Race report by Jonathan Reuning
After the chaos race in Frankfurt and a five-week break from racing in the German Cycling Cup, the third race of the series finally took place on Sunday. The weather was at its best on this day in south-east Thuringia at the Schleizer triangle. With a pleasant 20 degrees Celsius and a bright blue sky, you didn't have to freeze on the motor racing track during the starting grid as usual. With Manuela Freund on the long distance (133 km) and Jonathan Reuning on the short distance (88 km), the team tactics of the small delegation were clear from the start: defensive driving.
The long distance started at 9 a.m., followed 15 minutes later by the short distance. The chain was driven on the right right from the start. Unfortunately, after about ten kilometers there was a mass crash on the long distance in a small, wet, sloping road. Luckily Manuela wasn't involved in the fall.
Both on the long and on the short distance, the peloton was quickly decimated by the wavy profile. On the short distance, the first attack came right after the start, and a leading group of five was able to break away from the field. The field was controlled most of the time by the larger teams as they each had one rider in the leading group. The chance of catching up again became more and more improbable from kilometer to kilometer. About halfway through the race things got a lot hectic and many drivers were getting very nervous about the speed increases. Manuela lost track of her group, so she thought she was second all the time, even though she had no competition in front of her.
On the short distance, the chasing field consisted of just 15 riders with 25 kilometers to go. Due to my tactical restraint and the resulting fresh legs, I had decided to attack at kilometer 83 of 88 on the last long climb. But suddenly, with seven kilometers to go, my plan was thwarted. Right in front of me on the climb, five riders were flat on their faces. Then everything happened very quickly: I was also wedged between the other drivers on the road – my body full of adrenaline. I instinctively jumped back on the bike and tried to close the gap that had opened up. During the race to catch up, I was able to check the bike and found that the brake levers were bent and the handlebars were no longer pointing in the usual direction. As a result, my shifter stopped working and I was stuck in the lowest gear. Even resetting the DI2 ten times didn't promise any improvement. On the climb I was able to catch up with the group again, but I was aware that I had nothing to report on the last few kilometers. With the lowest gear and a cadence of 176, I rushed towards the finish line and tried to limit the damage.
In the final sprint, Manuela was beaten very narrowly. She took second place in the women's daily standings and was able to defend the yellow jersey in the overall standings. For me there was only a 2th place in the daily ranking.
The race is an all-round successful event due to the numerous steep climbs, the fantastic landscape and the good organization. Even if I was initially disappointed by the fall and the missed opportunity, looking back I'm very happy that I didn't suffer any serious injuries.
The fourth race in the cup will take place next Sunday. At "Rund um Köln" the large delegation is at the start again, true to the motto: chain right and attack!
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