Here are a few videos from the past weekend’s USGP races in Louisville, KY.  Taken by Colt from CyclingDirt, there are two post-race interviews with Alison and two women’s race videos.  Enjoy!

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

Alison Dunlap Coaching and CyclingDirt are proud to present a new video series.  Every Wednesday through cyclocross national championships in December, CyclingDirt will bring you a new video interview with Alison.  She’ll be sharing coaching and training info, as well as talking about her career and what has changed in the years she’s been in the sport.  The first video is online at www.cyclingdirt.org today; check the video series out every Wednesday!

USGP #3 & #4 Louisville, KY  Oct 24-25, 2009

I had a breakout weekend at the USGP in Louisville, finally cracking the podium on Sunday with a hard fought third place.  It was one of my big goals this season and I did it against a stacked women’s field. With Louisville receiving record rainfall all summer, it wasn’t a surprise to see a muddy course at Champions Park.  Run on an old golf course, the race wound up and down the grassy slopes, with the excitement centered on the Green Monster, a green staircase run-up followed by a steep downhill ramp.  Definitely a crowd favorite.  The weather cooperated on race day, allowing the course to slowly dry out with each subsequent category that raced.  By the time we started, the mud had somewhat dried into the consistency of peanut butter.  It was a very slow lap and favored the power rider.  I liked the course but it didn’t exactly play to my strengths.  I like a faster race that is more tactical vs. the slow slog through thick muck.

With all the anaerobic intervals I’ve been doing, it was only a matter of time before my legs would find the power they needed at the start.  After suffering like a dog in all the races I’ve done since June, this was the first time I got the hole shot off the start-line.  And I felt strong and relaxed.  It was so exciting to be up front again!  Sydor then took the lead and within minutes the field quickly shattered, leaving Sydor, myself, and my two teammates in the front group.  I was sitting pretty comfortably, riding through the mud fairly smoothly and not feeling too maxed out.

Katerina attacked across the start/finish after lap 1 and quickly got a gap.  Georgia chased in 2nd, and I realized that I couldn’t handle the increase in intensity.  I rode in third, but struggled, losing time each lap.  That’s how it stayed until two laps to go, when Amy Dombrowski (Sachs) spoiled the party and powered up to me.  I stayed with her surge until sliding out on a tight U-turn, and losing her wheel for good.  I was so exhausted at this point, both mentally and physically.  Meredith Miller (Giant Strawberry) caught me half a lap later.  Now we were down to one more lap and I was able to rally the body and mind back to the race.  I stayed with her, and then attacked right before the Green Monster.  I powered through the last mud section and then sprinted down the pavement to the finish, coming in 4th.  My best finish yet but I was definitely disappointed.  Felt like I let the podium slip away.  I was determined not to let that happen again on Sunday!

Day two was similar, except the course was a little faster.  The race started almost exactly as yesterday, with Sydor creating havoc at the front and splitting the field.  I got another great start and sat comfortably in the top four.  Before the first lap was done, Katerina attacked and jumped clear.  Georgia, not wanting to let the race go up the road, chased hard and kept the gap down to less than 15 seconds for the next lap.  I had better legs and was able to stay with Georgia, trading pulls at the front to keep the pace high.  Once again Amy Dombroski clawed her way back and joined us with 1 ½ laps to go.  I was determined not to miss out on the podium this time.  I attacked half way through the last lap and powered up over the Green Monster in the lead.  Amy made an aggressive move and almost took me down as she cut off my line through the mud.  I had to slam on the brakes to keep from hitting her.  Damn!  I lost all momentum and didn’t have a chance to make it up in the short 50m sprint.  Oh well.  I finished in 3rd, extremely satisfied!!  2nd would have been great, but I was thrilled to make the top three.  My teammate, Georgia, finished in 4th about 10sec behind.

The best thing about Sunday’s race was the fact that I was at the front making things happen.  I wasn’t suffering off the back.  I felt strong and aggressive.  All my hard work is starting to pay off.  I finally cracked the top three.  Yippee!!  Now I want a victory.

We race this weekend at the NACT UCI races in Longmont and Boulder.  The whole family is coming to cheer me on.  Can’t wait!

Valmont Bike Park and Golden Cross Races Oct 17-18, 2009

This past Saturday I drove up to Boulder to do the local women’s race at the ground breaking of the new Valmont Bike Park. I opted to do only the women’s race this time instead of wearing myself out racing with the master’s men in the morning, and then surviving the women’s race an hour later. I also knew there were going to be some strong women racing and wanted to focus all my efforts on racing to win.

Colorado is enjoying a wonderful Indian summer and the temperature was approaching 80 degrees on Saturday. I opted to race with a water bottle, which is unheard of in cross, but with the hot dry air I was very glad to have it.

I got the hole shot and then promptly overshot the first turn. Kind of embarrassing. Rode in third for the first part of the lap. I attacked on a smooth straight away and opened up a gap for the rest of the lap. Kelli Emmett (Giant) chased me down with Lisa Matlock (Vitamin Cottage) in tow. The three of us rode away from the rest of the field. I stayed up front for the next three laps, trying to drop the other two. Nothing was working, so I sat up and let Kelli pull for a lap. She was definitely slower so I knew that they weren’t as strong. With one lap to go I attacked up the only climb and took the lead. I drilled it as hard as I could, standing up and accelerating out of every turn, trying to get away. With half a lap to go I finally got away. Not by much, however, and I had to continue to ride completely maxed out until the finish. I won by not much more than 10sec. I was super psyched because I finally felt like I had the ability to accelerate out of the turns and then power away on the flats. I haven’t felt that yet this year. I think my body is finally becoming used to being a bike racer.

Sunday’s course was much different; a lot smoother and a lot more climbing. It played well to my strengths and within half a lap I was off the front. The women started 30sec behind the Masters Men 45+ so I spent the rest of the race trying to catch as many riders as possible. I think I passed all but 5 of the guys. It was 80 degrees today, not your typical cross weather. My family came and cheered me on. It felt like old times. Haha!

I’m racing in Louisville, KY this weekend at the second round of the US Gran Prix. I’m excited to see what I can do with good health and good legs. Until then…

It was nice to be in town for a local cyclocross race this past weekend. I even talked my mom and sister into coming. My sister brought her 3 1/2yr old and 16mos old sons so I had quite the cheering section. Fall is definitely in the air. When I warmed up at 8:30am it was only 28 degrees out.

The course was in and around the Frisco Nordic Center. It started out on a long uphill paved road and then into singletrack that wound around a lot of the cleared out beetle kill. Very rough trails with lots of sticks, woodchips, and loose gravel. Felt like a mountain biker’s course.

I had a lousy call-up for the Masters Men 35+ race and that made moving up a big challenge, especially with the tight technical course. I passed a few guys but stayed in the middle of the group. Legs felt good and it was the first race I’ve done in a few weeks where I was totally healthy.

The Open Women’s race was an hour later. I cooled down after the men’s race, changed skinsuits, and found my family. The weather warmed up and I did my second race in short sleeves. The women’s field was much smaller so I was able to get the hole shot into the singletrack at the top of the climb. I rode in front for the next three laps. Two other riders stayed with me; Alison Powers, a nationally ranked road racer, being one of them. With three laps to go I decided to pick up the pace on the only long climb. I dropped my two competitors and rode solo for the win. Even though it was a local race, it still feels great to win! And my mom and sister were psyched!

We hung out and watched the Open Men’s race. It was sunny and warm, a perfect fall day in the mountains! Now I’m in Moab for our mountain bike camp. Life is busy but fun!

Happy trails

Alison