Race Report: 2024 Cantua Creek Road Race - Men’s Cat 4

Race: Cantua Creek Road Race — Men’s Cat 4

Date: February 17, 2024

AVRT Racers: Zack Berger, Henry Mallon, Will Hakim

Top Results: Henry (4/27), Zack (9/27), Will (15/27)

Course: Approx. 70mi and 2000ft of elevation. The course consists of three out-and-back laps along a two-lane road with good to excellent pavement. The section of road is mostly straight and flat with some rolling hills near the start/finish. The finish is slightly uphill with a ~2-3% gradient.

Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/10782421952

Nutrition: 5 Gu gels, 2 bottles of water each with two scoops of Tailwind Endurance Fuel and a scoop of Maltodextrin (~80g carbs).

Recap [by Zack]

We had three teammates (Will, Henry, and myself) going into Cantua Creek. With a field of 27, we figured our numbers weren’t large enough to control the race. None of us have a great sprint, so our plan was to work with the field to catch early breaks and set up a late break for me. Worst case scenario, Henry and Will would lead me out to try and win from a bunch sprint.

Lap 1. A rider from Cycle Sport attacked immediately and went off solo. The peloton ignored him, and for the rest of us, the race started off very slowly. During the first half of lap 1, our field got neutralized to let the Masters racers pass through. A quarter of the peloton stopped for a bathroom break. I only averaged 112W during this stretch, which is easier than a coffee ride for me. The official gave us a wake up call on the return leg — the solo rider had a 4.5 minute gap. Will helped organize the peloton into a paceline and we were off.

Lap 2. Just after the half point of lap 2 we caught the solo rider. The pace suddenly dropped back down. The remainder of the lap was uneventful until the rollers, where Henry and I decided to attack and try to force a break going into lap 3.

Lap 3 pt 1. A strong rider from CalPoly joined Henry and I as we set off on the final lap. We gained a 30 second gap, but the peloton was extremely motivated. The rider from CalPoly dropped back, and Henry and I followed, recognizing we definitely couldn’t hold off for the rest of the race. Just before the turnaround there were a couple potentially threatening moves that I joined, but they were all quickly brought back.

Lap 3 pt 2. After a brief team meeting, we decided this race would probably come down to a bunch sprint. Henry and I sat back in the peloton to rest. Will decided to go off the front for one last stab at a break. Someone else joined them, and they just sort of slinked away. It was almost as if no one noticed him go. After a few miles, they were nowhere in sight. 

Two more riders attacked. I tried to sit at the front of the peloton and disrupt the speed. After a couple minutes, the official notified us there was a 1 minute gap. This reinvigorated the peloton to chase. Once the two riders were caught, the peloton let off. I think most of them thought this was the break with the minute-gap and truly didn’t notice Will had left beforehand. As we moved toward the finish, Will was still nowhere in sight.

The final five minutes of the race was a tale of two positions. Going into the final climb, I was positioned on the right at the front of the peloton completely exposed to the wind. Henry was a few bikes back on the left, sheltered from the wind. At the 1km mark, a strong rider named Kyle (who raced with Alto Velo at Santa Barbara a few weeks back) launched an extremely powerful attack. I started to follow, but a few things went very wrong. First, I was completely out of the draft and exposed to the wind. Second, a rider from a separate race was in the middle of the road — instead of going left and trying to join in the draft I pushed further right. This decision was largely due to inexperience and not realizing where the wind was. Third, my hamstrings cramped up in a seriously painful way.

At the 500m mark we all passed Will. The sprint train accelerated away and I was left behind. I burnt too much energy sitting out of the draft and couldn’t connect — let’s chalk it up to a great learning experience about positioning. I pushed for a bit, then once my place was secured slowed up and rolled over the line in 9th. Henry, comfortably in the draft, was able to follow that train right toward the finish line where he sprinted for 4th place. And since no one else showed up for the picture, AV was the highest up on the podium that day!