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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Cowboy Up






It’s been a long week. The past nine days brought eight races and the last big week of the year for me on the road. It started with the WNC Grand Prix in Black Mountain, NC. I loathe driving to the mountains and doing flat crits. Luckily there was a short, steep hill right after a 180 degree turn that made the course tough. I felt a lot better than I did at French Broad but still not 100 percent. Stomach cramps ended my shot at winning the 2/3 race with about three laps to go. I held on for 10th, last money spot. My $10 check was not what I wanted but it’s been so long since I’ve won anything it was a step in the right direction. I also started the Pro 1/2 race but I didn’t have that hill in my legs anymore.

I knew after a couple days of rest I would be on track for the Giordana Crossroads Classic. It was going to be another step up. With Presbyterian and Hanes Park over the weekend big guns come early to tune up and get ready. Lining up with some of the best pros in the country was a new and gratifying experience. Crossroads are the only races I’ve done every year since I started riding bikes. I’ve done the 4/5 races, the 3’s and now the Pro 1/2. As I sat there on the line it made me realize how far I’ve come. From getting dropped in the 4/5 races to battling it out against some of the best riders in the country, it’s been a long a journey that’s only just begun. Crossroads were also the first real Pro races I ever watched in real life. I vividly remember standing at the finish line as Davide Frattini from Colavita won in Salisbury and this year as I lined up and looked over at the Colavita guys it all came rushing back. I’ve been so focused on the future and trying to make it as a bike racer I hadn’t ever really thought about how far I’ve come already. As the road season winds down for the year it was good for me to look back as I head into another off season in preparation for taking another step up next year.

Lining up was real philosophic but after the race started it was all business. I don’t know what our average speed was but I don’t think I want to, it was fast. I felt ok, when I was sitting in it was just below my red zone and I was more or less comfortable. Moving up was a different story. There’s plenty of room to move up because it’s usually single file. However, there’s a reason it’s single file. It takes serious effort to move up and there was only so much gas in the tank. I finished 35th the first day and looked to improve throughout the week. I finished the next two days but was unable to improve the result. I didn’t finish Friday or Saturday for various reasons but tried not to come down on myself too hard. I really wanted a result in the 2/3 race on Sunday and rode hard but the cards just didn’t fall right. I ended up 15th after having the door shut on me in the sprint and hitting my brakes. It sucks but it’s also good motivation. Knowing that I’m so close to results gives me something to think about during the long hours of training that are sure to come this off season.

Now it’s back to the real world. Still don’t know where I’m going to be living a month from now, or where I’ll be working. I just know I’ll be riding bikes. I will be racing cyclocross for Mock Orange Bikes which I’m super pumped about. My teammates are all awesome and I’m looking forward to bangin’ bars in the dirt, more on that to come. Here are some links to more pictures from crossroads. This week reaffirmed that the Kane is an awesome race bike. I don’t want to count up how many corners and accelerations there were this week but the Kane took them all in stride.

http://www.cyclingphotos.ca/gallery/9196016_Tw7tL/1/613823762_hspBF/Medium
http://www.cyclingphotos.ca/gallery/9177601_ZSjEc/1/612469820_SNZsT/Medium