What do you get when you combine a rose, a bud and a thorn? Apparently Albuquerque, New Mexico for the 2024 Collegiate Road Nationals. Who knew?
Eight members of the road team traveled south to climb the elevations, competing in four national events over three days: the team time trial, individual time trial, road race and criteria. Let this blog serve as proof that we’ve figured out how to breathe without oxygen, and let’s see what our week of racing was like! Of course, since we’re in Albuquerque, and because it’s Seamus’ favorite activity, each day will be presented in a rose/bud/thorn way. You don’t know what it is? You’ll realize it (no one ever explained it to me, so I don’t know either).
Team and individual time trial day
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Hannah, Melissa, Chen and Bianca (left to right at start) launch into the team time trial to the soft sound of the announcer trying to recruit us for jobs. Apparently Los Alamos, New Mexico has the most PhDs per capita or something, they didn’t know none of our runners had a degree yet. Regardless, they had a great time in their first team time trial and finished 7th in the country and Melissa finished the individual time trial with a top 10!
During the individual time trials, Hannah and Mason zoomed in on each runner in Lee Lopez’s thesis defense, continuing our time-honored tradition of embarrassing each other when they’re hyperfocused on becoming a doctor. (We only found his master’s thesis online so far, but we will also update it once the doctoral thesis is completed). Rumor (heard here first) has it that Los Alamos is in his future.
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On the men’s team, Derek (pictured here in a completely legal aerodynamic position), Felix, Seamus and Mason spent most of the warm-up worrying that Seamus wasn’t feeling very well, then spent the second half of the race to worry about his fall. the other three. A faster time than last year is a great result, and with three of the four drivers returning next year, we can’t wait to look to the future. Inspired by the marginal gains gained from helmets and TT suits (both new experiences for some team members!), the entire team looks forward to a future of aerodynamic gains. Winnings are winnings.
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After the races, the real adventure began, as the team headed to the Petroglyphs National Monument so Seamus could stamp his National Parks passport. A rather thorny adventure awaited us, with many sharp scrub welcoming hikers. The worst part of the day was definitely Derek and Melissa taking an extra walk to Petroglyph and dominating everyone at dinner. After dinner it turned out that the hot water in the shower was not working. As the neighboring volcanoes were not very attractive (editorial comment: which volcanoes? It is clear that this article is not written by a geologist), Hannah, team mom and most experienced mechanical engineer, dismantled and reassembled the shower to make hot water!
Road racing day
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Only Mason and Hannah participated in the road race, which was a more or less unforgettable experience for Mason. Hannah, meanwhile, won her small group’s sprint and was probably in the top 5 among the sea level runners. Meanwhile… the rest of the team had the essential task of shuttling around The two of them, handing them bottles and food, and huddling around Hannah at the end of her run to keep her warm. It was hard work and required at least three trips to Sprouts (Melissa’s favorite place on earth), beans, cuties (the citrus ones, not Derek), a few extra bottles of USAC water and more than one travel on the musical highway to the beat. from “America the Beautiful”.
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Dinner tonight was a real challenge. We’re still waiting for the cornbread to finish cooking… In the meantime, everyone has made it their goal to match Hannah’s choice of t-shirt without her knowledge, as Mason managed to do at least once during this trip.
In addition to this admirable goal, some more intrepid (?) team members proposed the aerodynamic-enhancing camelbak suit as a startup idea. Their slogan? Hydraéro 3000! Or maybe a water suit! Bianca is still working, but whatever, catch us on Shark Tank next week!
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The team really needed dinner that evening, as most of the riders ended up doing longer rides than Hannah or Mason, between guiding us along the course and concluding their course with a big climb of Sandia Peak (which exceeds 10,000 feet at the summit). This was particularly accentuated by the false truce Seamus attempted to strike with Felix near the summit, as the two slowly picked up the pace going up the climb. Melissa, Bianca and Chen followed at a more reasonable pace and it became the biggest climb ever for almost everyone! Opinions differ on the fun of the descent: Melissa went wild like a champion slalom skier, Chen honed her skills thanks to the WTC turn day, Bianca hugged herself while pulling the brakes.
Derek, even though he didn’t run or do the big climb and ultimately only got cornbread, was still left out to dry. Hannah went to “lie down” in bed to get away from the hubbub and woke up there the next morning, Derek banished himself to the couch and was woken up at 5 a.m. by the rest of the room. ‘team. His only excuse? Sorry, it was very comfortable! (editorial comment: Hannah had also set a best 20 minute power in the road race…at 7,200’…the fatigue was justified.)
Criterion day
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Critic was a rough day for everyone, with the only rose-worthy race mention being Hannah winning her second mini sprint of the weekend (although 12th overall/top 5 schools at sea level after a fall earlier in the race but a winning sprint is always a victory!). Jealous of the Sandia Crest the group released the day before, Derek motivated Mason and Hannah to go peak bagging in the afternoon. We missed the glorious sunshine and were instead treated to 30+ mph wind gusts and summit temperatures that matched the remaining winter snow. Despite the cold, the view was still beautiful and the group photo turned out much cuter than expected!
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With the Nationals site rotating every two years, it could well be at sea level next year! #bringtheoxygen!
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For the second year in a row, the Rio Grande Celtic Festival was held inside the critical course throughout the race (to be clear, that’s not the thorn, keep reading). This led to a constant soundtrack of bagpipes throughout the day and a stellar mix between cycling fans and Celtic fans. A thorn for some was a rose for others when Hannah quickly ditched Mason to explain to someone’s grandmother that bikes hadn’t changed much in 70 years. Mason had just been removed from his review, was not amused, and Hannah, of course, happily documented the event from afar.
Travel day
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Half the team returned Sunday morning, leaving Derek, Hannah and Mason to fend for themselves at criterion. It’s hard to find a rose on a travel day, but Seamus convincing his four NUMTOTs to bring home transit, bike bags and everything else was by far the highlight.
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One way to travel, and one that we look forward to seeing more of in the future, is Dartmouth’s chosen method. Helmets at the airport (easily identifiable), walking in line at all times (the draw is significant at 2.5 mph), and very compact use of porta-potties (don’t ask) are all methods of travel admirable that we expect to see more of. at the next ECCC race. The other conference teams at the national championships didn’t get it but Dartmouth, we see you and appreciate you.
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Unfortunately, the first day of travel ended on Sunday in the big city of Houston for another six hours. Bianca chose to pass the time by alternating between her newly acquired USAC water bottle and napping, while Felix returned to the world of work. Seamus, Melissa and Chen were nowhere to be seen (probably taking a ride on the airport tram if we had to guess).
Final Thoughts
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Overall, the national championships were a huge success. MIT was one of five club teams to send full men’s and women’s teams and have runners in every event over the weekend. We had fun, challenged ourselves, and looked like a pro doing it with nail polish that matched our kit. What more could you ask for? (editorial comment: the Gatorade Guy is what’s more. Mason’s favorite volunteer from last year was back this year, enthusiastically forcing ice-cold hydration on us at every turn. We needed him and he kept his promises. Thanks, Gatorade Guy.)
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Marking the end of the season is bittersweet as friends graduate and we wait an entire year to start again. On the bright side, the best months of riding in Boston are just around the corner and some might say #crossiscoming or maybe even track season?!
Photo credit (fancy): Craig Huffman Photography
Text mainly by Mason