Going fast & having fun

Written by Lindsay Blount

After hearing a lot of stories about the Copperopolis RR, aka “Paris-Roubaix Hell of Northern California” it was on my bucket list.  I made a last-minute decision to race the 2025 44th addition.  The racecourse is a 22-mile loop (we did two laps) with 1500ft of climbing per lap with long stretches of super bumpy tarmac…nothing comparable in Santa Barbara.  The climbing is mostly front loaded with the main descent, nicknamed the “widow maker” ending about 1 k from the finish.  The lower 1/2 of the descent had been recently repaved resulting in a lovely smooth surface, whereas the upper half still had the super bumpy surface with an extended stretch of 8% downhill…yikes!

 The road surface begging for 40 mm low PSI tires started almost immediately after the start.  I rode in the mid-pack for the first few k frequently checking my H20 bottles concerned one of might be jettisoned. Also, thinking to myself at the time…was the previous evening’s 5 1/2 drive worth it and was the whole course going to be like this?  It turned out the longest super rough section was at the beginning and there were long intermediate rough stretches later comparable to E. Camino Cielo.  intermingled with more short sections of the super bumpy surface.  At the start of the main climb, I moved up to the front where it was a lot easier to navigate the road surface, I then attacked on a steeper section about 1/2 way up the climb hoping to create a small break, and Steve Clifton, (2nd at 2024 Masters Nationals RR) was able to follow my wheel.   We were off the front for the remainder of the race in a two-man break sharing the work well, and able to achieve a sizable gap on the field.  I followed Steve the first time down the main descent and was able to stay with him avoiding the “death grip” on the super bumpy upper part.  I was amazed how fast we were able to descend it aided by the laws of physics, and what a contrast it was when we reached the lower 1/2 recently re-paved smooth section which was like skiing fresh powder.  At the beginning of the second lap, I noticed my rear brake lever was getting mushy and approaching close to the bar but was still at least partially functional.  By the start of the second lap, I had become way more comfortable and confident racing at a higher speed on the rough road surface.  I am sure it helped to have 30 mm tubeless tires at 45 PSI front and 50 PSI rear.  Steve and I continued to work well together on the 2nd lap, and there was no site of any chase group even along the long flat sections on the plateau.  The finish was at the top of about a 300 meter long 2-3% gradient rise which started at about 1 k from the bottom of the final descent.   My hope was I might have a reasonable chance to outsprint Steve for the win with the slightly uphill finish. 

 At the top of the final main descent, I noticed my rear brake lever was now bottoming out on the bar with little perceptible braking power.   I started the upper super bumpy section trying to stay with Steve, the front brake fully functional, but then it felt like I had lost all my rear brake function on the steepest part of the descent, and sheer terror/fear of crashing set in and I slowed way down carefully modulating speed with my front brake.  A big gap had opened by the time I reached the smooth tarmac.  I was able to close the gap some in the final k but ended up in second behind Steve.   Despite my rear brake issues the race was a lot of fun and an awesome workout!

 My final verdict on Copperopolis is that this is a truly epic and iconic race.  The scenery up the main climb, the 8 mile mostly flat section on the plateau around the Salt Springs Reservoir, and basically the entire course is beautiful.  This is a very sparsely populated area in the foothills east of Stockton, and we did not encounter a single car on the road during the entire race!  This is a challenging race that also tests bike handling skills with the terrain…a mini “Spring Classic” for amateur cyclists. 

Carl Parker was the other 805 Team participant who had an awesome result at his racing age of 49 years getting 2nd on the podium in the 35+ Cat 123.  His race was 4 laps, 84 miles with > 6000ft of climbing…a proper classic road race!   Congrats Carl!

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/2162173?lang=en