Here is a bit of a summary of my experience at Cyclocross nationals in Hartford Ct January 2017. Unlike last year, I did not target nats this year, and candidly wasn’t 100% sure I was going until even a week before. One sign of an ice storm and I was out. But my win in the last local race told me that I had some fitness still, and I wanted to try again to see if I could improve on last year.
Rain on Tuesday created mud, and with races on Tuesday and Wednesday it created a million muddy ruts. Thursday those froze solid. I Drove up Wednesday, went to check in and pre-ride the course on Thursday. It was like nothing we’ve ever had here. The frozen ruts would grab your wheels and throw you. There was a huge hill, the side of Dike, where you could pick your adventure, Immediately run up then run across the top line (way too off camber and choppy to ride, or you could ride a rut at the low line and then run up the hill later where it was higher and steeper). That hill was exposed to the sun so it was super slick and choppy, hard to run even with long toe spikes.
treacherous to run
Friday morning I woke to 1 inch of snow on the ground and more falling.
The course was now covered in snow. So frozen ruts covered/hidden by slick snow.
snowy frozen ruts
Eric Ivy of Bikenetic crashed and broke 2 ribs during preride when ruts just threw him down on top of a broken course stake.
My race was at 12:40 – I was staged 60th, 8th row, out of 93. AND the snow had all melted in the hour before my race, so suddenly it was a top inch or two of wet mud, and I didn’t have a mud tire on my back wheel. Two crashes shortly after the pavement slowed me a bit. Chaos on the big hill. Utter chaos in the woods where the ruts were the worst. Guys falling in front of you, stepping off. But you couldn’t just get off and run through it because the ground was so slick and choppy you’d brake an ankle.
I took my pit bike for the 2nd lap.
On the pit bike
That was a bit of an improvement. And then I got my A bike back with a mud tire on the back, and could start to move. My third lap was my fastest as I gained confidence and started rolling over the ruts. This was not a contest of fitness or even power. You spent so much effort trying to pick your way across treacherous ruts or around greasy turns that you couldn’t ever just pedal. Every little dip in the ground you had to pick a rut and commit to it and be prepared for it to throw you. But for the last 3 laps I was able to feel like I was doing some racing. With one to go my chain was skipping badly if I shifted into a small cog in the back so I threw it in the big ring up front for the finishing pavement and out to the pits,…AND DAMN suddenly I flew through a bunch of guys and was thinking why didn’t I do this the whole time. I was finally rolling a gear. The last half of the last lap I was all out to hold off the group I had passed. But as a result I was barely in control and went into one course stake, and then 2 minutes later into another, just 2 turns from the finishing stretch, which let one guy by me, but I held the rest off.
I found out later that I was 55th. So I beat the race predictor (USAC had me 60th and CrossResults 62nd). I wasn’t lapped or pulled, and comically, I was just 3 guys behind Peter Schultz from Bikenetic (pretty much like last year, and all season).
The amount of mud was incredible. My bottom bracket is shot. My skinsuit had mud soaked all the way through (it’s soaking in water right now until my hose thaws so I can pressure wash it).
At least I didn’t make all the rookie mistakes I did last year, but I’d be lying if I said I was satisfied. Still frustrated with my inability to put together a truly strong performance at nats. But the conditions were nothing we could practice for. We’ve never had frozen ruts.
It has been a week since Jake & I drove down to Asheville last Monday for Cyclocross National Championships 2016. I'm not sure that my thoughts on last week are fully baked, but they probably are as good as they're going to get.
I had targeted this event over a year ago when they announced it would be in North Carolina and it would be my first year in the 50-54 group. My work for this started with cyclocross season in 2014. My training was pretty good all year. I did Tour of Battenkill in April to give me something to target for training the first half year.
My cross season started a bit slow and a bit late, but that was ok. Ultimately, it was arguably my strongest season ever. I did 19 races. I. Won. A. Race! I was top 3 in the Cat 3/4 35+ races I did. I was 2nd in Virginia State Champs 50-54. And by the end I was getting top 10 in the Super 8 45+ 123 races. Stop after the final race and it's a super season.
