Grant's Tomb Crit, one of NYC's most iconic races, is this Saturday (June 27th). To get you fully prepared we have put together a complete guide of everything you'll need to know to get the most out of the day.

Steeped in history, Grant's Tomb is an incredible race for all audiences - from complete beginners all the way through to seasoned veterans, due to it's unique blend of short punchy climbs, sharp corners and a beautiful sweeping 180 degree turn to round things off. The weekend promises fast pace races for everyone that comes along, so make sure you sign up sooner rather than later to avoid missing out! If for any reason you're on the fence, then hopefully we have the answers you're looking for below, and if we don't, then reach out to us (perhaps via Instagram) and we'll be happy to help!

Let's get some basic points out the way first:

Q: I've never raced before, can I start with this?

A: YES! Grant's Tomb has novice Cat 5 fields that are open to everyone. If this is your first race, then have a thorough read of the course preview and if possible head over to the course in the days coming up, to practice some of the corners (whilst of course being fully aware of the traffic).

Q: Can I enter more than one race?

A: YES! You can enter any race you qualify for, e.g. a Cat 3 rider may choose to ride the Cat 3/4 field in the morning to compete for a result, and then the Cat 2/3 (or even the Pro/1/2/3 field!) later in the day, to see how they fare against stiffer competition.

Q: If I don't race then can I still come along

A: YES! The layout of this course makes it perfect for spectators, who can keep tabs on how the race is doing all the way around - the more people watching and cheering the better.

Q: Where is the race?

Grants Tomb, northern Manhattan on riverside drive (W 122nd St &, Riverside Dr, New York, NY 10027).

Q: Why is it called Grants Tomb Crit?

A: It’s named after the nearby memorial, which, according to the fountain of knowledge (Wikipedia), is officially called the General Grant National Memorial, and is the final resting place of Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the United States, and of his wife Julia. It is a classical domed mausoleum in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The Crit race forms a rough circle around the memorial, with plenty of green space in the middle for spectators to see every angle.

Photos from Grant’s Tomb 2025 by David

The Weather Forecast

At the moment, it is looking pretty wet, but that's fine, if anything it's a blessing. In previous editions of the race it has been unbearably hot which adds in a heap of extra things to concentrate on, such as hydration and heat management. With rain you just need to accept that you'll be getting wet, be careful in the corners and make sure you bring a change of clothes for after your race has ended. Don’t let the rain scare you off!

The Course

Grant's Tomb is a simple course on paper, a 0.9 mile loop with 5 corners in total, and a climbs at two different points. However, the positioning of these climbs mean that being able to stay smooth through the corners is crucial to not blowing up half way through the race. Breaks do succeed on the course, and may have an extra advantage if its wet on Saturday, but field sprints are the more common outcome at the Grant’s Tomb Crit.

Course tips & tricks

The start/finish line is at the highest point of the course at the southern end of the main memorial. Note you will stage roughly half way round the course and ride to this point having already started, however to keep things simple we’ll begin the walk through just past the finish line.

Turn 1 comes quickly once you're through the line, it is a large sweeping left hander which takes you off Riverside drive and onto 120th st. The exit of the corner is slightly downhill and the way you cut across two full lanes of road, means this corner can be taken as fast as you like. The field will have just been up the main finish line drag and will therefore be relatively strung out if the pace is high at the front (or bunched up if the pace stalls on the finish straight). This corner is one of the last places that you can make up places before you get into the tighter more technical corners, making this a key strategic point for moving up or conserving energy.

The start of corner 2 comes after 1 block on 120th as a left hander on to Claremont st. In reality these two quite often end up blending and you'll keep at least a little bit of bank on through the pair. You move from a wide open road to a relatively narrower one, which can make the corner somewhat tighter than you might expect. The critical thing here is to make sure that you don't scrub speed and let people past as being set up well for the corner afterwards crucial

Corner 3 is perhaps the most important corners on the whole course. We move down in width again from a relatively narrow road, to a legitimately narrow one on 122th, with a climb starting through the apex. If this corner is taken well and at good speed coming off Claremont, then you can almost coast up to the top. However, if you do not carry speed or hit you’re breaks exiting the corner then then you'll be burning up a lot of energy grinding your way to the top. You'll be going fast on Claremont heading into this turn so make sure you remember to change down gears while you're still pedalling to set yourself up for the climb. Note that the inside line for this turn is the fast preferred line. We simply had to avoid it during our preview ride due to the streets being open for vehicular traffic.

The 4th corner is a nothingburger of a corner. It attempts to stick out and be interesting, as it's the only right hander on the course, but apart from that there is nothing to write home about. The field will be slower due to the climb on 122nd and there is ample room to get around without being technical at all. It does, however, spit you out onto the descent on Riverside, which is where we have the highest speed section of the race. The road is wide, open, and fast, this is a perfect opportunity to either chase back onto the wheels if a gap has opened up, or make up some places if people take the pressure off and coast down the hill.

At the end of the descent you are presented with the majesty of corner 5, the most fun corner in New York City. Corner 5 is a sweeping 180 which is nicely cambered to be able to absolutely rail at speed. Some caveats, as fun as this corner is, it is very fast and has a curb which cuts in deceptively sharply on the outside (which has been the result of some nasty crashes in previous years), so please please please keep it safe. Given the option, we like taking the inside line through this corner as any touch of wheels will likely push riders to the outside.

Finally you are then presented with the finishing straight, it is normally around 400m from the exit of the final corner to the line, and is a gradual uphill the whole way. For regular race laps this is normally where a break will attempt to form, or the pace will be pushed, so make sure you keep your wits about you and stay in tune with what is happening. In terms of the finish, the length of this straight makes it oh so easy to launch your sprint too early and get swarmed as you get to the line so be patient. Use the first half to observe what's going on, get your position right and get into the gear you need so that as soon as you need to dump out every last watt you can muster you are in the place to do so, lick the stamp and send it to the finish!