After the Kenosha criteriums, the Super Criterium and this weekend’s Menomonee Park Criterium, we’ve hopefully all mastered the art of navigating flat courses with gentle corners. But what happens when the road pitches upward? We’ll find out Saturday at the Whitnall Park Criterium, a fun course in a scenic botanical garden near Milwaukee.

Each lap begins with a long descent with a sweeping right turn at the bottom. After enjoying the 1.1-mile course‘s only flat section, we turn right and head up three stairsteps that total 80 feet of climbing. (See photo.) At the top of the last step is the finish line, which will also be used to score King of the Hill contests, points being given to the top three finishers on three predetermined laps.

This is one of my favorite criterium courses, and it’s one that lends itself nicely to breaks, thanks to the difficulty of the climb and the potential to get out of sight.

Elsewhere, there’s a two-race event in Iowa City, Iowa, and Benga Sports returns with the Brown County Road Race in Nashville, Ind. The promoter down there seems to still be working out the kinks, and he has introduced a payout scheme that makes prizes wholly dependent on the number of entries, rather than an announced purse.

Saturday
Whitnall Park Criterium
USCF criterium
Hales Corner, Wis.
Distance from Chicago: 1.5 hours

Iowa City Road Race
USCF road race
Iowa City, Iowa
Distance from Chicago: 3.5 hours

Saturday
Old Capitol Criterium
USCF criterium
Iowa City, Iowa
Distance from Chicago: 3.5 hours

Brown County Road Race
USCF road race
Nashville, Ind.
Distance from Chicago: 4 hours