Sep 30, 2013 at 03:22 PM
Teaser
Gloucester
Sep 30, 2013 at 04:40 PM
Gloucester. The New England World Championships.
"It's an eleven out of ten on the awesomeness scale." Eloy
"Must do." Hotlist
"Epic" Some hipster
Gloucester itself is beautiful; like postcard beautiful. To put the most excitingest of the season's races there is almost too much awesome...
So here is the story; we drove up like a pack of bicycle-crazed brooklyn hillbillies with carseats, strollers, stuffed animals, CX bikes, spare wheels, and dreams of CX glory stuffed into the minivan trailing a cloud of Cheerio dust and an occasional gu packet behind us on I95.
We arrived at the "renting house" way past dark and made some whispered plans for an early morning depart as the kids snored upstairs.
The house was only 3 miles from the race course so come dawn we kitted up and after a brief consultation of the weather (yup, dry) picked our wheels and set off.
We prerode the course a couple of times and declared in hushed tones how good it was for us; lots and lots of power, wide turns where you'd need to carry a lot of speed but nowhere to rest and nothing savagely technical. Oh, and a hole shot/finishing line that is a 200m uphill paved drag.
I got a second row callup and Joaquin (who missed his callup?) slotted in behind me; the plan was for me to lead him out in the hole shot and again at the finish if it came down to it.
We all chuckled at the race official's instructions in her thick New England accent, "Listen AHp! I wannAH TAHHLK to you and give you some waAAAHnins..."
Whistle, clickclickclickclick... I was (amazingly) behind the slowest guy in the entire field and it took Joaquin blazing by me to galvanize me into action; I leapt on his wheel and we shot up to the front.
Soon I was ten or so spots back and the lead group was leaving without me... big sweeping left turn and the guy in front Joaquin went Porkins and poor Joaquin went right into him... I cut to the inside and it was daylight ahead of me to the lead group...
I opened the throttle wide and started bridging up to the lead group where I arrived huffing and puffing (but happy) before too long.
Right after the end of lap one I heard a SNAP! and realized my rear brake cable was no longer attached to the brake caliper. MERDE! I thought of that interview with Georgia Gould where she declares, "I don't need more brakes they just keep you from going fast..." and figured I'd make it a CX clinic on cornering.
Thus began my inevitable slide backwards. Joaquin made it up to and in front of me only to eat it again on a right hander where he just went straight into the tape; I'd made the exact same mistake in warmup so I felt for him... soon enough he was ahead of me again though, powering up and away.
There was a seriously fast descent with a sweeping left-right turn that I used to all it's potential each time - in part because with only a front brake there is only so much you can brake... it was pretty nerve wracking though.
I played it a little too cagey on the finishing uphill several times; my original plan was to draft if I could and so I did but at least twice Joaquin would come flying by and in retrospect it hurt me more to accelerate to catch onto his wheel than if I'd just pinned my power to the limit and recovered at the top.
I rode as smooth as I could; I came into the barriers coasting on the side of my bike and leaning on my saddle with my right forearm trying to keep the whole bike from bucking out from under me like a bee-stung bronco...
I crossed the line in Seventh; a little frustrated but delighted to crack the top ten.
Joaquin ruled the day with a third place just moments out of second place.
Joaquin ruled the day with a third place just moments out of second place.
We stuck around to watch the Elites - Canadian Mike stole the hole shot with a closed mouth display of force until he suddenly vanished from sight midway through the first lap; mechanical troubles again it sounded like.
Day two dawned and it was raining fog. Yeah. There was no rain, but the fog had saturated the trees so much that rain was falling from them.
We rode back to the course and after a single lap of scouting our bikes needed the full wash - thankfully the Pedro's station wasn't too crowded.
The second day course was amazingly different than the first; very technical; lots of twists & turns with only two major power sections at either end, and a sand pit thrown in for good measure.
The fast descent from yesterday with the left-right remained.
We lined up - this time with me on Joaquin's wheel (he was first in the staging area this time 
) and when the whistle went I just followed him up to the front. These 40 to 60 second hole shots really do me well because the pure sprinters start to fade hard around 30 seconds.
