Stage 1 – 66km Highland circuit race – 8 laps Each 8km lap had a 3-tiered climb with the steepest section approaching a 15% gradient.  There was a long descent immediately after the climb which allowed most of the peloton to regroup. The circuit race had 2 sprints at the start/finish line on laps 6 and 4.  The start/finish line […]

Redlands Classic, California 1 – 6 April 2003 Prologue 5.6km I woke up for today’s prologue with a few nerves.  Not only because of the race ahead of me but because I my Salsa was being built before race start and I was hoping it would fit me properly.  The bottom bracket of my TCR zero Giant had jammed during […]

Stage 4 – 9 March 2003 – San Dimas Criterium – 55 minutes The course was essentially an L shaped circuit with 6 corners.  It was held in clockwise direction and took us through a residential area, past the civic centre and finished along the tree lined Bonita Ave. Before the race, our TDS team visited one of our sponsors, […]

Stage 3 – 8 March 2003 – Road Race 72 miles (115km) We completed 9 laps of a hilly 7.8 mile (12.5km) loop around Puddingstone Resevoir in San Dimas.  The weather had warmed up to 79F (23C) and fortunately we accepted our host Josh’s offer to hand out water bottles to us from the feedzone, because we need more fluid […]

Stage 2 – 7 March 2003 – Fontana Circuit Race 2.9 mile loop – 90 minute timed event After yesterday’s upward battle, today was a day for the sprinters.  The Pro women’s field set off for a 90 minute timed event around the Sierra Lakes Housing development estate.  The 2.5 mile loop gently curved along the northern border of the […]

Pomona Valley Stage Race Stage 1- 6 March 2003 – Glendora Individual Time Trial – 8.5 mile 2,400ft climb Eighty pro women had registered to compete in the Pomona Stage race which kicked off with a tough individual uphill time trial. The course was 8.5 miles (13.4km) of steady climbing, including 5 switchbacks through the beautiful Los Angeles National Forest.  […]

McLane Pacific Cycling Classic – 23rd March 2003 Course: 4 x 24 mile laps (154km) Conditions: Miserable rain and crosswinds – 55F A cold wet day On Sunday, we were up at 6am and watched the skies become overcast as we drove out to the race start.  Soon the heavens had opened up and we both pulled on our purple […]

McLane Pacific Cycling Classic – 22nd March 2003 Course: 40 laps – 32 miles (51km) Conditions: Sunny with minimal winds – 75F Joan and I travelled 7 hours from San Diego to Merced on Friday 21 March to race the McLane Pacific Cycling Classic criterium and road race.  Our plan was to use both races as Solano preparation races and […]

McLane Pacific Cycling Classic – 22nd March 75F 40 laps – 32 miles Each lap was 0.8 mile long.  It was a anit clockwise circuit in a figure The early primes on laps 2,3 and 4 were for $100, $50 and $25, respectively.  Laura Van Gilder (Saturn) jumped on the 2nd lap in preparation of the $50 prime.  I went […]

World Cup No 1 – Cooma to Thredbo – 3rd March 2002 Conditions: moderate winds, 23°C, 11am Well, this is the first world cup race for 2002 and the pace started sedately as we headed out of Cooma into a gentle headwind.  The peloton was very nervous with the first crash happening only a few km’s of Cooma.  The course […]