MetLife doubles down in the Mid Atlantic with back-to-back USACrits Series stops.

A quintet of criterium specialists from the MetLife p/b groSolar team rolled down to the Mid-Atlantic for a packed weekend of top-notch racing.  With two of the nine USACrits races taking place on the same weekend in West Chester, PA and Washington D.C., they were certainly not alone.

Saturday night found the series in the hip urban hamlet of West Chester, just outside Philadelphia.  Sponsored by the Iron Hill Brewery, the event routinely draws crowds in the 10,000 range, and Saturday night was no exception.  A tight, 1-Km, four corner course awaited Gabe, Ryan, Nick, Austin, and Alex, along with around 120 Pros, Cat 1s, and ambitious Cat 2s.

A HUGE crown was on-hand for the Iron Hill Twilight Criterium. © Todd Leister/leister.smugmug.com

Racing was furious from the gun, and the tight finishing straight and blazing speed caused the MetLife crew to miss the early move of 8 riders that went clear and eventually lapped the field.  The heat and speed took their toll on the peloton, which whittled down to roughly half it’s initial size over the course of the 90 minute affair.  Though Gabe and Nick follow promising moves off the front, their efforts proved fruitless and the team re-tooled to set up for a field-sprint.

The "challenging" bottom corner. Yes, it was that dark. © Marco Quezada/nyvelocity.com

With under 10 laps to go, and with any semblance of daylight gone, Austin, Ryan, and Nick found one another and worked their train to the front, driven by Austin’s diesel locomotive.  With team AXA lining it out for overall series leader Clayton Barrows, the trio elected to slot in just behind.  This proved a mistake, as the field swarmed the front in the last lap, with only those willing to wipe out making it through the tight course with a shot at the sprint.  Nick rolled in just outside the top 20 – good for some series points, but below expectations based on our past results and current fitness.

MetLife assembles their train behind AXA's for the sprint finish. © Todd Leister/leister.smugmug.com

Sunday found the boys in blue in our nation’s capital.  With Iron Hill ending around 10pm the night before and a three-hour drive separating the two locales, a short night left racers with little time to sightsee.  Positioned smack in the heart of downtown, the seven-corner course featured a tough climb, sweeping downhill corners, a start/finish on Pennsylvania avenue, and a frightening 180-degree turnaround, all under the backdrop of the Capital building.  Inspired by the surroundings and motivated by a lackluster finish the night prior, the MetLife crew was dead-set on racing aggressively, animating the race, and earning a solid result.

The Starting Line. Nick was pretty darn excited to be on the front row. © Mike G. @ BicycleSpokesman.com

Thanks to the team’s hard work at Grafton, Hyde Park, and Iron Hill, Nick had moved up to 9th overall in the USACrits series, and as such, got a call-up to the front row for the 1:15pm start.  Despite facing 80Km in searing heat, the advantage of starting at the sharp end of the race is not to be underestimated – the team witnessed the night prior how a break can roll away early, and the blistering from-the gun pace often makes moving up a laborious process.  Nick was thus charged with covering the early moves, though Gabe made his way into the fray within a half-dozen laps as well, and the duo made sure to latch onto any attacks that threatened to stick.  Towards the mid-race mark, Ryan, Alex, and Austin all made their way up to the front as well, taking over the responsibility, and Gabe and Nick slid back to take some well-earned rest in the field.  Fortunately, given the 90+ degree heat, feeding was permitted on the course’s hill, and Nick’s fiancee and professional feeder (feed-ess?) was surgical in her delivery of iced-laden bottles to the entire crew.

Ryan takes a MUCH needed bottle from Nick's fiancee, Carrie. © Todd Leister/www.leisterimages.com

Several dangerous breaks formed and failed towards the finish, including one instigated by Alex (who soloed for the better part of a lap before being joined by four others) and another driven by Austin.  A seriously powerful move of seven rolled off with under 15 laps to go – sensing the threat and lack of a response from the field, Gabe motored to the front and dug deep to pull the septet within reach, at which point the field closed the gap.  Nick used the opportunity to move up, and settled in on series leader Barrows’ wheel for the closing laps.

The dangerous break of seven. Check out Gabe on the front of the field bringing it back. © Todd Leister/www.leisterimages.com

With 2-to-go, he was in prime position, 4th wheel, though Jamis’ Jackie Simes and Bahati Foundation’s Bobby Lea were still off the front.  The pace, however, lulled the penultimate time through the start/finish, and the field swarmed the first corner.  Dedicated not to have a repeat of the previous evening, Nick stuck out the elbows and fought to hold position, entering the decisive 180-degree turnaround in roughly 10th position.  With only 300 meters to the line, he closed down a few spots, mustering 7th in the field sprint, 9th overall as the two escapees held on by a handful of seconds.

Nick fought for and held great positioning in the closing laps. © Todd Leister/www.leisterimages.com

Another hard-earned top-ten in the USACrits series, replete with numerous MetLife p/b groSolar shout-outs from race announcer Richard Fries.  The aggressive racing continues to pay off, with Nick now moved up to 8th overall in the series and the team vying with AXA for best amateur squad.  Stay tuned – with four more installations of the USACrits series on-tap, it’s going to be an exciting end to the season!