The team competed in its first ever Road National Championships as a Varsity program a week ago in Madison, Wisconsin. It was an incredible experience for both staff and riders who made the trip. 
 
We had three men, and three women compete in both the Road Race and the Criterium. The racing started first with a hilly road race on open and exposed roads, which meant that with all the best collegiate riders fighting for a National Title, it was going to be a difficult race. 
 
The women took the start for a 60-mile race first on Saturday morning. After just one 13-mile lap, the field had split apart due to a middle of the pack crash. Ragan Weigel managed to avoid trouble and stay tagged on to the back of the front group, but Aunika Kemp and Lauren Weigel weren't so lucky. Lauren's race was unfortunately over before it began. Aunika fought hard to reconnect with the group, but by the time she rejoined them, a group of 10-riders had rolled off the front. The main bunch, now with both Ragan and Aunika were content to ride the race for 11th place, so it came down to a sprint out of their bunch where Aunika took 16th overall and Ragan 19th. 
 
Jensen Cervati spoke for the whole team when he said the road race was an eye-opening and shocking experience for the men. The race started extremely fast and with wind coming from all directions on such exposed stretches of road, the bigger teams used their numbers and their strength to shatter the field as early as the second lap. 
 
There is nothing harder than riding in cross-winds when the strongest riders are skilled and experienced in echelon racing. It doesn't matter who you are or how much power you can put out, once you are just millimeters off the wheel in front of you, you are out of contention and out of the race. Jensen and his teammates Michael Gallik and Alastair Amos found that out the hardest way possible. Their race never really even began.  
 
Despite the lack of result, our experience was extremely positive. Had the race played out in a predictable and familiar fashion, we as cyclists, coaches and racers would not have grown from it. Today we look ahead to next year's event hopeful and motivated to face the challenge. We will be ready for whatever the conditions or the big teams throw at us.   
 
The Criterium went much better for the team on Sunday. This type of racing suites the strengths of our team well.  Jensen Cervati and Aunika Kemp both received front row call ups for winning the Varsity ACC Conference Championship. It was such an honor to see them standing on the start with the best of the best, representing Roanoke College and our cycling team.
 
With 70 minutes for the women and 80 for the men, the races would surely come down to attrition and the sprinter that did the least amount of work throughout the race would win. There wasn't anything technical about the 4-corner rectangular crit in downtown Madison. The course would surely lend itself to a pure sprinter and the team that could deliver them to the line best. Colorado Mesa University dominated both the women's and the men's races, winning both titles and executing the best teamwork at the end. Ragan had a great result in the women's race, finishing in 13th place.
 
"I am most proud of our men's team and how they rose to the occasion for this race," said head coach Shelley Olds.  "They put the events and emotions of the day before behind them and were ready to fight again with the best in the country."
 
With an average speed of 30-miles per hour for 80 minutes, the race was relentless. In the closing laps of the race, Michael and Jensen came together and like a trusted soldier, Michael brought his teammate to the front and held him in perfect position from 10-2 laps to go. 
 
Any cyclist knows that bad luck is part of the sport. It is not if it will happen to you, but when. Coming into turn 3 with 1.5 laps to go, Jensen suffered a near crash which caused his chain to drop, he was forced to unclip and to put a hand down on the ground. His opportunity to launch a sprint that we all know would have been vicious, was instantly lost. 
 
"Again, we took away only the positive and kept our heads high," said Olds. "We were there, strong enough and tactically sound enough to be in the moment where victory is a real possibility. Michael did his job perfectly, Alastair gained valuable experience and training, and Jensen's confidence grew exponentially. We all know that he belongs right there with the best sprinters in the country. We will just have to wait for next year to see it!"