Something I have learned from this past weekend is that oftentimes, everything that can go wrong will go wrong, when it rains it pours, etc. Pretty much every cliche you can think of I have heard at this point. I woke up Sunday morning feeling battle weary and mentally drained from two days of racing in the rain. We got to the Crit course and walked it, noting the bricks in almost every single one of the eight turns on the course. As the morning started every single race leading up to mine had a crash, especially since the course was still drying out from the rain the night before.
As we started to line up there was a woman who I had noted in the races earlier this weekend as not being completely comfortable in the pack, a point that was further proved as she caused a wreck at the start line while people were lining up. Unfortunately this would not be the last crash she was involved in.
As the race started I was feeling pretty comfortable, staying in the pack easily, though without the hills to separate things out it was a much sketchier pack than I had seen all weekend with people grabbing brakes in almost every single turn. With about eight laps to go that same woman grabbed a fistful of brakes, her back wheel sliding out as she went down. I was able to dodge her but ended up going up a curb into a thorn bush on the sidewalk (I am still digging thorns out of my arms and legs). As Sarah (Lindenwood) said, she glanced over her shoulder and just saw the bushes moving, never a good sign. Rushing to try and get back to the wheel pit I made it as the pack came around for their 7th lap to go, the end of the free laps. Attempting to chase back on for the second time this weekend I went for about two more laps before my back tire went flat. End of race. Taking stock of my bike afterward showed a bent rear derailleur as well as frayed shifting cables. Unable to fully repair it we were able to get it to the point that I could shift between two gears in my big ring, it was going to be a rough second race.
IScorp was once again heavily represented in the Pro/1/2/3 race but I had my marching orders to sit in and not do work. Although I followed this rather carefully I still found myself constantly battling to stay towards the front whenever the pace slowed and the pack widened, expending more energy than I would have liked. About 15 laps in, back tire goes flat again (and yes we finally did find the minuscule tear in the tire... not sure when it happened though) but finally I got a free lap and was back in the pack without any chasing. With two laps to go though, a lady attempted a flyer off the front into a turn and somehow managed to take herself out by clipping a pedal. The pack split around her and I managed to dodge her bike as it slid towards me but at this point I shut down. Already exhausted and in the red I punched a one-way ticket to being mentally done. I rolled in with the back of the pack, just glad that I had made it through the weekend in one piece.
Looking back at the entire weekend I learned a lot of lessons, especially working on my patience and movements within the pack. It was some of the toughest racing I have done and provided some valuable lessons about racing with the elite level riders as well as some personal victories. My results were not what I had hoped, especially in the 2/3 races, but I also cannot discount my win on Saturday and I know it is still early in the summer racing season.
Next weekend is the Glencoe Grand Prix, where I will be racing with teammates which will be a nice change of pace. The following weekend I am hoping to head out for Tulsa Tough before submitting a Category 2 upgrade. My goals for the rest of the summer are really just to try some of the bigger regional races and keep getting the experience as well as the training that comes with getting beaten into a pulp by some pretty awesome women.
No comments:
Post a Comment