Race Report: 2025 Winchester Circuit Race - Men’s P123

Race: 2025 Winchester Circuit Race - Men’s P123

Date: 5/10/25

AVRT racers: Cameron O’Reilly, Greg McCullough, Wil Gibb

Top Result: Cameron 4/29

Course: 6 laps of a 4.5 mile rolling circuit. One long, super fast descent. One longer climb that leads to the finish that is split into two pitches with sections over 15%. Super fun course with excellent pavement throughout and no need to touch the brakes for any corners. 

Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/14440585208

Nutrition: One bottle of mix (80g carbs) and one bottle of water (mostly sprayed on myself)

Race Recap (written by Cameron): 

Winchester is a great race. While most NorCal races are run on open roads with horrible pavement, this is a rare opportunity to race on a closed course with well paved roads. Outside of the main descent and climb, the course is continuously rolling, which makes it very hard to roll turns in a break or in a chase. Heat also plays a role in deciding how races play out, as 90+ degree weather and sun wear people down.

This was the second race of the day for Wil and Greg and the only race of the day for me. The plan was to put me in position to attack and get into a break during the rolling part of the course in lap 2 or 3. Attacks went almost as soon as we finished the neutral rollout, and both Wil and Greg did an excellent job of covering things and making sure AV was represented in all moves. As we made our way around the course to the main descent, the attacks subsided and everyone started saving their legs for the climb.

When we got to the climb, we hit it hard. Coureur Monterey Bay had three riders in the field and paced it hard from the start. I positioned myself well going into it and was able to stay in the top 3-5 wheels. As we crested the climb, I looked back and saw we had already dropped most of the field! Our group of five riders included two Coureur Monterey Bay riders, one of whom immediately went to the front and rode hard to extend the gap. With the field behind both tired from the climb and all major teams (Coureur, AV, Mike’s Bikes, Dolce Vita) represented in the break, we quickly established a ~20 second lead.

The next few laps I and the riders from Mike’s and Dolce mostly sat on. People attacked the climb each time hoping to drop someone, but we stuck together. The second to last time up the Mike’s rider attacked and dropped one of the Coureur riders, making us a group of four. While this removed their numbers advantage, dropping one Coureur rider meant the rest of us would need to work if we wanted to keep him behind. So we rolled turns through the rolling section.

When we got to the final climb, the Mike’s rider attacked from the bottom. By this point the cumulative fatigue and heat had set in and I didn’t have the snap needed to respond, so I paced it the rest of the way and finished fourth. Happy with a podium finish but still working for more. Huge props to Wil for sticking it out and finishing with the main pack in his first P123 race and second race of the day!