The start was a relatively long straightaway that turned left then twisted its way to the runup. My start this time was a little bit more aggressive even though my positioning was a bit off. At the runup I regretted having missed all those running workouts, this was definitely not an easy part of the race for me. I moved hard and fast trying to move up as the field stretched out. Coming down from the hill I ran through the tricky slippery off-camber switchback. I would not ride it the whole race, but I'm pretty sure that I was taking it just as fast as the guys riding it.
The flat twisty portion was fun. The turns were not too tight and you were able to hit them pretty fast. My kind of cross course. On the hill climb I was able to make up time on riders on almost every lap. After the initial pain of the first two laps I was settled into my group. Riding strong and smooth I would sprint out of every turn. One weakness for me was the set of two barriers near the woods. I was not able to hit them as fast as I could and would lose ground here.
The last two laps I started to feel the fatigue coming on. I had passed teammate Kevin about halfway through the race and was now riding with him behind me. I was also trading places with Jason. I started to get a second wind and tried to gap them but I couldn't shake them. I had barely beat Jason last week at Dekalb so I wanted to make sure that I was coming in front of him at or near the final climb. Having raced Kevin countless times, I knew he wasnt feeling so hot today so I was going to make it a point to beat him too.
Even though I was evenly matched with two riders right on my tail, I knew that I could take them if I made my move early enough. Coming around the final climb on the last lap Jason was leading me, with Kevin right behind me. I had tried several times to pickup the pace but was unable to change the order. On the last climb I noticed that Jason wasnt looking too fast up the climb. That was all I needed to turn on the afterburner. A little kick and I was past Jason with Kevin not too far but not too close either. I still had a very fast off-camber turn to get down the hill. Knowing that they were not going to be too far behind me I took one last dig. I was going to take some risks and hit all the turns as fast and as hard as possible.
And of course on the tricky off-camber which I had ridden ok the whole race I almost bit it. Too much brake had me unclip. I pretty much locked up the rear brake at the bottom of the turn and started to slide out. I was able to catch myself with my unclipped foot but I slid almost 180 degrees. Just enough to see Jason and Kevin pass me. Having lost all my momentum I crawled up to the top. For a split second I thought maybe I could catch them on the final straightaway. But it was not to be, I finished 36 out of 43. Its funny because every position lost or gained is a small battle within the race, and no doubt in my mind that I would've led them out on the finish if I had ridden my bike properly.
So as I step back and realize how much has happened in first three chicross races I have come to several conclusions.
- Top 3 riders to beat this season, Zach Thomas, Kevin Clark, Jason Alvarado.
- My technical skills are getting better and better with each race.
- I have a lot matches to burn, I must not hold back.
- The training is working, mental state has yet to be dialed in though.
- My season goal is to get a top 30 and score at least 1 point for the overall series standings.
- Cheering the 4bs and 4as is actually a little bit more fun than racing.
- I need to drink more (beer,whiskey?) to help with conclusion number 6.
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