Monsters of the Midway Race Report

PJ looks good in orange!
Photo by Velogrrl

by PJ Cavoto

Monsters of the Midway; Hearing all the rumors that this event has a lot of crashes didn't give me lots of confidence for these races. I actually caved and shaved my legs for the 1st time in preparation. Fortunately, my experiences were very good and the surfaces were dry. That can't be said for the races earlier in the afternoon and morning.

The Cat 4/5 race went well. I maintained solid positioning throughout the race staying on the inside of the whole course and avoiding any trouble. But when it came down to the finishing lap. I just didn't seem to have what it took to get me to the front and finish with a strong sprint.

PJ, Pete, Ben and Geoff lined up before the race
Photo by Bevan Brookfield

The Cat 5 race was a blast. We had four Spidermonkey's in the race and decided that Pete Monko would be the guy. Ben Sparks, Geoff Pomerantz, and I all stayed up near the front and kept attacking the field. I actually sprinted down the back side three times to cut the field off before turn 3 and then would hammer it all the way to the finish line just trying to thin the field and tire guys out. Pete tried to break away after one of these attacks and I attempted to block, but it wasn't successful. Last lap Pete had my wheel coming around turn 3/4, and we seemed to be in perfect alignment for the finishing stretch. But when I went to step on the gas nothing came out and told Pete he had to go it alone. At that point some faster wheels were already to far ahead of us and Pete ended up with 8th place. All in all, we practiced some great tactics and seemingly had things lined up to place. The experience should serve us well in applying to future races. Thanks Drew for coaching and strategizing with us for this race.

Official Participant List:
PJ Cavoto
Drew Kushnick
Peter Monko
Geoffrey Pomerantz
Geoffrey Scott
Benjamin Spark
Masayuki Tsuchiya
Trent Williams