) and when the whistle went I just followed him up to the front. These 40 to 60 second hole shots really do me well because the pure sprinters start to fade hard around 30 seconds.The course took a huge sweeping right hand turn at the top of the hill, a 270 degree right hander that narrowed into a 180 degree left hander onto the grass; we made it to the top 10 for that part and began to race in earnest. Somehow I got in front of Joaquin with a little gap so I sat up a bit to let him catch on... until I discovered that who I thought was my teammate was actually somebody else who gratefully came around me. DAMN!
Happily he Porkins'd himself so hard into the tape that I could still hear him crashing behind me as I rode away. Never saw him again.
Early on we rode by Lisa and she shouted "your nine!" since I knew (for certain) that Joaquin was on my wheel that put us 9/10 after only one lap.
From then on it it was one of my best CX races ever. We traded pulls on the power sections and each time we came up the finishing drag the announcer had a shout-out for "Kissena team from Brooklyn, New York still working like a team chasing the leaders..." and "here comes Kissena again and they're still together racing smart, trading off..."
After watching Canadian Mike take that descent yesterday Joaquin declared, "$&*!@, he's riding it like a pump track!"
Each time we got to that part of the course I just shouted to myself, "PUMP TRACK!!!" and tried not to brake at all - wow it was fast.
With one to go it was Joaquin's turn up the finishing straight and I think (?) he might have have taken it a bit too hard and blown his motor a bit because when I came through he began to fade.
Coming into the final uphill finish I knew I had five or ten seconds on him so it wasn't really a case of lead-out or not... i just drilled it up the hill in the happy knowledge we'd be going 6/7 on the day after working great together.
Super happy with everyone's results; the low point was riding by whitey on the side of the course with his leg in a splint saying, "Tell Lisa I'm going to the hospital but it's no big deal!" Thank goodness it was only a flesh wound - still a bummer.
Lastly, sticking around for the Pro fields was fantastic. Just amazeballs. Aside from watching how they handle certain tricky bits it was a fantastic exciting race with all the big guns throwing huge haymakers at one another and it still came down to an exciting finale.
Oh, and Canadian Mike got his hole-shot, and didn't mechanical - he hung with the lead group for the first 20 minutes or so until just before the fireworks started. And damn, homeboy can corner...
Sep 30, 2013 at 05:18 PM
I want the pic of Whitey giving the thumbs-up from the hospital. We need a thread for those shots.
Sep 30, 2013 at 05:29 PM
This one is better I think.
Sep 30, 2013 at 05:33 PM
Oh, and the fans were great...
Sep 30, 2013 at 07:14 PM
Sep 30, 2013 at 07:30 PM
Racing "with" teammates is fun, even when they have RAGEFACE...
Sep 30, 2013 at 07:32 PM
^ glad that guy is on OUR team. Hulk smash!
Sep 30, 2013 at 08:10 PM
Ok, Gloucester photos (just the KCC folks) are up
Pros and the rest of the weekend will take a bit of time
Sep 30, 2013 at 08:52 PM
I was telling Jules afterward that sometimes I also scream a little bit.
Sep 30, 2013 at 09:26 PM
Tell me more.
Oct 01, 2013 at 12:35 AM
Can we have a Hall of Fame for forum posts?
Oct 01, 2013 at 12:54 AM
Maybe this should be a category for year-end awards.
Oct 01, 2013 at 01:34 AM
This was a fragment of a post that somehow got sent here, and not posted in entirety. I don't even know how this thread got started. I was saying that sometimes angryface is accompanied by a little screaming/grunting. Not entirely voluntary. Sounds a little like Schwarzenegger at the end of Total Recall when he's suffocating outside the Martian volcano.
Oct 01, 2013 at 06:25 PM
Oct 02, 2013 at 02:11 PM
Oct 02, 2013 at 02:43 PM
Couple of observations based on my viewing of the video:
a) Was that dude even racing? No urgency in his riding at all, passes only 1(?) person the whole first lap? I mean, I know we say smooth is fast, but...
b) They took out both the short steep run-up and no beach/steep staircase running sections this year!
