Race Report: 2024 University Road Race - Men's Cat 3

Race: University Road Race - Men's Cat 3

Date: August 18, 2024

AVRT racers: George Wehner, Henry Mallon

Top Result: Henry 5th

Course: 15 laps of a circuit through UC Santa Cruz featuring a 1.2-mile climb followed by a 1.4-mile descent. The climb averaged 5.5% with a steep kicker at the top.

Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/12182345047 

Nutrition: One bottle of high-carb drink mix, a few partial water bottles, and a couple of gels. 

Race Recap:

University was one of my first-ever road races last year as a Cat 5, so I was excited to return this year with the goal of securing one more point for my Cat 2 upgrade. With 130 feet of elevation gain per mile, this course promised to be attritional—essentially 15 rounds of five-minute intervals at threshold or above. 

Right from the gun, Logan attacked and immediately opened a gap. Two others joined him, and within a few laps, the race had already started to splinter. Logan ultimately dropped his berakaway companions and went on to win solo with a commanding two-minute lead. Meanwhile, the second group continued to shrink with attacks every few laps.

Going into the final lap, I found myself in a group of four, with Logan and two others still ahead. One rider escaped off the front without a definitive attack, and I hesitated to chase. A few surges near the top of the climb reduced our group to just two, but it was too late to reel in the rider who had slipped away.

On the final lap, I was alone with Tyler sprinting for fifth place. Knowing Tyler had out-sprinted me at Baker City Cycling Classic and Patterson Pass, I forced him to take the lead and managed to come around at the finish.

In hindsight, I wish I had raced more aggressively. There were several moments when I could have bridged gaps or followed key moves but chose to hold back—largely because I blew up last year in the Cat 4/5 field after riding the majority of the race in a small breakaway.

This remains one of my favorite races. It’s phenomenal to spectate and absolutely brutal to race—in the best way possible. I’m already looking forward to next year!

Thanks for reading,

Henry