I will say that holding that form until January 6th was hard. I trained consistently. But not having the races for 3 weeks really cost me an edge, I'm sure.
Monday -- Travel, first course view, and the bike drama
The day before we left, my bike started making a weird "clunk" in the bottom bracket area. I rushed to FreshBikes and Kevin thought it was that the crank was loose and just needed an adjustment to the pre-load ring.
We drove 7 hours to Asheville and immediately went to the venue. Jake had gotten an email from his Furman teammate, Nate Morse, whose dad was ranked #2 in the 50-54, that the course was insanely hard and that "people were going to get hurt." We drove to the course to look around, and immediately saw a 15 foot high steep drop in that had a compression area at the bottom where people's front wheel would just stop and send them over the bars. We saw a guy crash hard as we stood there. Yikes. (Nate's dad dislocated his shoulder during pre-ride, and Steve Tilford broke a finger and some ribs)
Worse, we went back to the hotel and I got on my bike on the trainer to spin out my legs. My legs felt good, which was good, but my bike was clunking with every pedal turn, and it was driving me nuts. I tried adjusting the tension ring myself, and lost sleep overnight stressing about it and the drop in we saw.
Tuesday -- pre-ride
Tuesday we drove to the venue. Despite pre-event emails from USA cycling about parking problems and the need to use satellite parking and shuttles, we were able to park right there in the parking lot. However, concerns about the parking were a definite stress source. We hooked up with Wesley of Pro Bike Express who would be my pit crew and have trainers and a tent for me to use.
The course was only open for a short time during lunch, and it was very chaotic with all the people of various abilities. I rode the Ingles "run up" hill, and was able to handle the first steep drop without much problem.
Ingles "Heckle Hill" -- rideable, for some
There was a second big hill on the other half of the course. None of these climbs were straight forward. The ground was terraced with "steps" created by cows walking across the slope, so you had to pick a line, and it was difficult to cut up or down the steep steps.
Like this
Photo by Jon Winters during Collegiate race
And then there was an even more technical drop into the woods, followed by more downhill and turning with roots and dirt. There was a 2+ foot drop into a sharp left hand turn. people were standing and looking at it. I think I rode it once but otherwise ran it because of all the people in the way.
Here is video of it during the Div 1 Collegiate race:
The pure joy of being a spectator captured by @pastryweight #cxnats #technicaldifficulties
Posted by Team VeloFemme on Sunday, January 10, 2016
this is after they opened it; imagine the fencing 5+ feet higher up the hill to close off the drop in
Strangely, after riding the techical drops, I crashed in some ruts on a straight flat section of the course because the ground below the mud was frozen ruts. The course was incredibly challenging. It required concentration at all times. You could never simply pedal. You had to produce power while also picking your way across bad/awkward ground. And I would get to do it starting 8 rows deep out of 100 people.
We picked up my first ever national championship number.
Good news, my bottom bracket was quiet....until later that afternoon when I decided to get on the trainer in our room to loosen my legs. Ugh, that sound of clunking drove me nuts. I didn't need that. And it lead to a bad decision on my part.
Wednesday - Race Day.
If necessary, Jake was going to drop me and the stuff off and take the car to parking and ride the shuttle, but We once again won the parking lottery. We were there 3 hours in advance, so no problem. But USAC was not allowing pre-riding between races, which really sucked and threw me off (although I did sneak on and get in a half lap, working on the bonk breaker drop in. After the 10:30 race, I did another half lap and stood there to watch the leaders of the 11:30 race take the drop in. But then I realized that I only had 1:15 before my race, but that was really only 55 minutes because they stage 20 minutes in advance. I needed to put on my skinsuit, embro, and warm up. Well, this was the big screw up. I only got about 10 minutes on the trainer, and it wasn't my trainer, just this roller thing. Ugh.