Also, those of you who enjoyed Gloucester's "letter and spirit of the rule" UCI legal start, will enjoy similar style starts at Providence, Independence, and NBX. The rest of the season's races, no so much.
Sep 27, 2014 at 01:02 AM
Bump. Okay, folks, the night before one of the most awesome cross races of the year and we're finally here. Sarah and I have 3 or 6 solid ways to get from NYC to these northerly parts, and let me tell you, EVERY SINGLE ONE WAS FUCKED WITH TRAFFIC. 4 hour trip took over 7 hours.
I arrived on course at sunset, and didn't even get in one recon lap in my khaki pants before a few dicey slips on rocks, suggested to me that pre-riding a cross course after dark is just a dumb idea.
Other awesome stuff. Peter released a literal shit-storm upon everything within a 6 foot radius tonight. Which totally solved the, "our rental car stinks like air freshner covering up stale cigarettes" problem. On the plus side, staying close to the coast, our rental apartment is kind of great. In a renovated barn, close to some really popular seafood/clam shacks. And the internet here is like 10 times better than mine at home.
And a funny thing happened to me on the way to the race. You know how I'm the dude who buys things then doesn't use them for a year or more? Well, yeah, I've had these brand new cycling shoes, in the actual right size for my feet, for a long time. Last week, I brought them to Charm City, but just never actually used them. Well, this time, I forgot my old shoes at home and so BAM! I gotta use them tomorrow. I have to fuss with one of the cleats a bit, it's not quite right. I'm just hoping I don't f-up my legs or some shit because of it.
Also, cannot wait to watch the pros race for reals tomorrow. Also, looking forward to seeing how us KCC studs handle our business up here. Yikes. Gonna be tough. Jules, Jeff and I have only 30 minutes to make it count. Last week I raced for 59 minutes in Baltimore...from the ridiculous...to the ridiculous.
Sep 29, 2014 at 02:49 AM
Hmmmm....do I have to write all the things about Gloucester? Okay, here's a brief recap of day 2 as near as I can tell.
Jules got his upgrade and was allowed to start in the Master's 35+ 1/2/3 field. This is a ball-buster of a category. Especially in New England. Even Roger Aspholm (because he likes to win shit) often chooses to race the 45+ category when he races up yonder North. Anyway, scanning the results Jules finishes 60 out of 117. And I assume he got staged at the back? In which case, yikes, that's a pretty serious result. Hopefully he'll tell the tale.
Day 2's course reset made laps about 1 minute shorter, but much, much, more technical, heavier on the sprinting out of everything. Even the rock gardens were somehow tougher. And what was mostly sand whoopty-dos yesterdays was a full on rock and root party. Still decent flow, but grueling to the point where after my race I literally had trouble using the Pedros spray bottles to clean my bike. (Which by the way is sparkling now!)
That left Jeffrey White and I to fend for ourselves in the 4/5 Master's field. The guy doing the call-ups does this weird thing where he calls out the first 10 numbers, even though there are only 8 spots. So actually if you are cagey you can have a second row call up officially, but legally get on the front row? I guess he did it to accommodate the no-shows. Anyway, after yesterday's intense day for me, revenge on my mind, and limus under my rear (it's all I had for a spare), I bum-rushed the front row, and then a few minutes later, realized I was actually supposed to be in the second row, or was I...now I'm confused. Anyway, I turn around and offer up my spot to anyone on the second row. They all just look at me like I'm an idiot and let me stew there in the same starting spot as day 1.
It was a dust-bowl on the coast too. And heading into the first run-up, down a dusty, sandy dirty bumpy off camber 180, rise to a series of steps, I literally cannot see anything in front of me. The dust was unbelievably thick.
Early on I was struggling, mostly just feeling tired. And frankly I was still stewing a bit about day 1. Mistake, I quickly found myself around 13th wheel and not my normal punchy aggressive self. Although there was this moment where some douche elbows me on his way past on a sandy/dusty off camber, and literally on the next turn, his aggro self was going too fast for his abilities (exit speed yo, it's all about exit speed) and I passed him right back easily. I couldn't resist and said, "And he gets passed again." as I'm passing him. 4 laps today, and by the end of it I finished in 6th. And so in two days, my dream of a Gloucester podium gone. Frustrating, upsetting, all of that...but, Jeff had it much worse.
