This Entry Will Be About Bike Racing

Okay. Let me preface this by saying that I feel great. The legs are awesome, the mind is awesome, it feels like i'm catching some good breaks, all that. Yesterday was no exception, but here's the story:

Day 3: Manitawoc Criterium

Again, Nate, Cameron, and myself got to the race nice and early. Forecast called for a "severe thunderstorm watch". There was hardly a cloud in bright blue sky. This was 2pm. So we got there around 3, and of course, I registered. Right after I register ($37!), giant black clouds roll through. It's okay, they'll blow over. Then some thunder, some Lightning. It's okay, it's probably in some distant county. 5 minutes later: steadily increasing amounts of chunky chunky midwest rain. Bummer. Why'd I register for this thing so early? Ah well. This is why procrastination works great (sometimes).

The storm blew over about 20 minutes before our start, but not without leaving some nice puddles and slick tarmac throughout the .6 mile course. I dropped the tire pressure to 105psi, and hoped for the best. I won't lie, one of my biggest weaknesses on the bike is wet conditions racing...i'm a fair weather SoCal guy for life, we know this. Oh, and all of a sudden, conspicously present were a score of new riders who were not here for the previous two days...nice times. No one was really salivating over the conditions, but i'm sure some midwest kids were stoked for rain. Okay, enough. Race starts. Sun's comin out, steam's rising from the course. It basically dried up entirely, with the exception of a few giant puddles. The 105 psi is great in corner, I think it was an advantage yesterday, wet or dry. I'm riding near or at the front the whole time. Legs are perfect, HR is just cruising along. Yeah. Made no aggressive moves, however, for the first 20 laps (80 laps total). In bike racing...it's advantageous to sit near the front of the pack...as most crashes happen mid-pack or further back. Nope. Sitting 10th wheel, the guy right in front of me went down in a straightaway (cmmmmmmmmmon guy! what are you doing?? Go crash in the back!), and I had no choice but to plow right into him. It was one of dozens of crashes on the day. There was no ambiguity to who caused the crash...this guy in front of me did (taking down 4-5 others behind me as well), and the funny thing is HE was more upset than anyone else. Wheel and Sprocket guy. Thanks. I cut my right thigh up nicely, nicked my levers slightly, ankle, my brand new shoes!!!!!!!!!!!! Eh. I was a bit upset and distraught. Whatev. I was psyched to find my bike in perfect shape, and found new motivation in that fact. This is getting awfully long. In short, I won 4 primes. $20, $20, $100 (though there's some controversy which I don't care to get into), and just a few points for the sprint jersey. The finale....I was in PERFECT position going into the bell lap, and my legs were definitely up for the task...no cramps. But I f-ed it up, guys. Instead of thinking "kill it!@!", I was timid, and took the last two corners a bit too conservatively, lost some spots, and finished an agonizing 26th. Why agonizing? 25th place gets $50. How much does 26th place get? $0. It's my fault, however, and I did a disservice to the good legs. Opportunity lost. I'll make up for it, and hey, I guess the primes weren't too bad. Okay. Alpine Valley in 30 minutes. Addieu.


and some photos: