Kelly Paterson 14th Place

What perfect weather. Waking up to 50 degrees for an Iceman bike race just doesn't seem right for some reason. It was about 62 and sunny for the start of the Pro/Elite race in the afternoon. The large field of 70 men took off and started to hammer down the paved road. The women moved forward and were preparing to start when we saw a huge pile up in the middle of the road about 200-300 meters from the start. It was just far enough away where I couldn't see colors or identify people.

I heard a tire blow but wasn't sure if it was the cause or the effect. The pile up was so big it took almost a minute and a half for the bodies and bikes to get moving again. There didn't seem to be any serious casualties other than one man carrying a bike off the side of the road. Robert Herriman got caught behind the pile up, took a chain ring in the ribs and banged up his knuckles and ankle. He was in the very back and clawed his way passed 40 guys by the finish. The women's start was pretty mellow after what we all just witnessed (ED: Kelly was at the front and missed the first pileup!). I stayed in the front until we got into the woods and then the pros put on a little speed. The field split in two and just kept splitting up from there. I wasn't really racing anyone else, just the clock, so I let women just ride away from me without even trying to hang on to them. I realized later when the wind picked up that I would have been better off with them, but by then it was too late. Ride and learn.

Ride and learn.