It was a chilly day in Sutton MA for the 2nd Annual Purgatory Road Race. Sam and I represented NorEast women. There was a small turn-out for the women’s P/1/2 field, but a very strong group of women! The race directors put us in with the very large Cat. 3 men’s field so that it would be more challenging and exciting for both groups. The race distance was 55 miles, each lap being 11 miles. The course is very fun, with rolling terrain and a very long, very fast descent. The challenging part of the course is a very steep, stair step climb each lap to the finish line, that rips your legs apart more and more each time! I was able to hang with the pack of men for 44 miles. On the climb leading into the last lap, I missed my moment to accelerate on the flat part of the stair step and was unable to hang on to the back of the pack to the finish line. There was another male rider who did not make it back on, so the two of us worked hard together, but we were unable to close the gap. We ended up 4 minutes back from the pack. I told him I knew only 2 women were up ahead of me, and that I would be forever grateful for his help to keep me in 3rd position. I had no idea I was over 10 minutes ahead of the next 4th, 5th, and 6th place female riders! I was very proud of my 3rd place result, and happy to finish with no mechanicals or crashes after the unfortunate events at Killington! Sam ended up riding with a group of female riders (and one male 55+ rider, who bragged about his “power ring” given to him by his granddaughter…) and did a lot of the work to pull them around. Unfortunately, she ended up getting sprinted around by 2 of them at the line and placed 9th. Overall, it was a great day for NorEast women and men.
Green Line Velo did a great job putting on the race. Check out their website: http://www.greenlinevelo.com/
44 miles in on the last lap after I got dropped from the men's Cat. 3 pack
Still cold after the race!
Ryan (7th) and I (3rd) with our prize money!
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