Philadelphia Weekend

March 7-8, 2008

Bucknell Cycling's second race weekend brought miserable weather, but unstoppable success. The Phoenixville Fury Road Race, feared for two sizable climbs, was transformed into a technical downtown criterium due to dangerous rain and flooding. On Sunday, the team time trial and Philly Flyer circuit race continued in dry but windy conditions. Sunday's races were help in historical Fairmount Park along the Schukyll River. Each year, this weekend is a joint weekend between Easter and Atlantic Conferences, which brings large field sizes and great competition.

On Saturday, after cold deliberation about the course, we were all ecstatic to find freshman Kevin Curran in a four man breakaway with only a few laps left in the men's C field. The crowd brought him in for a 2 nd place finish, even in the pouring rain! Immediately following, sophomore Molly Pritz also placed 2 nd in the women's B criterium, scoring more points to add to her season total. Crashes plagues the other races, breaking up the fields on tight corners and bringing extra caution to the remaining riders.

Sunshine would have greeted us on Sunday had we not gotten up at 5, even after the forward time change! A cold team time trial gave our young team the first taste of the event, in which our women's B team placed 4 th .

The classic Philly Flyer circuit race brought exciting breakaways that rarely were able to stay away in such high wind. Kevin and Molly again showed their prowess in their categories with 6 th and 7 th place finishes respectively. Many other pack finishes in women's B, men's B, and men's A all indicate that the Bucknell team has capable riders who are learning the art of racing. A weekend of two criteriums will test the sprinter's legs next week at Columbia's Grant's Tomb and Princeton races. In the mean time, we will enjoy our Spring Break! We thank you all for your support!