I was 8th Row although I ended up a row behind Scott Stahl. I lined up against the right fence figuring I didn't want to get pinned in the middle. (thanks to Chris Merriam for appearing from nowhere and taking my jacket and pants; Jake was pre-riding and then going to the pit). My start sucked and I was pushed against the fencing forcing me to back off even more. I was in crap position and felt bad.
Bunch more in front than behind
30 second into the race there was a crash in the middle of the pack going over a minor bump. Someone literally said "there it is." I was held up a little but basically got by with just a foot down, but seriously, the guys in the front 20 were going full speed at that point, so we're screwed even more.
I had no snap and was just fighting to hold position for the first lap. On the pavement going past the finish I got behind some guy and started to draft. But when we got to the pits I heard Marc Vettori yell at me to GO. And I thought about something Marc said earlier in the year to Neil Schirmer, "don't settle" -- this woke me up and so I stood up and accelerated away from the little group I was tucked into. It was time to go. (not sure why Jake went slow-mo with this clip)
I don't remember the second lap. HOWEVER, I was able to successfully ride the big Ingles "run up" hill, which let me pass several guys (other laps I was only getting about 3/4 up because of traffic but it was still faster to ride that much and quickly run the last few steps).
Then coming down the flyover I passed Peter Schultz of Bikenetic, who had gotten a much better start. That gave me a boost.
I guess Peter had a flat because at the end of that lap he caught me and I slotted onto his wheel. I thought for sure we were only going to do 3 laps. In the earlier races, guys like Kimani Neilson had been pulled after 3 laps. But Peter was motoring and we were going pretty good.
that's peter in green
The scary drop in from Tuesday was a non-issue
But I botched the drop into the woods and crashed, getting caught up in the snow fencing. Peter was gone. So I saw 2 to go and figured this had to be my last lap. So I went full gas the whole lap trying to catch guys. But again I crashed into the woods (let me point out that they opened up this section on Friday after Jake's race and during the Collegiate D1 race; I'm not saying it was easy then, but just imagine with the fencing forcing a radically tighter turn at the drop). I literally sprinted the final minute trying to catch the guy in front of me, but when I turned the corner, they were ringing the bell and Mimi was not standing there to pull me after the line. OH NO I HAVE TO DO ANOTHER LAP. but I was gassed. I had to regroup, but I lost time and a couple guys caught me from behind. Ugh. I regrouped a bit and fought back, chasing a few guys
this guy's daughter was Nat'l Champ last year
I ran down into the woods the last time. I finished.
So, I finished on the lead lap, which I guess is something. I was 56th. Better than my 64th USAC ranking/prediction. But I'm still not satisfied, really as I sit here I get fairly pissed. I'm frustrated by how bad I felt. My heart rate was not where it should have been. The warm up was a major screw up and all my fault. Crashing twice into the woods was a killer as well. I needed to go harder and handle better.
But, it was a great experience. The course was harder than anything I've ever seen, and that includes the Cincinnati Pan Am course, the Louisville Worlds course, and Providence. The venue was fun. The results were quick and correct. I'm really glad I went and raced. It only fuels my desire to try again and improve without the stupid "rookie" mistake(s) (sorry Loren).
It's critical to say that I couldn't have done it without the support of my Long Suffering Wife, Loren. I told her that letting me do my crazy cyclocross thing was the best and only christmas present I needed. I also was helped by solid coaching from Ken Lundgren. Also a bunch of free advice from guys like John Verhuel, and the Wednesday morning practice crew who had a great season. It was my first season without Jake but it was nice to have him there to help at Nats, and he had a good collegiate race, but that's another post.
I've been racing my bike since 2001. I have never won a bike
race. Back in 2012, I did the Sportif Cup 3/4 Masters series and I was
first 45 year old a couple of times but never first out of the whole field. Once in 2005 or so I "won"
a beginner mtb race by being the only one silly enough to finish after two
hours of pouring rains. But I never lined up with 50 guys and came across
the line before anyone else.