Again with the blinding dust clouds, Whitey hit something nasty and took a serious tumble. He finished 55th out of...wait for it, 128 racers. Battered and bruised, and with I think a busted helmet, he was in good spirits after the dust settled.
Joaquin lined up with the Cat 3s and finished 117/130. The family and I had to leave pretty much right after my race, so I didn't get to chat or spectate too much, but based on my conversation with Joaquin on Saturday, I think he was just not feeling his normal self this weekend. We've all been there. He'll be back.
Other notes:
Wes was out there working the Champion Systems booth and helped me out with some tools and a coke. Also Anna Maria was there cheering on her boyfriend. I of course gave her grief for not racing. I expect she will unfriend me from FB soon. Seriously though, always great to see Kissena faces in or out of kit in New England!
Also, Sarah tells me that Jules and I on day 1 got some serious mic time as we were doing our thing at the front. Today was similar. Really cool that even us cat 4 shlubs get the pro announcers.
Sep 29, 2014 at 03:32 AM
Also, the company, One2Go, doing results? Well in addition to being posted super quickly online, they send you an email with PDF of your field's finish and everyone's individual lap times! Way cool.
Sep 29, 2014 at 03:43 AM
Oddly, the following was sitting in my "Leave a Comment" field, apparently left over from last year's Gloucester day 2:
"body-first as the bike skittered away and suddenly felt the crackling pain and dread as my left side raked over the rocks. Attempting to refute the spectators' gasps, I remounted as if nothing happened and began to pick my way through the rutted, off-camber zig-zag section, involuntarily shrieking through clenched teeth. Once the technical section was over and I had to pedal, the response from my left leg was pain and weakness in place of, well, pedaling. I found it unbearable, so I coasted over toward the ribbon and fell onto the wet grass clutching my limp, non functioning leg. It was a totally unfamiliar pain; one that opened up all sorts of possibilities."
Not unsimilar to this year's Gloucester day 2 ...
Sep 29, 2014 at 04:43 AM
They must have given my number to someone else, because I wasn't there. Pulled the plug after racing sick yesterday. Don't know who it was that got that 117th place.
Sep 29, 2014 at 11:08 AM
Ohhhhh, yeah, there were all kinds of waitlists this weekend. That explains it. Annoying that this result is "on your record" now though. Hotlist knows better at least.Joaquin said:They must have given my number to someone else, because I wasn't there. Pulled the plug after racing sick yesterday. Don't know who it was that got that 117th place.
Sep 29, 2014 at 12:46 PM
Just email the promoter. That guy is seriously on his game.Marc Bertucco said:Ohhhhh, yeah, there were all kinds of waitlists this weekend. That explains it. Annoying that this result is "on your record" now though. Hotlist knows better at least.Joaquin said:They must have given my number to someone else, because I wasn't there. Pulled the plug after racing sick yesterday. Don't know who it was that got that 117th place.
Sep 29, 2014 at 01:30 PM
Before I post my report, I really want to say how gutting it is to watch teammates have bad days. Marc was robbed, nay MUGGED by the cruelest CX Gods, Jeff crashed hard (last year he left in an Ambulance) and JCDB was laid low with a flu of sorts.
I love this sport but the Gods of Mud and Cowbells bow only to Sven.
I love this sport but the Gods of Mud and Cowbells bow only to Sven.
Sep 29, 2014 at 02:08 PM
Gloucester 2014 Holy Week begins with a miracle.
Day 0
Our assault on the Holy Week of Cyclocross for 2014 was ambitious; we were going to rent an RV and drive the whole clan up Northeastern way, race both Gloucester and Providence, and check out some seaside towns and visit old friends on our travels.
We were in the campground with our lights out by midnight - barely - and I consoled myself that no matter what was coming the next day, I was basically the same rider as I was last year. I'm not stronger, or a better "driver," so I should just expect similar results, ie: a fighting chance at the top ten, barring mechanicals. I did my best to ignore predictions of glory - especially after my epic (and literal) meltdown at Nittany two weeks prior.
