I raced.
I had fun.
Either everyone else slowed down as much as I did from the end of the season (at maybe an arguable peak of my fitness) or i've not lost as much as I normally do.
And I raced TWO races and managed to only blow up half-way through the second, which is a feat itself. Cronoman always picks up on when i go thermonuclear. It happened in the singlespeed race. But still held on and one dumb mental error (opening up the inside of a turn while trying to block the rider behind) in the last almost time to finish section cost me two spots, but then if i had legs i'd have been much closer to the podium than I was.
http://www.crossresults.com/race/3233
That's the race..
Looking at everyone who finished in front of me in the Singlespeed only Sean P doubled up, and he was f'n SOLID in the P1/2/3 race. Nick the Dick beat me and he raced a few laps in the Cat 3 race but not many of them, and if that Bassett dude hadn't stuffed me sending me flying off the bike... Nick wouldn't have come around but that's racing.
Colin's comment:
the #1 rule of lap one chopping is to flee the scene. if you don't have the legs to flee, you don't have the right to chop
RIGHT ON THE MONEY
granted when you get stuff in the single speed race and go flying... you can only pedal faster, and if you've blown, yeah you see how that goes. I was easy prey for stuffing, esp since I stuffed him once in a sketchy corner before hand when he tried to go around. Hey. I'm racing. If you can't make the pass clean and aren't lapping me, well... just hope i make a stupid late race mistake and open the door. Like i did.
Oops. So i got chopped by someone with legs to flee the scene.
Jerry probably would have beat me if his bike wasn't suffering from just being put together in the parking lot.
I also totally botched my gear choices. I picked the hardest gear I could ride the ride ups in. And then wound up running them anyway. And on the flats I wanted more gear. I needed to race in the 19 to get my mojo going. Right away at the start of the single race I was feeling a bit spun out, not my comfortable slower CXy cadence. Oh well. Still feel pretty good about that result. Was fun. Actually wasn't terrible sitting on Matt and Curtis's wheel for the first lap. I had delusions of getting close to the podium, then Sean went past. And then Rosey came past. But I managed to hang with each of them for a bit. Chris tried to go by me on the downhill section, and then finally after the turn or before the turn I dunno, then he hit a jump did a bit of a show off move and I had NOTHING to stay on his wheel. NOTHING. So demoralizing. But hey I finished and wasn't too bad.
First race though? Kind of good sensations in a way.
Warm up lap was brutal. I just felt tired and it hurt a bit. Then we rolled up behind a woman finishing and Baker, Nick and I made a big wall to keep everyone back. First at the top of the climb and then at the barriers. She was cool, just wanted to finish and we were friendly and supportive and made sure she knew we were not going to get in the way of her race. Making a point of stopping and holding everyone up.
And that sort of let it all settle in a bit. I relaxed and the bike felt good. Felt amazing to be chilling and riding on a CX course.
I had probably 40 PSI in the tires. Way too hard. But after the pre-ride during the next races people were flatting all of the place. So many flats. So i left them that high. Dumb? Maybe. But I didn't flat.
Front row start though. Me! in the 40+ 1/2/3/4 race. Wade, Brent, Whitey, Mckittrick all in the second row. Those first two were like? WHAT? GeWilli? Front row? WHAAAAT? CTodd was lined up outside of me.
You can see from Geoff Martin's photo over in the G+ (won't let me embed here though) that I had a shitty start. Aka last one from the front row. I botched the start and am just so not used to being at that end of the field that I kind of messed up. Oops. You can cycle through the next couple of photos here to see my big dumb butt messing up http://www.paulbousquet.com/quadcross2013/h7927ffef#h74cc822b
Was okay though. Slotted in well enough but hit the little hill and bogged down had to get off and messed up Whitey's bike (and his race, sorry man, not my intention) (check this link for the moment of fucking it up for Whitey) but managed to recover well enough and not be too far back. Just felt okay and following wheels and rolling through. I rode the sand, we hit it single file and everyone was patient and chill (because well yeah were were single file and all going fast). Then everything else. The short little U-turn off the two track was interesting. Hit that behind CTodd, who was riding fast but man I could feel an impending explosion coming from him. body language was not relaxed like i felt. Ctodd bogged down in the turn and I had to juke left and punted Wade into the trees.
