In a packed, high speed finish May 13, city regional planning and civil engineering grad student Colin Patterson placed fourth at the 2019 USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships in Augusta, Ga.
“I’m super happy to finish off my last collegiate season with this,” Patterson said. “Overall it’s a great way to end a career at Cal Poly.”
Patterson said that the 75 mile course was cut short to 60 miles due to weather and timing complications. He was the only athlete on Cal Poly Cycling to qualify for the championships.
“It’s definitely harder as an individual when you don’t have teammates with you,” Patterson said.
After his arrival in Georgia, Patterson discovered his tires were damaged on the plane. His teammate, city and regional planning sophomore Dustin Stiffler, travelled with him to Georgia and helped him fix the problem before the race.
Patterson started cycling four years ago when he joined Cal Poly Cycling. Since then, he has competed across the country. As a post collegiate athlete, he said that he hopes to do more “adventure rides” next year.
“I love being able to be outside and explore everything a little slower,” Patterson said. “You get to be in nature but it still has the rush of going fast, making yourself suffer and pushing through it.”
Patterson said that his favorite aspect of road racing is the rush and excitement.
“It’s something about the adrenaline you feel when you’re racing through a field with lots of people around you,” Patterson said.