Day 1
Having missed any openers the day before I resolved to make my warmup as thorough as possible - I got to the course early and rode for almost 90 minutes before the callup. The laps seemed insanely long - and one point I lost count of how many times I'd remounted in a single lap. I asked someone next to me, "are there four sets of barriers here?" The reality was there were four places were you had to dismount/remount but only one set of "planks."
Marc, Jeff, and I had a brief pre-race huddle where Marc insisted we all get our heads in the game and discouraged Jeff from any of the "first CX race of the season" conservatism, while my advice was limited to, "No matter what happens, if you have a chance to pass someone, DO IT. It doesn't matter how far into the red it puts you, pass them."
I got my first row callup, and soon the guy next to me was chatting me up. Turns out he must have been a CrossResults stalker who had done his homework. "Hey, I think I know you. You're Jules right? Your last name starts with an 'R'... Roazen? Yeah, I know you - you're supposed to win today! So are you gonna win... are you?"
Good grief. What does one even say? I mumbled something about "last year's numbers" and made sure I was in the right gear for the start. It never occurred to me that he was trying to get in my head.
The whistle went and I was a comfortable top five in the hole shot. My goal was to avoid my mistake from Granogue where I went out to hard, got to the front and just "errored" my way out of contention - soon I was third wheel but lost a place or two to some very risky moves by competitors.
From there I led the field to a tricky little uphill corner that was all powdery dust. I bobbled and heard Marc bellowing with frustration behind me - I stayed in front but at a dusty 180 degree corner I slid out hard, and shouted, "GO MARC!" as he and one other passed me. I checked my bike (thank you Granogue, for that lesson; and that tuition bill was steep...) and remounted for the chase.
We were going well - I was taking the barriers so fast that I was starting to scare myself - feet hitting the ground like Fred Flintstone when I got off and running to a full sprint before remounting. Marc and I continued to trade first through third spots.
Somebody in the crowd knew my name and was hollering encouragement. Turns out it was my teammate Wes who was there with ChampSys. My second time up the dragstrip I saw and heard my family screaming, "Go, Daddy, Go!!!" and I managed to pass someone.
On the final lap Marc was leading and I was in third when I came up on him taking the off-camber "S" turns with uncharacteristic caution - "flat!" he shouted and my heart sunk. To be robbed of victory - or what seemed like it so close to the finish... Meanwhile, Mr. Second (now First) had a sizable gap on us.
I took the last barriers as fast as I ever have (someone evenhollered "Niiiice!") and got within about twenty meters of him on the last gravel power section. I was going to get second, I thought, and was just about to chide myself for not having enough killer instinct to clinch the win when I remembered the advice I'd given Jeff earlier. "No matter what happens, if you have a chance to pass someone, DO IT. It doesn't matter how far into the red it puts you, pass them."
I groaned and got out of the saddle to empty the tank in order to get up to and by him on the straightaway - I tried to do it with enough speed that he'd give up instead of chase... but we were into the final turns by then - a series of "S" turns culminating in the sand pit, a little turn from there and then the uphill dragstrip.
I stole a glance back and realized he couldn't catch me.
Incredulous I sat up and rolled across the finish line. I think my hands were on my head.
We celebrated with Marc's family at a local fish place with Lobster rolls and beer in plastic cups.
Two families, four kids and swapping CX war stories - it was a sweet way to wind down the day.
Day 2
After some hurried discussions with the people managing registration at Gloucester and a leap of faith regarding upcoming Providence I had texted our local USAC rep (Eric) who very graciously agreed to do the upgrade that night.
I continued to hit the barriers at full speed but confess I backed off a bit on the last lap. I was surprising myself just how fast I was running when I dismounted and worried the mojo would fade.
So I made it through more than fifty minutes or Cat 123 racing feeling good and able to attack out of the corners, and most importantly I didn't get lapped by Alec!
