By Johnny Purvis

(Photo by Biff Stephens)

The double on Cry Baby Hill. I’ve thought about it before but after the 1/2 race and finishing 2nd I felt content with one race. A few minutes after finishing the 1/2 race I was talking to some friends about racing the pro race and decided it wouldn’t hurt (just to do it as a workout).

The 1/2 race.

1 hour on one of the toughest crit courses in the region if not the country. And a stacked 120 plus rider field racing for $3,000. I had a good start and just tried to ride smart the first half and not crash my bike. The last half of the race I started paying attention to who was where and how they were looking on the hill and how they were handling the last corner. The last few laps weren’t as bad as I thought they might be and my legs were feeling good so I moved into the top 10. With 1 to go I was ready to jump. At the bottom of the hill a rider that I wasn’t familiar with attacked and everybody reacted but it wasn’t until we were on Cry Baby Hill that I decided to go full gas. At the top I found myself on Evan Bybee’s (1/2 winner 2014) wheel sitting in 3rd. I knew I was in a very good position to get a podium but I also knew winning was going to be a tall order. I did everything I could and nearly went down in the last corner to finish 2nd to a great bike racer. I was super happy with the race. It’s one of my best results if not my best result.

Ten minutes after the 1/2 race, I registered for the pro race. I had about an hour between races. In my mind this would be a workout but at the same time I was planning on paying $40 and getting dropped. I slotted in somewhere around mid pack and tried to ride as smart as I could. When it got down to the final laps I started thinking I can get in the money (top 25) but as we hit the last hill my legs said no way Jose. I rode in at 35th.

It was a super awesome day, great weather, great fans, great venue. I want to thank my teammates Will F and Mark G for being there. I also want to thank all the sponsors (Tyson Foods, Shoulder Center of Arkansas, The Bike Route, Creative Awards & CLIF BAR) for supporting the team and making races like this possible.

I basically did 69 race laps on Sunday. Right at 5,000 ft of climbing.

My average mph in the 1/2 race was 24.4 and in the pro race it was 24.8.

Here is video from the 1/2 race. Check out that last corner.