Grant's Tomb Criterium Race Guide

We have raced it. We have directed it. And we have written about it oh so many times. After all that, we’re pretty sure that this weekend’s Grant’s Tomb Criterium is one of the best races that New York City has to offer.

The 2022 version is going to be a bit different from, well every other edition of the race. Because instead of 30 degree weather in early March, the new July date is going to give us… a high of almost 100 degrees with humidity of nearly 50%. So it is going to be a hot and likely difficult day of racing, but it should also be one of the most memorable race days of the year.

So before Saturday rolls around, we did an in-depth recon of the course. Continue on for our full thoughts on the current course conditions - including a new look for corner three due to building construction - as well as some quick thoughts from the CRCA Open Racing director ahead of race day.

Grant’s Tomb Crit: The Backdrop

Before getting into the course layout and our recommendations on race strategy, we checked in with CRCA Director of Open Racing Alex Klafehn on final race preparations. He highlighted a few challenges heading into race weekend - we’ll touch on some of these in more detail in a post-race State of the Sport analysis on the event:

New York is facing a shortage of USAC officials

The officials shortage is more critical than ever. Part of the challenge is that official USAC guidelines would only require us to pay them $150 for what is 12 hours of work at a race like Grant’s Tomb, which is less than minimum wage (in NYC). Given this, organizers have an obligation to go above and beyond what USAC requires — many do already, but that low wage is directly responsible for officials not signing up to work an event like Grant’s Tomb in the first place because it's simply not worth it anymore for them.

Registration is healthy, but below Pre-COVID Levels

Apart from the new racer clinics, CRCA’s various Open Races have yet to surpass pre-COVID registrations for any of our events (see past State of the Sport analysis). CRCA is currently marginally in the black on profit/loss so we're not in significant danger, but we are definitely going to need to do a season retrospective to see what's not working and where we can take CRCA Open Racing so that 2023 is much more of a success.†

†This is all ahead of Fort George Hill Climb on 10/23 — stay tuned

Grant's Tomb Crit: the Course

Jokes about its shape aside, Grant's Tomb is a relatively straightforward 0.9 mile five corner course with modest elevation changes. But it's also a course that has become more technical over the years due to road alterations. Combined with the short 122nd Street climb, it is a venue that can quickly sap your energy if the racing is aggressive. Field sprints may be the most common outcome at Grant’s Tomb, but breaks do succeed when the right combination of riders get off the front and work together.

Also, for the course map below, keep in mind that (1) both staging and the race start take place on the Northbound side of Riverside Drive and West 122nd at the top of the climb and (2) the finish line often moves slightly North/South on Riverside Drive from year to year.

Corner 1: Riverside and 120th Street (Left Turn)

Outside of race day, Riverside and 120th Street is a wide open left hander. But on race day the corner has to be narrowed significantly with barricades in order to maintain vehicle access to the garage underneath the Riverside Church (the garage entrance is on the North side of 120th between Riverside Drive and Claremont).

So don’t be caught off-guard when this is a tighter corner than you might expect. However since the corner follows the long uphill finish straightaway the field is rarely at top speed. In addition there is plenty of room to maneuver on Riverside Drive going into the corner. So overall this has been a safe corner in recent years. If anything, the tighter barrier layout only helps to string out the field which ultimately makes for safer racing (compared to say a wide open course like the Harlem Criterium).

For race strategy keep in mind that if the field comes into corner 1 strung out, there is not much room to pass or make up ground through the more technical South end of the course. This is especially important in the final laps of the races - unless you trust yourself to make up a bunch of ground on Riverside, you’ll want to be well positioned through corner 1.

One final note on corner 1 - we’re not sure exactly where the barricades will be on race day, but there is an exposed lip on a manhole cover approaching the exit of the corner, and then two concrete ‘bumps’ after the corner exit to be aware of. They shouldn’t cause any major trouble, but something to be aware of.

