Real and Spectacular

If you've ever raced, whether it be organized or just out on the street with some buddies, you quickly realize how important and how valuable it can be to have some teammates around you. In a pack they can provide some shelter by blocking wind, they can shepard you to the line with a great lead-out, or they can simply instill some confidence by cheering you on or calming you down.

So when you see someone on the [start] line with a non-descript jersey or that lone team jersey in a large group partitioned by similar colors and markings, its not hard to find some measure of respect for that person. Now when you see that lone individual actually spring forth from that pack and win, well, then you know you've got something special.

Such is the current plight of our friend, Liz Hatch (Vanderkitten). She's a season away from leading Team Vanderkitten on the road, but that hasn't stopped her from showing the women's domestic circuit what a lone Vanderkitten can do [taking to heart the grassroots clothing company's motto; for women "who kick ass!"], and what they might need to worry about in the future.

In the past two weeks, Liz has lined up for the Lafayette and Albany Criteriums. In the women's Cat 1/2/3 races, she finished 7th and 1st, respectively. And according to Liz, she seems to be "finally getting the hang of this crit thing."

At the Lafayette Criterium, Liz stated that she "left my sprint for too late and there was no way I could pass the girls who were ahead of me."

Liz [second wheel] Tracking A Move

But at Albany, she was able to rectify that mistake and "attacked with 2 corners left and won by about 4 bike lengths!"

Another Victory Salute

The folks from Vanderkitten have recently set her up with her own blog, so now you can follow along with Liz's musings during her racing season and beyond. But, we'll be sure to have updates and reports for our readers of our favorite Vanderkitten.

Oh, and Liz's reaction to the Vinokourov news yesterday...an excerpt from her blog:

"I'm gutted.

I'm insulted, hurt and fucking irate.

Cycling is life to me and I treat it with respect. Hours of training, living healthy and sacrifice and nothing more. No pills, no shots, no transfusions. Nothing that would soil my accomplishments or steal from a competitor.

Apparently some have lost sight of the reason cycling is such a beautiful sport.

Apparently nothing matters besides the almighty dollar..."

Yup, she's real and she's spectacular.