The title is about as much excitement as I have to report back.
The race: I had terrible luck at staging and started at the very back. I did at least keep to my habit of finding a kid along the barriers to give a water bottle to, but that's as much entertainment as I could give the spectators. After FIFTEEN minutes of call ups, the race began, as did the process of gap-closing.
When you start that far back, all you can do is ride hard, pass as many people as you can, and hope that there isn't a field split.
Just my luck, I reached a point far enough forward to find that field split. By the time I was there, we were about 25 minutes in to the race, and the action was settling down a bit. I was at the front of my groupetto, and could take the corners at full speed. We were closing to the field, but the officials decided it was time to chop the race. We were pulled, and that was that.
Things other than my race were the highlights of the day. For one, the drive to West Chester was beautiful. I was picturing myself retired, driving an Aston Martin, and on my way to SPECTATE the bike race along the roads that lead you to the town.
As always, the race was well organized, and cycling fans (new and experienced alike) were having a great time. People were very interested in what was happening in the race, and when the field nearly pulled back the solo rider towards the end of the race, the spectators at the backside reacted with a loud "OHHHH WOWWW!" when it was announced. When people who don't race bikes are that into a criterium, you are doing something right.
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