Until Saturday. (and now you're going to hear all about it)
The Howard County Biketoberfest CX race was on Saturday. It is a
second year race. I had it down as a "maybe" on the
schedule. My coach wanted me to race and I needed to meet Jon Hicks to pick
up the course tape for next Sunday's Tacchino (go register here, now,
I'll wait). So, I registered on Thursday. I signed up for the Cat
3/4 35+ rather than my usual 45+ 123 because it was earlier and I wanted to get
home earlier in the day. I'm a racing age 50 cat 3 who has been getting
his butt kicked in the 45+ races, so, I qualify. But
CrossResults.com predicted me 1st, which was a surprise, but a bunch of other guys
had basically the same ranking points. I would go in with no
expectations, but felt like I could do well.
Friday night at dinner, I was messaging with Jon about meeting to get the
course tape and told him I was racing at 10am. His response was "If
you didn't race there last year, be sure to bring your climbing legs.
This one hurts bad." Climbing you say? I responded that I weigh 130
pounds so climbing is good.
I drove up there with just enough time to pre-ride the course before the 9am
race. It was frosty and the ground was definitely a bit slippery in
places. It was a super course. Lots of climbing followed by
twisting, technical turns. There were a series of punchy climbs and 2
steep longer climbs of maybe 30 seconds, one about 1/3 into the lap and another
2/3 into the lap back through the woods. Otherwise the course had some
technical challenges that were also good for me. About mid lap there was
a sharp off camber into a steep little rise. It begged to be ridden but
the ground was very greasy from the frost, so in warm up I ran it and also on
the first lap I ran it. Immediately thereafter was a drop in U turn with
a log across the climb and then another 15-20 seconds of climbing after
that. I thought I could probably remount immediately after the log on a
little flat area, but it was a gamble. On the whole, it was a great
course for me.
I was able to slide into a
spot on the first row on the far left of the grid. There was a surprise whistle, but I got a clean clip in and slotted easily into
2nd behind a guy from CXHairs (who I think was predicted 2nd).
I basically followed him the entire first
lap. It was a good pace but I felt good. As I said, we
ran the entire hill after the log. And he actually put in a little gap
but I easily brought it back on the long climb through the woods. (added a couple of photos courtesy of Mike Neary his collection is HERE)
I tried to remount on lap 1 but it didn't work
Photos by Mike Neary https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeneary/
I could
see about 5-8 guys just behind us. So at the finish line going into the 2nd
lap, I upped the pace a bit, just to keep it high and get rid of some
people. Mr. CXHairs came back around, which was fine.
Well on the first hard climb, about 1/3 of the
way through the second lap, I hit it hard. I was not purposefully
attacking, just pushing the pace and standing up the climb. At the top, I
suddenly had a gap. I don’t know, maybe 3-5 seconds, maybe 50 feet or 30
yards, I wasn’t looking back. I thought to myself, "Ok, well this is
WAY too early to just ride away solo." There were 4 laps to
go. So I figured I’m just going to keep my pace and figure they’ll
ride back to me. Immediately thereafter were the 2 big technical
challenges. And I was able to ride the exit of the tricky off camber,
then I was able to clip in immediately after the log and ride up the
hill.
Pretty sure this was Lap 2 at end of climb through woods (photo Mike Neary)
Ok, now there was a good gap. I wasn’t about to sit up, so I
continued to ride hard on the hills and try to be smooth on the turns.
Well, that continued, and it became a head
game. Am I going fast enough? When is someone going to charge back to me.
I thought I had a pretty big gap, but Bill Schieken on the PA was saying 6
seconds, which couldn’t be right. My favorite quote from him was
“Scott Thompson, showing the baby masters how it’s done”
Now it was purely a head game. "Oh my
god, don't screw this up." And sure enough, with 2 laps to go, I
botched the ride out of the off camber and crashed. OH SHIT OH
SHIT. I got it back together and tried to hit the climbs hard. Then
on the barriers I clipped my foot on the first plank and almost crashed into
the second plank but caught myself. Again, OH SHIT. I needed to
keep it together. But I could see I still had a big gap. On the
last lap I kept to the plan of hitting the climbs hard. I still had gas
left in the tank but I could feel my legs were tiring. I was conservative
and ran the off camber exit, but tried to push some turns. I passed some
lapped traffic toward the end but wasn't going to let up too early.
