The 2018 road season opener is here! We are ready to shred. Our first race of the 2018 season would be the Livermore "Bump". Named for it's finish, the is infamous for a 15% grade bump preceded by a 2.5 mile climb. I had raced this course the previous summer and I knew what to expect.
The start of the race was neutral, and after about 10 minutes of climbing, and attack went HARD off the left side. Stefan and I both got in the move and got in behind a couple other riders for the downhill. The pace was already blistering, and knowing that we had another hour of this and three laps to go, I did not have the most confidence that the break would stick. A couple moments later, Alex rides up to us solo. Soon enough, we turned the corner for the flat section of the course and within a few minutes we were caught. Just following this, a single Mike's Bikes Rider went off the front solo and none of us were in a position to chase at that moment so we worked with the other teams to attempt to reel him in.
The second lap, another attack went up the side, earlier on the climb than the attack on the first lap. Alex got in the break while the rest of us sat in. The break stuck for nearly a lap, and was caught just prior to the lap line for the third lap. When they were caught, a Sun-Power rider counter attacked and myself and two others got in with him. The pace that we kept on the downhill was extremely fast and within a few minutes, the Mike's Bikes rider that had gone off the front solo was within sight. We reeled him in and counter attacked his one man break on a steep kicker heading towards the final climb, as this was the last lap.
When we hit the bottom of the climb, I tried to work with the other four riders in our break to pull, but without any luck and after a while of trying, I pulled in front. At one point, the pack was five or less seconds behind us, and I was not about to get caught. I put my head down and motored up the climb, trying as hard as I possibly could to ride the other men in our break off of my wheel. I managed to get rid of all but one rider, a Sun Power rider. Once we had put time on the pack, I desperately tried to pull off. When I did so, the pack started gaining on us and got very close behind. The Sun Power rider was not worried because he had a large number of teammates in the field. However, with only two riders in the field for our team and myself being the climber, I had no choice but to keep on hammering. We rounded the final turn of the climb that heads into the steep kicker for the finish, and giving it everything I had to sprint, the Sun Power rider came around me on my left side. I crossed the line for 2nd which is something that I would not have preferred. However, I know that I gave it everything I had on that final climb and unfortunately the other rider out sprinted me in the end. There's always motivation and fuel that comes out of every race I participate in, and for this race I am very motivated to change that 2nd to a 1st in the future.
Photography: Dave Akins
