The 2023 USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships saw student-athletes representing 36 states and 57 schools descend upon Albuquerque May 5-7, 2023. The group contested for titles in 14 events across three venues around the city in those three days.
On Friday, teams of three or four riders would toe the start line to compete in the team time trial. The teams would compete on a technical 18.7-mile course with multiple turns and climbs, battling a substantial amount of wind while on the course. The Club Women were the first group to take on the challenging race. The University of Virginia set the time standard for the group, stopping the clock at 44:20.4. The US Air Force Academy and Stanford University were close behind. For the Varsity Women, Fort Lewis College was the team to beat with a time of 41:15.0. Colorado Mesa University and Milligan University placed second and third, respectively.
Defending champions in the Club Men, the University of Colorado – Boulder took home the title for a fourth time. The team for Boulder beat out their northern neighbors, Colorado State University, by just nine seconds. The Milligan University men’s squad took the top step of the podium in the Varsity Men, with their time of 35:31.8, the fastest time of the day. Marian University and Colorado Mesa University took the second and third steps of the podium, respectively.
The day concluded with solo riders taking on a 14-mile time trial course. The winds had intensified since the morning’s team events, making for a challenging ride. Cecily Decker (Bozeman, Mont.; Montana State University) earned the stars-and-stripes for the Women, with her time of 32:31.3. Kathryn Aman (Hanover, N.H; University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill) earned the silver, and Isabella Rich (Scottsdale, Ariz.; Colorado Mesa University) rounded out the top-three for the women.
Jonas Walton (Martinez, Ga.; Belmont Abbey College) earned the gold in the men’s division, stopping the clock at 27:54.0. William Seitz (Birmingham, Ala.; Milligan University) was on the second step of the men’s podium, and Dusan Kalaba (Witchita Falls, Texas; Midwestern State University) earned bronze.
Road Races were Saturday’s event, and the racers would contest a course in the east mountains of Albuquerque. All groups contested two laps of the 32.2-mile course, which featured a climb with a 13% grade, known to the locals as Heartbreak Hill. In each lap, participants would face almost 2,000 ft of elevation gain. The remainder of the course featured undulating hills, false flats, and tricky descent from Heartbreak Hill.
The first race on Saturday was the Club Women, where Decker would add another jersey to her collection, winning the event in under three hours. Aman would again place second to Decker, missing the win but just a few bike lengths. Aria Mundy (Boulder, Colo.; University of Colorado – Boulder) earned third. In the Varsity Women’s race, Megan Jastrab (Apple Valley, Calif.; Milligan University) successfully defended her title, pulling away from the group with 24 kilometers remaining and battling the headwind to finish. The pack tried to reel Jastrab back in and nearly accomplished their goal but ran out of road. Anna Christian (Boulder, Colo.; Savannah College of Art & Design – Atlanta) and Jette Aelken (GER; Savannah College of Art & Design – Savannah) burst out of the field in the final climb to the line and earned silver and bronze, respectively.
In the afternoon, the men had their chance to tackle the course. First was the Club Men, where Owen Cole (Chapel Hill, N.C.; University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill) and Tayne Andrade (Albuquerque, N.M.; Colorado State University) pulled away from the peloton in the second lap as part of a group of five. The two attacked on the final climb to the finish. Ultimately, Cole made it to the finish first, with Andrade close behind. Gavin Blair (Greenbelt, Md.; University of Maryland – College Park) rounded out the top three. Kellen Caldwell (Milford, Mich.; Fort Lewis College) soloed his way to victory in the Varsity Men with a move late in the race. Ian Anderson (San Antonio, Texas; Colorado Mesa University) placed second, and Patton Sims (Sterlington, La.; Belmont Abbey College) placed third.
Sunday’s event, the criterium, was all about the athletes' speed and cornering ability on the event's final day. The 1.1-mile six-corner course was at the Balloon Fiesta Park on the northwest side of Albuquerque. Women raced for 70 minutes, with the Club division starting at 9 a.m. and the Varsity division at 10:30 a.m. For the men, champions were decided after 80 minutes of racing, with the Club division taking place at 12:15 p.m., followed by the Varsity division. Each race had four points sprints throughout their duration.
Aman showed her all-around talent and won the close field sprint for the Club Women’s event, earning her first stars-and-stripes jersey of the event. Katherine Sarkisov (North Potomac, Md.; University of Maryland – College Park) and Sarah Duclos (Howell, Mich.; University of Michigan – Ann Arbor) were centimeters away from Aman and took second and third. Jastrab extended her dominance in the Varsity Women’s event, picking up top points in each of the four points sprints throughout the event. She then battled with Ava Hachmann (Durango, Colo.; Fort Lewis College) in the final laps to the line, coming out on top. Hachmann finished with the silver. Olivia Cummins (Fort Collins, Colo.; Colorado Mesa University) earned third, winning the field sprint.
The Club Men’s event was not to miss, as the teams from Colorado showed how teamwork works. For each of the four point sprints, riders from Colorado State University and the University of Colorado – Boulder would work to control the pack and set up their designated rider to take the top spot, with each sprint a battle to the line. Ultimately, Colorado State University rider Nicholas Carter (Minneapolis) took the top spot. Nikos Castro (Tucson, Ariz.; University of Arizona) earned second, and after taking three of four sprints, Andrade took third. In the final event of the championships, the Varsity Men showcased a battle royale. Bronze medalist in the Individual Time Trial, Kalaba, earned the top spot by pulling away from the field in the last half lap. Walton was in pursuit but couldn’t catch Kalaba and earned the silver. Lance Abshire (Baton Rouge, La.; Colorado Mesa University) earned third.
The Individual Omnium at Collegiate Road Nationals is calculated using a point system where the better the placing, the more points you receive, and four points sprints during the criterium. Athletes must do both the road race and the criterium to be included in the omnium standings.
- Kathryn Aman (Hanover, N.H; University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill) – 176 points
- Sarah Duclos (Howell, Mich.; University of Michigan – Ann Arbor) – 137 points
- Katherine Sarkisov (North Potomac, Md.; University of Maryland – College Park) – 134 points
- Megan Jastrab (Apple Valley, Calif.; Milligan University) - 188 points
- Olivia Cummins (Fort Collins, Colo.; Colorado Mesa University) - 137 points
- Anna Christian (Boulder, Colo.; Savanah College of Art & Design - Atlanta) - 135 points
- Tayne Andrade (Albuquerque, N.M.; Colorado State University) – 164 points
- Gavin Blair (Greenbelt, Md.; University of Maryland – College Park) – 100 points
- Cole Tamburri (Boulder, Colo.; University of Colorado – Boulder) – 100 points
- Dusan Kalaba (Witchita Falls, Texas; Midwestern State University) – 149 points
- Ian Anderson (San Antonio, Texas; Colorado Mesa University) – 141 points
- Jonas Walton (Martinez, Ga.; Belmont Abbey College) – 110 points
The team omnium is possibly the most sought-after award of the championship, with teams strategically placing riders to ensure the max points accrual in each event.
- Colorado State University – 376 points
- University of Colorado – Boulder – 356 points
- Stanford University – 339 points
- US Air Force Academy – 310 points
- Dartmouth College – 241 points
- US Naval Academy – 116 points
- Colorado Mesa University - 444 points
- Milligan University – 404 points
- Fort Lewis College – 390 points
It was a great weekend of racing for all of the schools. Next up on the Collegiate National Championship calendar is Track National Championships, September 7-9, 2023, at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center outside of Allentown, Pa.
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