Tour de Murrieta Stage Race

Congratulations to Greg Fenton for winning the 55+ division of the Tour de Murrieta Stage Race.  Here is Greg’s report.
This year’s Tour de Murrieta was a hot one!  Of course the Master’s Men events were in the heat of the day.
Day One - Time Trials: The 55+ team managed to place 1st, 4th, and 5th (Greg, Kal, and Tony respectively).  The team all had good times.  Tony’s training and hard work are paying off, nice job Tony.
Day Two - Crit/Grand-prix: The 45’s raced with the 55’s, which made for a fast paced race.  Kal and I were representing UCC.  Heat was a factor; it took a lot of wind out of my sails.  Kal took some good pulls for me, which helped to keep me going.  This is always a sketchy race and we both managed to keep the rubber side down and our skin intact.  This is what success looks like at Murrieta.  Kal finished 5th and I managed to place 3rd despite overheating and begging for the last lap bell a half hour into the race.
Day Three - Circuit: I needed to keep a watch out for and beat one racer by at least one position to win the GC.  Once again we were racing with the 45+ group and with the high speeds, frequent attacks, and narrow roads, this is a real erratic race!  The race started off fast with lots of attacks.  Kal was holding his own and doing a good job supporting me by taking some good pulls.  Kal’s in good form.  It came down to a finish line sprint and with such a short finish I made my move before the last turn, which ended up being the right strategy as I was able to get to the front, win the race, and clinch the GC.  Kal rode strong all three days and took 4th, overall.
The weekend was a success not only for the race results (UCC/JW Flooring on top of the podium) but we also left with all of our skin and “parts” intact!
I’m looking forward to seeing you all this Sunday at the “Bike for Mike.”
-Greg