Wade said "Awe man Ge!" I replied "SORRY WADE" felt bad, not intentional, but it is where my bike went.
I did get around Ctodd on that down hill i think, or shortly after... And then we all slotted in and rode the hill.
And rode. And pedaled and turned and went hard. and stuff. And it was dusty.
Up the grinder of a hill. around the sketchy shit by the pit, through the narrow chute with one almost a line. Left then the swoopy bumpy grass, the little kicker where I got douched in the corner, around through the grass. Someone blew the tape there and I got a handful of it costing me a few seconds at one point trying to unwrap it all.
Then the left into the barriers, run to the top (don't remount early, dumb). Get on and deal with the sandy super loose soil under the grass that was progressively getting torn up more each lap. Then some swoopy shit back to the finish.
The only added bit of running I did as the race went on was the hill that I got knocked off on. And then only started running with 3 to go. Everything else, the sand, the hill, I rode each time.
For the most part I held my starting postition. Passed a few people who had jack rabbit starts and faded (aka CTodd) and then passed a pile of lapped traffic but was passed by not many.
The last lap Whitey was coming hard and fast. and I started drilling it more despite my back being in absolute wretched agony, like oh shit this hurts agony. Catching landrys guy (John Golden) in those last swoopy turns. But he knew that and I think was banking on winning that sprint from the front. We hit it and he held on for 14th, and I held off Whitey to land 15th. I guess Landry's guy was cramping that last lap, was all he could do to hold me off. Hey props! Glad I was there to motivate him. Was good times.
Good times.
Kept my Whitey win streak going only barely though. Luck plays into everything though.
Between races I just snacked, rode around a bit, had maybe a beer, maybe two... (recovery drinks) heckled with the new megaphone, ate more food, drank water... changed out of skinsuit let it air out, wore orange suit, wandered, talked, had a f'n blast.
So good.
With the single speed race last, and so many fresh legs gunning for it, and after having a solid first race. I couldn't be happier with results.
Sure I would have loved to do better, I think I had a pile of places in me for both races potentially but considering Crossresults race predictor had me finishing the 40+ 12th and I finished (14th on that thing but really 15th) given end of season rankings and in the Single Speed race being predicted 8th and actually finishing 9th? You know? That's totally cool with me.
I don't know how it bodes for the rest of the season but Data is fun to play with (love hate relationship with Crossresults ya know)...
Good to catch up with everyone though. Skinny Craig esp. Sort of almost like having Fatmarc there. Hell EVERYONE. So good to see everyone.
ESP my teammates. Love those guys sort of. not really. but they are kind of sort of okay. I mean we're kind of more like brothers than anything else. From Prov Velo, to Refunds Now to Planet Bike to CX Racing and now it feels really really fucking awesome to be racing as ENGVT.
Can't say enough. So awesome having Jerry be able to make this happen. We're not a big team and we more or less just race each other sometimes (check those SS results).
It needs to be said. (sure at the end, but it is important) Jerry has done a ton for bike racing this summer. And by doing a ton I mean writing all the checks.
But he doesn't like personal thanks so fuck you jerry, you jackass. Indebted.
But hey again... WOW ENGVT IS f'N AWESOME.
The drive home was pretty brutal, and was later than normal because TEAM SHIT WAS HAPPENING. HANGING OUT WITH MY TEAMMATES (who didn't leave yet... aka hanging with Skinny White dude and ChaBOOM). But later than normal was fine. I was just exhausted and by the time i hit 95 i was super sleepy.
It was a long exhausting day full of awesomeness and hanging out with friends.
Can't wait for next weekend. Anyone got room for two bikes and me driving from PVD to VT early Saturday morning and coming back Sunday afternoon?
heddwch
G
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sniff
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