the chase group was with 4 other Cat 4 women and 4 P/1/2/3 women. With Kailin and Valerie around her until the final climb, she rode hard and climbed fast, finishing as the 3rd Cat 4 and 14th overall. That long climb up Raccoon Mountain broke up the field, and the rest of the Team Belladium women finished in the following places: Lee 20th, Valerie 23rd, Kailin 26th, and Lisa C 30th. Of the 41 registered riders, 36 finished; 20 were P/1/2/3s, and 16 were 4s.

This was the final team race of the season for the women of Team Belladium. Stay tuned for news about next year’s season and any updates we have throughout the winter. Thanks for all your support, and thanks for reading!

Cat 3/4 Crit Start

The Team Belladium women had a chance to race in Oak Ridge, TN, this weekend at the Oak Ridge Velo Omnium. The road race was the first event of the weekend, a looped course that the Cat 3/4 women rode twice and the Cat 1/2/3 women rode three times. A climb about two-thirds into the loop caused a break in the 8-woman 1/2/3 field, and Parri made it into that break (with Cali not far behind in the chase group). Both rode strong, finishing in 3rd and 6th place, respectively. In the 15-woman 3/4 field, Anna found herself in a similar position as Cali, in the chase group, only with 3 teammates alongside her. She proved not even an earlier-broken could affect her fitness and racing smarts and finished in 5th place with a bit of help from Valerie (7th), Lisa C (9th), and Kailin. Shelly (13th) and Jonell finished shortly after, toughing out the heat and humidity.

A couple hours between the road race and the time trial were all the women needed to recover and prepare for that second race of the day. It was an 8-mile out-and-back route on a rolling road, a terrain that the women used to their advantage. Anna completed the course in 20:14 to take the win for the 3/4s (12 women) and 3rd overall for women. Parri was close behind in a total time of 20:20 for 3rd place in the 1/2/3s (8 total). The Team Belladium women finished in the following times:

Parri: 3rd, 20:20
Kailin: 5th, 20:55
Cali: 6th, 21:14

Anna: 1st: 20:14
Lisa C: 6th, 21:28
Valerie: 7th, 21:32
Shelly: 9th, 22:29
Jonell: 10th, 23:37

The final race of the weekend was the criterium, and Anna began her 3/4 race in 1st place overall in the omnium. She relied on Shelly, Valerie, and Jonell to keep her protected and finished 3rd of the 10 women, maintaining her 1st place overall position. Shelly was 5th, Valerie 7th (which, for those keeping track, is her third 7th-place finish for the weekend), and Jonell 8th. Parri began her 1/2/3 race in 2nd place overall in the omnium and successfully defended that position, leading Kailin to the win and finishing in 3rd place of the 9 women. Cali was just behind her in 4th place.

Next up for Team Belladium is the River Gorge Omnium in Chattanooga, TN, on August 27 and 28.