Due to a knee injury, I did not get much CX racing in this year. The goal was to upgrade to Cat 3, a stretch goal in any case. More like a stretch-armstrong goal, really...
So I registered for the 40-49 non-championship race. I would not be racing for a medal, but that was just fine.
My race didn't start until 2:30 pm, which was a huge change. Normally I need to leave the house around 6am for an 8am start. A later start sounded great! Arrived and had a full hour to warm up, which was really nice. I briefly considered tire pressure, but quickly realized that traction today was going to be a fairy tale, or a pipe dream and just went with 40 PSI. The mud was super deep, wheel sucking muck, and really slow, with quite a bit of walking terrain that if it were dry, would be a simple ride.
Two laps of warm up on a 2 mile course took me around 50 minutes. Holy slow going, batman! After the pre-ride, I went in and got my race numbers. Another rider noticed my 20/20 cycling kit, and we chatted about Seattle for a bit. She was out to race the non-championship on the same day, and was planning on racing the U23 race on sunday! Turns out she knows Keith, and is a client of his. It was nice to have someone to talk to for a bit.
I had 2 hours to kill before the race, so I went out in search of a power washer. After a bit, I found an auto car wash, and hosed down the bike. It was destined to get filthy within the first minute, but I thought it would be nice to start clean. I didn't realize they had a spray wash at the race course for us to use...
Before
After
I'll say those Mud Shovel Fenders didn't look pro. But I sure stayed warm and dry through 2 hours of warm up and racing. So, IMO I was smarter than everyone else who "looked cool" :)
Drove around Hartford for a bit finding my way back. Not really too impressed, no disrespect to Hartfordians...
Changed some clothes, grabbed some warm gloves, and rode back up 5 stories of ramps, across the bridge, and back down to the race course. They were calling up numbers one at a time, and with 130 registered starters, this took quite a while. I jumped around to keep warm. I missed my call up, and was slotted in the last 4 riders, but that was fine as that is exactly where I expected to finish ;)
We went off, and a group of 6 or so of us hung out in the back. As we had gotten about another half inch of rain since the morning, things got even more muck and slippery. As expected, I estimate I was only riding about 60% of the course.
Early in the course, there was a long traverse. You could either climb up first, or last. It seemed like the lower track was better, though still unrideable. I did see a few try, but everyone was relegated to pushing.
After this, there was a decent, also known as the "Hartford Slip-and-Slide: ;) Many a chamois was ruined here...
This was followed by a climb back up the grade...
I was really thinking crampons would have been a better footware choice than MTB shoes with toe spikes up that. Loose grass covered with dirt left us making 4 steps for every 2 of upward progress.
I was able to avoid wiping out by gingerly picking my way down the right side barrier tape. It helped that I was in no rush to get down, I guess.
Although it was tough going, I was enjoying myself for the first lap. I entertained myself by heckling my fellow riders and the few spectators. Some of my better lines:
"I'm not sure why we have these pedals on these bikes. We're sure not using them today!"
"Brakes, who needs em?" After hitting my brakes on a decent to no avail, I just let it rip. Once I hit the mud puddle at the bottom, I came to a quick stop.
"OMG, I just hit 12 MPH" At the bottom of that slope.
"I think I saw a lost bike in the bottom of that puddle. No sign of the rider"
"You know, someone told me there would be a bike race here today, not a bike-pushing contest."
There were a few short paved sections, where I got a bit of acceleration.
I may have actually gotten into the 21 cog for 10 pedal strokes here. Whoa!
Just as I approached the finish, I got lapped by Adam Myerson, an ex-pro, and one of the best Elite riders in New England, who just retired. I thought that might happen, but hoped to hold him off. I lost my bet by about 300 meters though. Thankfully?? the officials did not pull me out, and let me finish my race.
To put it into perspective, it took me 24 minutes to do a lap that took a PRO 12 minutes to do. Not saying that he is twice as good as me or anything ;) Just that he is much faster...
The second lap was a real struggle. It was truly miserable. Pushing a 34/25 though this was worse than kicking up Mont Ventoux in a 34/27. It was right up there with climbing the col du Glandon in terms of awful things I have done on a bike. But I kept on, with no site of the riders before me, and the one behind me back by a bit.
With about 1/4 mile to go, my bike was so bogged down. I pulled off a brick of mud the size of my fist off of the rear brake bridge. The front brakes were so clogged, the bike was doing an endo as I pushed it, unless I kept my other hand pushing down on the seat. After what seemed like forever, I got to the "fast" part of the course nearing the finish line. The rider behind me pushed just ahead, and there was no way I was going to close any gap. He crossed the line about 10 bike lengths up, good for him.
After the race, I rode over to the slip and slide to see some carnage. Got a few shots, but none as good as that video. Saw a few who were actually able to ride it! But that was less than one in ten.
A few pithy quotes from the peanut gallery:
"Congratulations, you're now riding a single speed!" After a rider dragged his bike and rear shift lever though the mud from the top to the very bottom
"I should come back with PVC sheets to save these poor guys' $140 bib shorts"
"The Russian judge gives a 8.4"
I ran into a guy who was riding a Van Dessel Full Tilt Boogie, which is the bike I am building up, and will finish one of these days. It turns out he has a child who works for Van Dessel, so we chatted about bikes, and how much we like the company for a bit.
After a bit, I was cold and had had enough. I rode back, and found the bike wash station. I ran into the fellow who had passed me at the end, and we congratulated each other. He said "we actually beat someone" Turns out he finished 88 and myself 89, out of 96 starters. We all beat the 25 riders who signed up, but didn't bother to show
DFL>DNF>DNS. Words to live by!
Got home, grabbed a meatball sub and salad on the way. Ate a delicious dinner, accompanied by a Pirate Ale which had been ageing for a year.
I'm not certain the ageing improved this beer; it's not something I drink with any frequency, so I don't have any comparison.
All in all it was a great race. Type two fun at times, but I did enjoy myself, and I am super glad that I had the opportunity to do this race. I am really excited to return on Sunday to see the U23, and pro and women's races.
