Good showing for Pink Gals at Clear Lake's Bikes, Blues and BBQ

Dee, Heather and Erika traveled north to take part in the latest time trial, crit and road race.   Both Erika and Heather raced all three to compete for the Omnium Series that was held on this weekend.  That means that each lady raced a time trial in the early morning then turned around to race the crit a few hours later.

Doing either one of these races requires preparation starting the night before with the right nutrition and fluid intake.  Doing both within a 3-4 hour period requires rapt attention to details right through the crit race.  Sometimes it takes so much out of you that a nap is required. 

But you cannot blame Heather for this as she placed 8th in the TT and 6th in the crit allowing her to finish 7th overall in the Omnium.
Erika also competed in both races on Saturday taking 10th in the TT and 12 in the crit.  She finished 10th overall in the Omnium. 
The crit was especially hard as they skies had opened up and dumped a heavy rain upon the course.   This crit race involves eight 90-degree turns at high speed.  High speed corners and wet pavement does not make for a safe combination.  Both pink gals handled it without incident.

They then celebrated with a post-race refreshment while waiting for VR's youngest racer to take her turn at the crit course.  Elisa then hopped upon her new-to-her road bike to see if she wanted to race like Mom ( aka Erika).

The race went well she she is pictured at left sprinting to the finish.  Below she enjoys her own version of the post-race reward.

Saturday brought better weather the the road race.  Dee traveled up to join Heather and Erika.   The Cat 1, 2, 3, race was loaded with talent from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and beyond.  Dee sized up the competition and put her race-face and took off.  At times the pace was grueling but she knew that if she stayed in the lead pack, she might have a chance.  The pack was almost 15 strong as it neared the end of the race.  Dee dug as deeply as she ever has and sprinted for the line.   Other riders slipped backwards past her as she gained ground.  The final surge took her across the line in 3rd place.  What an IMPRESSIVE victory for one of our strongest racers. Great job Dee!!!!

Heather and Erika lined up for the Cat 4 version of the same race.  They both had some fatigue from the day's prior races but got focused early and took off strong.  The Cat 4 race was a series of surges and pull backs, and never really settled into a good race pace.   This was somewhat frustrating for the VR racers.   A surge on a particularly tough incline picked Erika off the back.  The course would prove too daunting and not well-marked enough to allow her to finish with the pack.  Heather held in and finished strongly in 12th place.

Overall it was a good racing weekend for VeloRosa.   How awesome it is to see the Pink Gals out racing??

Your roving race reporter,

Luann