This day saw the whole range of weather, from a drenching rain during the Women's and Men's B race to a scorching sun for the Men's A race. As the sound of thunder, tornado warning sirens, and cheap noisemakers from the Hopkins tent filled the NC State campus, several Hopkins riders clinched points on this day when several other schools couldn't take the heat...err rain.

The course consisted of a descending slope down the street from the start/finish line into a strong headwind, a 90° left turn onto a steep turning climb, followed by another downhill across the parking lot to a chicane, finishing with a 90° left turn back onto the street and the start/finish line.

Highlights:
Men's C: The slight drizzle didn't faze Bolster, who opened the race with a strong sprint and chased down several breaks from the pack to clinch 3rd in a prime and 13th place overall.

Women's B: Allie shook off the drenching rain during her "best race so far", leading the pack for the majority of the race to finish 9th in the field sprint.

Men's B: Mother Nature showed no mercy as a piercing rain pelted the Men's B race, weeding out the majority of the field. Nevertheless, through sheer will and determination, Smitty finished the race to score points for Hopkins. Apparently, Smitty can travel through time, as he swears the lap counter changed from 20 to 9 on one of the laps.

Women's A: As the sun appeared through the clouds, Katie led a break of four cyclists, scored points in every prime and finished 3rd.

Men's A: A severe pileup at the chicane early in the race involved several racers, including Nathan and Cliff, while catching and seriously gapping Bloomer. Nathan had the breath knocked out of him for a few minutes, scaring the rest of the team, who had rushed over to the crash scene. Cliff, in his delirious state from the crash, sprinted back to the officials tent for his free lap and rejoined the pack to finish 17th.

The Numbers:
Number of noisemakers purchased at Citgo: 3
Number of noisemakers destroyed by Bloomer: 1
Number of traffic infractions committed by John: 2
Number of traffic infractions committed by Gou: 9 (I still say 5)

Men's C, field of 30: Bolster (13th), John (21st), Gou (26th)
Men's B, field of 44: Smitty (15th)
Men's A, field of 36: Cliff (17th), Nathan (dnf), Ryan (dnf)

Women's B, field of 12: Allie (9th)
Women's A, field of 9: Katie (3rd)

After braving the cold winds at Virginia Tech the weekend before, the Johns Hopkins cyclists set off to Raleigh, NC excited to take advantage of the promised warm weather by dominating the rolling hills of the NC State Road Race. The race consisted of a short 7.7-mile loop that left many opportunities to cheer on teammates and to irritate the rest of each field with obnoxious noisemakers bought at a gas station during the drive down south.

After the neutral start that rolled out of the staging area at the regional airport, riders began to race around the fairly simple course that featured two climbs, one that immediately followed the beginning of the race and one on the back side of the loop, interspersed among the rolling hills that made up the rest of the loop.

Our Men's C riders added to the prestige of the Hopkins cycling team throughout their 4-lap, 31-mile race. Bolster bravely fought his way ahead of the pack in a two man break during the 4th lap but was unfortunately caught as the pack neared the finish. John Lian was luckily able to deftly maneuver around a crash that took out several riders as the field sprinted towards the finish line. In the end, Eric Gou sprinted towards 11th place, John Lian finished 21st, and Peter Bolster took 28th in the Men's C category.

Allie Wilson represented Hopkins in the Women's B 3-lap, 23-mile race, taking 21st place in the largest Women's B field in an ACCC race thus far this season.

Hopkins' impressive Men's A racers took to the course next for their 69 mile race. Nathan Coleman maintained a strategic position in the front third of the pack before taking off after a break in the final lap of the 9-lap course. Nathan pulled off an inspiring 2nd place finish, sprinting in after a previously unknown VCU rider. Cliff Smoot had a strong race, maintaining his place in the middle of the Men's A field and finally clinching 20th place for Johns Hopkins. Ryan Bloom had a challenging race and was unable to display his usual cycling brilliance but still managed to finish the race in 33rd place.

While the Men's A riders battled it out around the circuit, the Men's B and Women's A combined field began their 46-mile race. Jonathan Smits held his own in the Men's B field as the sole Johns Hopkins rider, finishing 21st in the final sprint. Although Katie Ross was forced to deal with a mechanical problem two miles into the race, she did not let the added time faze her and worked with another rider until the second half of the last lap during which she pulled ahead for a 5th place finish. In all, the Johns Hopkins Cycling Team put forward a solid showing during the NC State Road Race and left prepared to tackle another day of racing in the NC State Criterium.

Men's C
Eric Gou (11th)
John Lian (21st)
Peter Bolster (28th)

Men's B
Jonathan Smits (21st)

Women's B
Allison Wilson (21st)

Men's A
Nathan Coleman (2nd)
Cliff Smoot (20th)
Ryan Bloom (33rd)

Women's A
Katie Ross (5th)