Preston Street Criterium '14

We had a big contingent out for the annual Preston Street Criterium. Adam lined up in the Master 2/3 field and had a strong finish to stay in the pack in a race that averaged 40km/hr.

Darrell and Graham page lined up in the Senior 3/Junior race. Juniors always race aggressively, and this one was no different. Unfortunately, this race saw Nine2Five's only mishap of the day, with Darrell having to call curtains on his race after he overcooked corner one and went into the barriers. He escaped from the crash relatively unscathed, looking like more of a boxer from the scrapes and cuts he sustained to his face. But that didn't stop him from taking all the awesome photos below.

In the elite race, we had our strongest team yet, all motivated after having a good showing at the Bill Patterson challenge on the Tuesday leading up to the race. Warren made the break, which had most big teams represented, so it wasn't long before the break lapped the field. After that the game plan was to keep Warren near the front, remain attentive so his breakaway companions didn't slip away off the front again without him.

The officials finished the pack a few laps before the break, so we focussed on helping Doug stay near the front to contest the sprint for places 8 through 10...the leftover prize money spots. Into the second to last corner, and Doug was in the top five, and even after the front of the group lost some momentum, he still had enough to grab 9th place, 2nd in the bunch sprint.

After that, the breakaway was left to duke it out, with Warren being our sole representative. There were a lot of strong riders in the break, but Warren still put in an attack with a lap to go. However, cramps set in and he was left to ride in behind the sprint to take 7th place, a solid performance from him and the team.

Thanks to all the Nine2Fivers out cheering....Jake and family, Rich and his crew, the SpokesForFolks gang, along with Duncan and all the others could be heard providing encouragement all over the circuit. We'll see y'all out next year!