Andrew Pinfold Talks Crits

Andrew Pinfold of UnitedHealthcare p/b Maxxis is leading his team at this week’s Southeast Criterium Series. So far, Pinfold has captured two podium finishes with a second place at Sunday’s Roswell Criterium and a third place at Tuesday’s Beaufort Memorial Classic. In Wednesday night’s Downtown Walterboro Criterium, Pinfold was sixth.

Pinfold answered a few questions about the week so far:

So far you’ve got two podiums in this week of racing. How does this feel?
It is always nice to finish on the podium. I’m happy with my form at the moment but hopefully I’ll knock off a win here.
Tell us a bit about your team dynamics/strategy during these races? Do you have any “race rules” you follow?
Well, bike racing is pretty simple down here. Always have representation in the moves and don’t take a rider up the road that is clearly a faster finisher.
How do you like these night races? Is there a different approach to night racing compared to racing in the afternoon?
I honestly can say I would prefer to race during the day but can understand that a night race makes more sense in terms of attracting crowds. We start each night between 7:30 and 9 and each race lasts almost two hours. This means we are eating dinner at around 11 or later and not falling asleep until 1 or 2. It definitely gets tiring after 10 days. Being on west coast time helps a bit. Fortunately we’ve got a great group of staff here that handle all the extra details. Last year we did this series unsupported and it was way more taxing.
You’ve been racing at a pro level for a long-time, are you still learning lessons from each race?
Most definitely. Probably the most important lessons I’m learning right now are about my teammates. We are new group and really learning each others strengths and weaknesses.

The Southeast Criterium Series continues with two more races, on May 1st racers compete in Dilworth Criterium, Charlotte, N.C. and the week of racing ends with the Global BMW Sandy Springs Criterium on May 2nd.