Monday, December 3, 2007

The Elements




I used to relish racing my cross bike in the mud and elements. After this past weekend in Portland at the US Cyclocross Grand Prix I'm not so sure...

Day 1
The temperature at race time was 36 degrees w/ light snow falling on a muddy and mushy course, kind of cool. I liked the course and was psyched to be racing. Due to luck of the random draw I was staged 103rd, out of 115 riders. I needed binoculars to see the front row ! Gun goes off and .... pause I'm off. I'm dodging and weaving through a few rows, a few riders stack it to my left but I avoid, I think I pass 2o riders or so on the long pavement start before we are onto the grass and onto the off camber. I take the low side get off early and run around the first corner which is stacked w/ riders. Back onto pavement and than into the 50 yards of deep wheel sucking mud. Some bumper cars here on again and off again, so it goes. More bumper cars for the rest of the first lap until it spreads out enough to really start racing. I'm feeling good and in a decent groove, there is only one part of the course giving me much trouble and by the 3rd lap I'm on the back of a fast group. The laps go by and I'm having a great race and riding the conditions well for a cali boy. Three laps left to go, still on the back of this fast group I look down and see or fail to see much of my bottom bracket as its pretty much one solid mass of goop. Hmm, maybe I should pit and get a clean bike, ok next lap maybe. Back into the wheel sucking mud section when snap, crackle, crunch there goes my derailleur ! Damn. I couldn't have been farther away from the pit, so race is pretty much over for me, lots of sympathy from riders going by, and sure enough it is over as I get lapped by the leaders just as I reach the pit. Judging by the finishing place of those around my I was in around 35th when my race ended so I'm pretty psyched about that.

Day 2
Thanks to the Cannondale crew who reattach and re-cable my derraileur (I had brought a spare dropout) and to the Mavic crew who re-true my badly out of true kryseriums (bent but not broken spoke, phew !), i'm back ready to go w/ two working bikes on Sunday. I decide to ride yesterdays pit bike as it is setup with 28cc dugast mud tires and the other bike has a slightly bent chain.

At race time its pouring rain and gusty at a balmy 46 degrees. Since everyone I'm completely soaked it feels much colder than the day before. Its been raining all night so the new more technical course is covered in 6'' to 12'' of mud. Today I'm luckier in the draw and stage at 47th out of around 100. Gun goes off and we are off, I manage to weave through a row front and settle in. I'm doing ok but having trouble finding a rhythm on this course. They are running us through part of the BMX course and there are several off camber climbs that must be ridden as running them is impossible. When I'm sticking the off camber climbs I'm passing riders, when I miss I'm getting passed. Back and forth I go, good lap followed by a bad lap. About 4 laps in I realize I can't feel anything below my ankles, not a good feeling when trying to slog over barriers ! This is now more about survival now than fun. I'm starting to think about finishing rather than attacking the course and well slog slog slog... I do finish and end up where I started in 47th. Not a great race but I survived.

Special thanks to Ray and Dorinda for putting me up in 4-star style for the weekend. Thanks to Jeff & Ken, + Jake and Max (pit-crew in training) for coming out to cheer on Sunday in gnarly, even by Portland standards weather !