Day 0
Our assault on the Holy Week of Cyclocross for 2014 was ambitious; we were going to rent an RV and drive the whole clan up Northeastern way, race both Gloucester and Providence, and check out some seaside towns and visit old friends on our travels.
We didn't really budget the time right on friday, so despite our 6am wakeup, the family van wasn't loaded and rolling until 8:30, and we didn't leave the RV rental place till 1:30 in the afternoon. My hopes for an afternoon/evening set of openers and course recon in Gloucester were shattered when a four hour drive turned into a seven hour ordeal of traffic jams, digital rerouting and dining at (no, seriously) McDonalds out of desperation.
We were in the campground with our lights out by midnight - barely - and I consoled myself that no matter what was coming the next day, I was basically the same rider as I was last year. I'm not stronger, or a better "driver," so I should just expect similar results, ie: a fighting chance at the top ten, barring mechanicals. I did my best to ignore predictions of glory - especially after my epic (and literal) meltdown at Nittany two weeks prior.
Day 1
Having missed any openers the day before I resolved to make my warmup as thorough as possible - I got to the course early and rode for almost 90 minutes before the callup. The laps seemed insanely long - and one point I lost count of how many times I'd remounted in a single lap. I asked someone next to me, "are there four sets of barriers here?" The reality was there were four places were you had to dismount/remount but only one set of "planks."
Marc, Jeff, and I had a brief pre-race huddle where Marc insisted we all get our heads in the game and discouraged Jeff from any of the "first CX race of the season" conservatism, while my advice was limited to, "No matter what happens, if you have a chance to pass someone, DO IT. It doesn't matter how far into the red it puts you, pass them."
I got my first row callup, and soon the guy next to me was chatting me up. Turns out he must have been a CrossResults stalker who had done his homework. "Hey, I think I know you. You're Jules right? Your last name starts with an 'R'... Roazen? Yeah, I know you - you're supposed to win today! So are you gonna win... are you?"
Good grief. What does one even say? I mumbled something about "last year's numbers" and made sure I was in the right gear for the start. It never occurred to me that he was trying to get in my head.
The whistle went and I was a comfortable top five in the hole shot. My goal was to avoid my mistake from Granogue where I went out to hard, got to the front and just "errored" my way out of contention - soon I was third wheel but lost a place or two to some very risky moves by competitors.
Marc was right there too; he came around when I bobbled in the trees a bit and I dug a little deeper and got up to third. From there it was Glory Days. I stayed glued to Marc's wheel until we got to the start/finish which is a two hundred (?) meter paved uphill dragstrip where I've had success putting my diesel to work. I yelled, "Get on my wheel!" to Marc, and I floored it.
"Don't blow me up, don't blow yourself up!" Marc hollered but my memories from 2013 were vivid; this was the place to open gaps - and big ones, especially if you have the fitness. Plus - and I'll be honest - the idea of going one-two with Marc was just too sweet to stay calm. I could hear the announcer hollering about "Kissena from Brooklyn going one and two!" so I was exploding with lactate and pride.
From there I led the field to a tricky little uphill corner that was all powdery dust. I bobbled and heard Marc bellowing with frustration behind me - I stayed in front but at a dusty 180 degree corner I slid out hard, and shouted, "GO MARC!" as he and one other passed me. I checked my bike (thank you Granogue, for that lesson; and that tuition bill was steep...) and remounted for the chase.
We were going well - I was taking the barriers so fast that I was starting to scare myself - feet hitting the ground like Fred Flintstone when I got off and running to a full sprint before remounting. Marc and I continued to trade first through third spots.
Somebody in the crowd knew my name and was hollering encouragement. Turns out it was my teammate Wes who was there with ChampSys. My second time up the dragstrip I saw and heard my family screaming, "Go, Daddy, Go!!!" and I managed to pass someone.
On the final lap Marc was leading and I was in third when I came up on him taking the off-camber "S" turns with uncharacteristic caution - "flat!" he shouted and my heart sunk. To be robbed of victory - or what seemed like it so close to the finish... Meanwhile, Mr. Second (now First) had a sizable gap on us.
