Jacquie Phelan,
Cat's Hill Criterium Women's Winner - 1981

I won the 1981 Cat's Hill.

The announcer had pointed out all the women in green outfits (BBC, sponsored by specialized imports) saying "your winner will be one of these ladies".

It was my first USCF crit. My then -boyfriend Gary Fisher had just taught me how to do a trackstand at a light a half hour before the race started. I was on a 23 " Peugeout (2 inches too tall for my 5-9 bod), wearing an orange and white Emily K jersey I'd won in a road race earlier in the year.

1981 was my first year of racing and Cats Hill probably was my first non-collegiate race. I had no jersies other than this one, and I thought it needed a little help. It was white on top, and had a horizontal band of lace I tacked where the orange began. Tres chic. Also, I wore a hard shell Bell
Biker, at a time when these life-saving buckets were very much scorned, and USCF hadn't had to deal with litigation yet (3 years more til the Barb Buchan case which obliged all racer to wear a z-90 standard hardshell)...

I think the vets started with us, it was the first time I'd heard names like Fred Fisk, Bob Tezlaff (he might have been the announcer?) etc/ Anyhow, I was a hill-hoppin fool, and I even survived the rotten patched concrete, and a very loose headset to win by at least a half minute over the
greenies.


Jacquie Phelan,
Aka Alice B. Toeclips