Corner 2: 120th Street and Claremont (Left Turn)

Corner two is a straightforward left-hand affair, but due to the construction in corner 3, this could wind up being the tightest corner on the course due to narrowing of the race surface onto Claremont Avenue. Watch for is the manhole cover on the inside line and another in the middle of the cross walk, but with no precipitation in the early weather forecast, neither of these should cause any trouble. This will probably be a full-speed turn and it seems like there won’t be much room to pass on Claremont so pace through this corner will benefit those on the front (or in a breakaway).

Corner 3: Claremont and 122nd Street (Left Turn)

Corner three is the most interesting and important on the course. The field typically picks up momentum on the downhill straight on Claremont Avenue making it the fastest of the four 90-degree turns on the course. And since the turn drops racers right onto the climb up 122nd Street, riders on the front of the pack with clean lines have the benefit of the best momentum to roll over the top of the climb.

Importantly, construction leading into the corner on the East side of Claremont Avenue means the racing lane has been narrowed by half. Whereas larger fields could pretty easily take corner three two or three riders wide in prior years, this year will be much tighter racing - meaning if you have a good line and can take the corner at speed you will benefit even more than usual as you’ll be able to float over the hill with a few pedal strokes as anyone who brakes into the corner likely bogs down.

Corner three also features a few road grates and manhole covers on the preferred inside lines seen in the picture below. It's worth keeping these in mind, but in dry conditions these are generally fine to roll over, just be aware of the divots they create.

Corner 4: 122nd Street and Riverside (Right Turn)

Corner four is unique in that it's the only right-hander on the course but it's also a very simple affair. Riders on the front with clean lines will be able to float over the 122nd St climb with enough momentum to carry a bit of speed through this wide open turn. In comparison riders in the back may need to pedal through it to close gaps that opened on the climb. The ensuing flat on Riverside Drive North rapidly gives way to a wide downhill grade. This presents a good opportunity to chase back on, particularly if the leaders pull off the gas.

Note that neutral service is usually located on the outside edge of corner four, which is also the start line for the race - keep this in mind as call-ups will typically start before the prior race concludes as there are just a handful of minutes between each race.

Corner 5: The Riverside U-Turn (Left Turn)

The final corner on the course is definitely the fastest - a sweeping 180-degree left-hander that comes at the end of the long-straight and gradual descent on Riverside Drive North. While there was a lot of debris in the roadway during our recon, this corner should be swept and very smooth on race day.

There is plenty of room to maneuver on the straight going into the corner and this corner is not technical enough to be a deciding factor in the race - it's one of those course features where 'the race cannot be won in this corner but it can most definitely be lost with a crash.'

So keep it safe through this turn - for everyone's sake. The best advice is to make sure the field stays sufficiently strung out going into and coming out of the 180. Bunching into a fast hairpin is where things get hairy, not only costing you positioning but also potentially ruining everyone's race with a crash.

Finishing Straight (Riverside Drive Southbound)

The finishing straight for the Grant's Tomb Crit is a long, gradual uphill. In recent editions the finishing line has been ~400 meters from the exit of corner 5, presenting plenty of opportunity for riders to launch too early and run out of steam, further underscoring why corner 5 rarely dictates the outcome of the race. This is especially true given how wide Riverside Drive is through this stretch - though the useable width of the road can vary depending on whether all of the parked cars were moved overnight. In recent years the outside of the roadway hasn’t been clear, meaning one racing lane is lost to parking.

The good news is that Riverside Drive Southbound has been repaved recently so the finishing straight roadway is in its best condition in many years. The left side of the road usually has some debris in it after parked cars have been removed, but otherwise this is the smoothest stretch of pavement on the entire course.

One last note - the wind direction can play a significant role in the sprint as well. While the new summer date changes the potential weather impact, recent years have featured wind from just about every possible direction. So it's definitely worth keeping a sense for the wind direction on race day and adjusting your sprint point accordingly.

Good luck racers!