I took the last barriers as fast as I ever have (someone evenhollered "Niiiice!") and got within about twenty meters of him on the last gravel power section. I was going to get second, I thought, and was just about to chide myself for not having enough killer instinct to clinch the win when I remembered the advice I'd given Jeff earlier. "No matter what happens, if you have a chance to pass someone, DO IT. It doesn't matter how far into the red it puts you, pass them."
I groaned and got out of the saddle to empty the tank in order to get up to and by him on the straightaway - I tried to do it with enough speed that he'd give up instead of chase... but we were into the final turns by then - a series of "S" turns culminating in the sand pit, a little turn from there and then the uphill dragstrip.
Worried that he'd outsprint me if we were close, I went full gas from the second I was done with the sand; I figured if I went early and got a gap, and if he caught up to me, I'd have a chance surge again. But by the time I was 2/3rds of the way up the dragstrip I could tell from the cheers I'd done it.
I stole a glance back and realized he couldn't catch me.
Incredulous I sat up and rolled across the finish line. I think my hands were on my head.
We celebrated with Marc's family at a local fish place with Lobster rolls and beer in plastic cups.
Two families, four kids and swapping CX war stories - it was a sweet way to wind down the day.
Day 2
Last year at my biggest race I was second behind some guy who clearly didn't belong in my field. No matter that this happens all the time in lower categories my disappointment at missing a win was keen and I had quietly vowed not to be a part of that problem. So after winning the day before I was faced with a bit of a quandary: all the other race fields were full - Sunday's race and both days next weekend - so if I upgraded I would be locked out of racing.
After some hurried discussions with the people managing registration at Gloucester and a leap of faith regarding upcoming Providence I had texted our local USAC rep (Eric) who very graciously agreed to do the upgrade that night.
Sunday dawned and I was a Cat 3. So there was I was lining up with the Cat 123 Masters 35+ crowd, right next to Alec Donahue, former pro and current winner of everything in sight - today it was my turn to give *him* a hard time at the start line but I'm pretty sure I didn't get in his head.
My legs were aching and tired from the day before. A race with an 11:30 start is convenient but also strangely awkward to pre-ride... I'd only been around it a few times and the course was getting worse and worse. Very technical to start with the dust was so thick you really could not see the ground. Even slow that course was terrifying.
From my back row start I moseyed up the dragstrip, passed the guys who were even worse drivers than me, and did my best to settle into a rhythm of passing guys on the power sections (aka the dragstrip) and trying my best to keep them at bay on the twisties.
I continued to hit the barriers at full speed but confess I backed off a bit on the last lap. I was surprising myself just how fast I was running when I dismounted and worried the mojo would fade.
I played cat & mouse with a guy in Subway Sandwich kit; catching and passing him handily on the dragstrip and then giving it back on the turns. With one to go I slapped him on the shoulder as I went by and said, "You're it!" but he caught me and despite my better power I couldn't get him back in time for the finish. We shared some laughs after the race, and I was reminded that the best parts of CX are the moments when you cross the line and only those guys right around you know how hard the race was fought, and how grateful we all are to one another for the motivation.
(The next morning we watched the Subway team manouver their Class A motorhome and branded trailer out of the RV park - they'd been right next to us all along.)
So I made it through more than fifty minutes or Cat 123 racing feeling good and able to attack out of the corners, and most importantly I didn't get lapped by Alec!
Afterwards I ate two lunches and still had trouble with Pedro's bike wash... my hands were so weak I could barely squeeze the handle of the spray bottle... the endless technical traps had taken more out of me than I knew.
Sep 29, 2014 at 02:57 PM
Congrats, Jules. Well done. You get cyclocross.
Sep 30, 2014 at 03:09 AM
Oct 06, 2014 at 03:26 PM
Video of the Day 2 Cat 3 race. I sucked, but it was fun.
(Personal video, please keep it within the club)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYjiue9flmY&feature=youtu.be
Oct 06, 2014 at 04:45 PM
^ Jules, great video that course looks super fun pain cave. Loved watching you burn off three or four guys each lap on the straightaway. When you polish some of those remounts and find the Michael Schumacher line you'll be unstoppable.