Critérium du Vieux Moulin 2022

On Sunday 25th September I participated in a small local race in Céligny, my neighbouring village. It was a criterium – something I had never done before. Moreover, it was through the fields so the bike choice would be very important. To my surprise I won the event !

Here are the race details

The preparation

Training

I’ll be very honest I did not train specifically for this event. It’s a local race that I wanted to support and signed up a few weeks before the event. After a busy summer organising kids camps where I almost did not train, I am back in training for the Lausanne Marathon in October, and also racing a little on Zwift. My goal for the event was just to have fun and see what happens !

Pre-Race

I almost always have the same breakfast before races now, a few pieces of toast with almond butter and jam. A few espressos for the kick and I start sipping some energy drink. I cycled to the event – brought a bag with warm clothes in between rounds and post race. The weather was cloudy but not rain. The terrain would be muddy and slippery, but nothing dangerous

The race

Course

Instead of being a classic criterium and bunch racing, the race consisted of two attempts of a 1km slightly uphill and cross country terrain and the times would be combined together. The rider with the fastest combined time wins. 1km all out is quite a lung busting experience !

1st Attempt

I have bib number 7 – somehow a lucky number for me. I think I had this number once at football in my youth! The 1st rider starts at 10am and I patiently wait for my turn – 7 minutes later. There’s an older gentleman and a child in front of me – I know I might have to pass them later on… let’s see how this goes.

5-4-3-2-1 GO ! I go absolutely all out sprinting for the first few hundred meters and my legs are very quickly starting to burn, I have to keep going. I negotiate the turns well, the final technical bend is very wet, I must be careful so probably lose a few seconds, my legs hurt badly but I sprint to the finish line and breathe in deeply… wow that was a crazy effort ! 2 minutes and 11 seconds absolutely all out.

I go back into recovery mode to the start line, start chatting and I hear that my attempt was off the chart and had done much better than anyone else… That gave me some confidence but could it be true ?

2nd Attempt

Same order again. This time I decide to start a bit easier so I have more punch and speed on the middle of the course. I clip in perfectly right away and again go almost all out. My legs are firing – I feel sluggish but I keep going. I overtake the two riders ahead and cross the finish line gasping for air. My first feeling is a did a worse time so I hope all the others also fade away vs their fist attempt.

In fact it was not the case ! I actually did better in my second attempt : 2 minutes and 9 seconds. I figure my pacing was simply better – and also the very fast clip in.

Check out my Strava file HERE

Celebration

Winning

I did not come here to win the race but to give my best. Yes it’s a small field but you “got to be in it to win it” as they say ! It’s my first competitive win and I’m very proud of the way I treated the event : to have fun, give my best and help the community.

Prize-giving

The prize giving is a very nice moment for all the participants but also for the children participating in the event. They win a nice fruit juice while adults win pumpkins, honey and wine. I take the first prize, a huge pumpkin and a very nice bottle of wine. We know what’s on for dinner later on !

Summary

Participate in local events

Support your community and participate in local events. The organisers did brilliantly, gave a lot of their time for this event to take place. I am immensely grateful to them. Thanks a lot to the association “Cyclo Céligny” for the organisation – and all the volunteers who gave their time on a Sunday morning to make the event happen.

Have fun

When we’re having fun and less serious about events sometimes magical things happen ! I didn’t have any pressure on my shoulders, I just wanted to do two solid efforts and make myself proud.

2023

I’ll be back I hope and this time with all my kids and juniors from the camps and the academy – I look forward to racing the Critérium du Vieux Moulin !