A decent sized junior field
Jordan was well marked by the 2 Michigan juniors
The juniors got lucky, and the rain let up for their race in the Cloquet Critierium. All the juniors were racing together again, but this time, they also finished together. I figured this would be good for Jordan, since he could key off the older juniors for the finishing sprint, and wouldn't get stuck on the front. Jordan did take shelter during most of the race, but the 2 Michigan younger juniors stayed glued to his wheel most of the race.
I was on pins and needles for the last couple laps. Jordan had excellent position up near the front, as the pace amped up at the bell. When they came into the finishing straight, I was surprised to see it was Jordan and Kohli duking it out for the win, ahead of the older juniors. Jordan gave it his best effort, and finished another close 2nd.
To say Jordan was disappointed this weekend is an understatement. However, he also grew a lot as a racer. He said he was much more proud of his 2nd places at Duluth, than any of this solo first place efforts. It helped him learn that the strongest rider doesn't always win, and race tactics play a big role when riders are relatively equally matched. I am extremely proud of how he responded to the challenge, and accepted the final result.
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