NC #1 #2 and #3 Cyclo Cross races

NC #1 and #2 Cross Race:

Chris Young and I were traveling mates for these 2 races held 2 weeks ago(I know late post). Chris picked me up on Friday afternoon and we headed off to Raleigh. The trip down was rather damp.I was quite surprised to see the number of cars that had crashed apparently due to the rain. The rain was not torrential just steady but there were at least six accidents along the way, apparently people were having a difficult time driving in the rain. We made it down safe and sound with a stop in Statesville to eat at a chicken place(not chick fillet)the other one...I cannot recall the name. When I was in my 20's my memory was better but since I've hit 30 I tend to forget small details.
We arrived at the Red Roof Inn unpacked and settled in for a good nights sleep. Woke up went to Starbucks for breakfast, they now have oatmeal my favorite pre-race meal and coffee of course. We arrived at the venue and prepared ourselves for combat.The course was a power course with little to no room for recovery, needless to say I did not do well. I liked the course it was just not my cup of tea.

I also did the CAT 4 on a SS. This race I felt much better and there was a tremendous difference in the course. The old guys(me) race the first race, this means the course is not "broken in" hence no lines etc, on the other hand we can race, leave and still be home at a decent hour. I thoroughly enjoyed racing my ss, I do not have to think about shifting all I have to do is hurt. I do much better when I do not think.

After these 2 races Chris Young and I played Pit Boys for Andy and Nate both of whom had good races. After the pro 1/2 race Chris and I pitted for Cara/Deb. I actually kinda enjoy working the pits but I wonder if being on my legs so much was the cause for my mediocre performance the next day, regardless I would have done it anyway as these people are wonderful friends. When working the pits I am at times unsure how much info to give...ie I try to give time splits and offer encouragement but I am not sure what is going through the racers mind, ie I shout "You're only 10 seconds off the next place" racers mind "duh dumb&%&**$ I know that, I am going as hard as I can" as you can see it is not easy being Pit Person.

Cyclocross Race #2:

Again Chris and I awoke made our way to Starbucks and then to Bond Park. The ritual was the same, check in dress, warm up and race. I usually do well at this venue but I totally stunk during this race, no snap in the legs people beating me that I can usually crack.There was also one technical error on my part...sunglasses way to dark. The transition from open field to woods was way to drastic for the eyewear I had. I know this may sound like a lame excuse but it is the truth, each time I went into the woods I was temporarily "blinded" because the eyewear I chose was way to dark. The course itself was excellent but again I did not meet expectations. After the race Chris and I packed up and headed home. I missed watching Nathan and my Friends race and I actually missed working the pits for my buddies.

The following week I was rather grumpy due to my lackluster performance...sorry to friends and family for my whiney mood. I did the Wednesday night race and was pleased with my performance. I started out a little slow but picked up the pace mid race and had a good performance.

I opted out of the Louisville race, deciding to stay home and spend some time with Diana. Saturday morning I took the SS to the track to test the new flip flop wheel I recently purchased. There were several trackies there and they did not seem to appreciate the streamers I had on the handle bars. Personally I think they are cool. It was funny... their reaction,good folk I am sure but no eye contact with the weirdo on the fixed gear cross bike with streamers. Next time I will wear my "fro" tube socks, and to top it off I will wear my bibs over my jersey, my Sugar Smacks jersey of course, and I will deliberately engage them in conversation. This is going to be hilarious, I can't wait.

Afer my escapade at the track I came home and went out with Amber(my wonderful daughter) and Diana to Papas and Beer for lunch.We had a great time talking eating etc.

Sunday NC CX #3

Woke Sunday AM and made my way to Boone NC. The race was held at an abandoned golf course at the Hawksnest ski resort.I was a little concerned on how well I would do considering my lackluster performance the following weekend. I felt I had a great race, I finished 4th in the 45+ but felt this was a good result. The course was very diverse: off camber, elevation changes,tight turns, grass, dirt, pavement all the elements of a classical cross course.
I also stuck around and did the CAT3 on the SS. I had a great time racing the SS, I cracked about 3/4 of the way through the race. Beth Frye and Cara Applegate caught and passed me. Darn got "gurled 2x" oh well what can I say. Well I guess I could say both are great friends. Beth Frye was Nate's team mate when Nate was 15 and they raced for Shawn Cooper(owner of Defeet socks). Cara, I have not known that long but have traveled quite a bit with her and Andy and consider them good friends.Bottom line if you are going to get beat it may as well be by friends!!! OH Yeah Cara is not afraid to let you know when you are out of gas!!!!!

Next up Tennessee MSG series and Lenoir NC series.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Last of the Blueberries

Fall is officially here, I went out and picked the last of the blueberries today. I picked ~ 2 cups...ok I ate 1/2 cup while picking but this is legal.I brought them back to the house and Diana made a Lemon Poppy Seed cake and put some of the blueberries in the batter. MMMMMMM good almost makes me forget about the horrible races I had this past weekend!!
I hope everyone has a great week!!!

 

 

 

 

Wonderful Weekend

...As a continuation to my previous post we did get gas and I was allowed to continue driving. The weekend was great,I had a great time racing, watching the races and hanging out.
The weekend went like this:
* Pack car
* Unpack car
* Race
* Pack car
* Eat
* Sleep
This process was repeated Friday, Saturday and Sunday...oh yeah and one episode of panic as seen in my previous post.
It is great to have friends to travel with and ones that can put up with a grumpy old man :):):).
I cannot wait till our next trip!!

GOT GAS???????

"OH MY GAWD WE ARE OUT OF GAS !!!!!!!!!!!! WE'RE OUT OF GAS !!!!!!!" Cara exclaims...sure enough the BMW was on empty and the brain told us we had 0 miles left on the tank.

I am sure I will suffer from some long term hearing impairment in my right ear from a certain person going into a panic. The panic was justifiable I have to admit as we were on a 4 lane road and were about to be out of gas. Luckily we were near an exit (within 1 mile) and decided it would be better to be stranded on a 2 lane road versus an interstate. We exited and to our relief there was a gas station. Once at the station we had a difficult time getting to a pump because of the location of the fuel cap.I thought we were going to run out of gas at the station, Cara can get very aggressive when almost out of gas. Perhaps the recent gas shortage in NC taught her a few things. We were alomost to get to a pump when someone tried to cut us off, Cara hopped out of the car... we're almost out of gas she screamed we need this pump...she even scared me!!!

The BMW held 18.675 gallons of gas. It has a 16 gallon tank with 2 gallon reserve...whew we dodged a bullet here. Or I should say I dodged the bullet as I had been driving and was reminded it was my resposibility to watch the gas gauge. I guess I thought if the lady in the GPS system was smart enough to give us directions she would have told us we were about to run out of gas...apparently not.

oh well on to the race report: the racing has been great, we have all had a great time. Deb and Cara had a great race in the elite womens, Nate had a top fifteen in the elite men, I won the cat 3-4 masters on Friday and raced the elite masters on Saturday. Both courses were great I will include some pics and perhaps a more detailed report will follow.

Have a good week!