First Race in CO!
Well, it was last Sunday, but I'm just getting around to posting about it. Since I'm not out "opening up" for tomorrow's race cuz it's raining, I feel like I should do something cycling related (besides read other cyclist's blogs).
So it was the last "Crit at Stazio". A nice low-key crit in Boulder put on by the THF - yes the same series Tugboat, I mean Tyler, got kicked out of a few weeks ago. He did show up sporting an Ulrichesque doo, though. I mean the thing is not sanctioned by anyone - uscf, aca, obra - so what's the big deal. Whatever.
That's my apathetic version of an argument.
So, anywho, it was a fun race and it felt great to be racing again. I had been planning on starting racing all month, but with birthdays and 60 mile hilly roadraces on the calendar, I put it off until I could wait no longer. The weather was perfect, the bike was ready, my lungs were (almost) ready and I was jittery as hell.
The course was a pretty typical 4 corner crit with a short steep hill just after the start/finish. Actually, it was a right hand turning course, which - at least on the east coast - is fairly rare. It was a nice change. After warming up making left turns for 15 minutes it dawned on me to go the other way.
The race started pretty easy. The first few laps we just sprinted up the hill and then looked at each other. There's a few big teams here that looked like they were ready to control the race. Since I'm not on any team yet, I could ride kind of incognito, though I got lots of "who are you?" looks. After about 20 minutes a break of 5 with most of the big teams on board took off. There was a small chase for 2 laps and then we sat up and the break went bye-bye. A couple small chase groups went after the break every few laps but didn't get anywhere. I took 2 one lap flyers, just to see how my lungs felt. Both times at the top of the hill I was breathing like Adam Sandler's fat kid and was caught soon after that. So I sat in and waited for the sprint. It was pretty disorganized, probably cuz there were no prizes left, and I wasn't too commited to being first across the line. So I came in 10th in the sprint, 15th overall. Pretty satisfying for my first race at altitude. Of course there's plenty of room for improvement, but not bad for cx training in April.
Tomorrow is the Lookout Mtn hillclimb. 8:15 am. Forcast is 40 degrees and raining. Sweet.
This'n's fer the ladies.
So it was the last "Crit at Stazio". A nice low-key crit in Boulder put on by the THF - yes the same series Tugboat, I mean Tyler, got kicked out of a few weeks ago. He did show up sporting an Ulrichesque doo, though. I mean the thing is not sanctioned by anyone - uscf, aca, obra - so what's the big deal. Whatever.
That's my apathetic version of an argument.
So, anywho, it was a fun race and it felt great to be racing again. I had been planning on starting racing all month, but with birthdays and 60 mile hilly roadraces on the calendar, I put it off until I could wait no longer. The weather was perfect, the bike was ready, my lungs were (almost) ready and I was jittery as hell.
The course was a pretty typical 4 corner crit with a short steep hill just after the start/finish. Actually, it was a right hand turning course, which - at least on the east coast - is fairly rare. It was a nice change. After warming up making left turns for 15 minutes it dawned on me to go the other way.
The race started pretty easy. The first few laps we just sprinted up the hill and then looked at each other. There's a few big teams here that looked like they were ready to control the race. Since I'm not on any team yet, I could ride kind of incognito, though I got lots of "who are you?" looks. After about 20 minutes a break of 5 with most of the big teams on board took off. There was a small chase for 2 laps and then we sat up and the break went bye-bye. A couple small chase groups went after the break every few laps but didn't get anywhere. I took 2 one lap flyers, just to see how my lungs felt. Both times at the top of the hill I was breathing like Adam Sandler's fat kid and was caught soon after that. So I sat in and waited for the sprint. It was pretty disorganized, probably cuz there were no prizes left, and I wasn't too commited to being first across the line. So I came in 10th in the sprint, 15th overall. Pretty satisfying for my first race at altitude. Of course there's plenty of room for improvement, but not bad for cx training in April.
Tomorrow is the Lookout Mtn hillclimb. 8:15 am. Forcast is 40 degrees and raining. Sweet.
This'n's fer the ladies.
posted by shaky detritovore at 10:42 AM
3 Comments:
"After warming up making left turns for 15 minutes it dawned on me to go the other way."
opps, hehehe
glad to see you're getting bak into the thick of things...
Thanks!
I might be dangling slightly off the back of the thick of things, but it'll do for now.
yo SD ... I lived through the weekend ... but my fitness/general health went in the exact opposite direction of yours. Did you see Ben (T or O) or former J.J. Jake at the crit?
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