Westborough, MA. Amidst threatening skies and a near-apocalyptic forecast, collegiate cyclists from across the east coast converged on the sleepy hamlet of Westborough, just outside Boston, for the first of two intense days of bicycle racing. The weekend, known affectionately as the “Boston Beanpot Classic” is hosted by a handful of the many colleges in and around the storied city, including Harvard, Boston University, MIT, Boston College, and Tufts University. Having recently set attendance records as the largest collegiate race in the country, more than 400 racers were anticipated to take to the streets across the greater Boston metro.
Focused both on providing an elite level of competition as well as encouraging less experienced racers to start racing, events in the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference (ECCC) include four categories (A-D) for men, two for women (A,B), and “introduction to bike racing” events for both sexes. The upper echelon A) is the rough equivalent to the more familiar USCF P-1-2-3, and routinely draws out pros and semi-pros that just happen to attend college when not in the saddle.
Saturday’s epreuves, centered at the Tufts Veterinary School in Westborough, included both a morning Team Time Trial as well as an epic afternoon road race. The Princeton University “A” Team, consisting of Nick Frey (Time Pro Development), Nick Bennette (MetLife p/b unlose.it), and Austin Road (unattached) shook off the stiffness induced by a long night on I-95 and stormed to a 30+ second victory in the hilly and technical TTT.
As if on cue, the skies cleared as the day’s mass start events began, and with the “A” men slated to go off at 2pm, many were seen shaking off the strain of the morning’s “race against the clock” by soaking up the unseasonable and unexpected sunshine. The course, a picturesque and rolling 13-mile circuit through the scenic Blackstone Valley, offered a handful of steep risers in addition to the parcours‘ true challege – a roughly one mile ascent up Brigham Hill road, upon which grades approach 10 percent. As lower categories events wrapped up, the steady stream of cracked riders crossing the finish evidenced the destructive capabilities of what is generally regarded as one of the toughest courses on the collegiate circuit.
As the Men’s A road race rolled off on schedule, a flurry of early attackers wasted no time in attempting to escape the confines of a field 50+ strong. The early laps saw no serious breaks emerge, though the net effects were evident in the considerable 25mph+ pace. Into the third of six brutal laps, a potentially dangerous threesome escaped, including Mike Chauner (Bucknell, PA Lighting), Josh Lipka (UNH, Fiordifruitta), and Toby Marzot (Dartmouth, Fiordifruitta). Despite gaining 30 seconds and the critical “out of sight” factor on the field, the escapees were ultimately roped in before the peloton again passed by the start/finish.
The fourth lap saw a general détente amongst the protagonists, and numerous “Sunday stroll” comments were launched from a field seemingly in no hurry to finish up before the forecasted hail storm. In the approach to the Brigham Hill ascent, Bennette (Princeton, MetLife p/b unlose.it) aggresively worked his way to the front. Not known as a climber, the “Lion of Princeton” laid down a strong tempo and dropped the field, due either to his blistering pace or perhaps the simple mass disinterest in seeing a 175-pound sprinter open a gap on a climb.
Nonetheless, the closing meters of the ascent saw the sprightly Marzot (Dartmouth, Fiordifruitta) bridge up to the not-so-sprightly Bennette, and the two rapidly built their lead to a significant, albeit fragile, 30 seconds. The duo worked well into the fifth lap, at which point a flying Jamie Driscoll (UVM, Fiordifruitta) bridged up to make it a trio. The cumulative toll of the hilly circuit could be easily read on Bennette’s face, particularly on lengthier risers where his less gravitationally-challenged companions were pushing the pace. As the gap ballooned to 2 minutes into the final loop, the temporary teamwork in the break began to erode. At the base of the final struggle up Brigham Hill, Marzot launched a devastating attack that left Bennette gasping and Driscoll desperately working to hang on. Though it appeared that the Lion’s day was done, he held his ground and the gap to around a hundred meters. Cresting the climb, Bennette was able to eek out a few extra watts into the descent and, quite miraculously, was able to man-handle gravity enough to catch the duo at the base of the descent.
As the trio consumed the remaining kilometers with a relatively secure lead on the field, the expected games of cat-and-mouse began. Driscoll nearly escaped with a vicious dig on the final significant roller, though Marzot’s response and Bennette’s wheel-sucking ultimately negated the move. Through the laterne rouge, it was Driscoll leading at a snails-pace, indicating the finish was to resemble more a match sprint than any kind of solo victory. Seemingly cocky that he had survived the uphill artillery of his two compatriots, Bennette elected to start the sprint ridiculously early at 200m with a massive jump that only Marot could cling too. The move nearly failed, however, as the gifted Dartmouth rider came out of Bennette’s massive draft looking for the win. Only a last-second roar and perfectly timed bike throw kept victory within reach of the Lion, who was ultimately vindicated by the photo finish.