As you probably already know, this weekend was RACE THE RIDGE, a grueling stage race put on by our friends and supporters at Local Ride Bike Shop in Maple Ridge. It seems lately that all the races are put on by Local Ride and are in Maple Ridge...
It started out with the most brutal of road race courses, where I'll estimate that at least 1/3 of the total ride time was spent climbing. A real test of fitness!
Our resident climber (and TTer, and crit rider) Jess Hannah did us proud by making the first selection and coming fourth in the bunch sprint, finishing in fifth place behind perpetual soloist and race winner Leah Goldstein. Rounding out the top 5 were Marni Hambleton of ValueAct Capital, Sarah Stewart of Total Restoration and Jean-Ann McKirdy of Rocky Mountain in 2nd, 3rd and 4th. Steph Roorda fought a bitter battle to stay in contact with the front group, and finished a respectable 9th place.
Our sights then turned to the overall. We knew we could have excellent results in the TT and crit, stealing away valuable points from our competitors. Laura Brown rode an amazing TT, finishing only 36 seconds behind Leah Goldstein. Jess Hannah finally remembered how it's done, finishing 3rd only 2 seconds behind Laura Brown. Steph Roorda also rode well, finishing 5th, 24 seconds behind 4th placed Sarah Stewart.
Our awesome TT results made it mathematically possible to win the overall, and secure 2 steps on the podium. With 2 bonus points sprints up for grabs, it was important for us to control, or should I say dominate the crit... and dominate we did!
The pace started high thanks to early attacks by Laura Brown, who selflessly killed herself to force the chase by Total Restoration. As I recall it, Jess Hannah spent the majority of the race off the front (in several installments) picking up 6 bonus points, with Steph Roorda picking up an extra 4. Team Giant/Whistler controlled the race with riders Lisa Howard (!) and Shoshaunna Laxson, launching attacks and following moves left right and centre. The pace was kept high in the final two laps by Steph, Jess, and Lisa who kept it so high that no one could come around them - finishing first second and third! A podium sweep for Giant!
As for the overall... Jess Hannah tied Leah Goldstein of Total Restoration for the win, with 40 points. Unfortunately, ties are broken in favour of the best TT, and Leah ended up on the top step of the podium. Steph Roorda picked up enough points in the crit to secure 3rd spot with 35 points - 3 points ahead of 4th place finished Sarah Stewart.
A great race for the team! I personally was so impressed with how well the team raced together. I would say the best execution of a plan in Giant history. After this I'm quite confident that the BC cup lead is still secure in Steph's hands. Thanks again to our friends at Local Ride for the great race and all the support!
checking out our competition...
Next up: Team Coastal Race May 25th in Surrey - stay tuned!
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