I had time to zip up my
skinsuit going into the barriers, which were maybe 30 seconds from the finish
(and carefully fully clear them). And was able to come across the finish
solo, arms held high. (there was a photographer, I need to get that picture) and here it is
I won by 45 seconds over the guys in 2nd.
Wow. Just wow.
I have been overwhelmed by the kind words from teammates
and friends Thank you all.
Today at NCVC's Sander Memorial CX I was able to ride smoothly in the mud and brought home a solid 10th in a stacked 45+ Elite race, a solid improvement over the first races of the season. Hope to carry this momentum.
It's been a while. Lots of things have changed. Time moves along. So, I thought I'd capture it. I find that this blog and it's predecessor are actually great for going back to see where we were at certain times.
It's Labor Day weekend 2015, and I'm prepping to embark on my 12th season of racing cyclocross. I'm racing age 50 for cyclocross this fall (because the cyclocross season crosses over into next year, your racing age is what you will be December 31st of next year). Cross Nationals is in Ashville NC this year, so even last year I decided that I was going. It would be my first cyclocross nationals and I would be a first year in the 50-54 group.
But this will be a different season. For the first time in 9 years, I'll be racing alone. No more Soigneur Dad, no more Team Thompson and Sons. Jake is off racing and studying and doing college freshman stuff at Furman University. We're super proud of his development and hope that this will be the next step up for him as a bike racer and as a man.
Liam is about to start high school Tuesday. He has forsworn bike racing (that's his brother's thing). He's into computer games and technology. He's taller than Loren but I've still got him by an inch. He'll rule the world (no, seriously, it's a stated goal).
At Donner Pass in June
Loren tolerates me, still, kinda. She's always creating with her spinning and knitting and has been doing some indoor rowing and long walks. Here's some of her recent work -- spinning her own yarn from fiber
So next weekend I'll put my bike(s) in the car to go to Luray (scene of the 2011 great Thompson family showdown reported here -- yes, the last time I beat Jake on a bike was in 2011) for my first cyclocross race of the year, and it will just be me. I've been training, which is good. But age is nasty and I need to lay off the ice cream sandwiches and beer. I'll miss having Jake and Liam around. It'll be a bit weird, I admit. A little less complete.
I'll always be Soigneur Dad -- Sven Nys' dad still drives his bus. No one will ever take care of you like Dad. But for most races now I'll be solo masters racer, with empty spots on the bike rack.
For the 4th year in a row Jake & I made our way to upstate New York for the Tour of the Battenkill. (prior reports 2012, 2013, and 2014). Billed as America's toughest one-day race. It's a 68 mile race with 12 miles worth of gravel roads and a variety of climbs. This year was a new route (and it seemed like less gravel and less climbing).
A long hard road race with gravel roads has always been perfect for Jake and he has historically done well. This year, since it was his last year doing it as a junior (and realistically likely the last year he and I go together), I figured what the hell, I'll race it too. I signed up for the Cat 4 40+ race (there were 2 waves of 100 in that field alone). My Coppi teammate Greg Butler was also signed up, and so was Tanner Browne's dad, Bill.
Rather than stay at the usual hotel, this year I decided to get a place through Airbnb. So I found a little house in Saratoga Springs with 3 bedrooms. Jake, Bill, and I would stay there. It was a good choice. We got to make our own breakfasts and generally be comfortable.
Jake & I drove up to Arlington Thursday night and then on to Saratoga Springs early Friday so that I could pre-ride the course Friday afternoon before my Saturday morning race. We got there and joined Greg for some recon of the opening 10 miles. They had shifted the course and this year the graveled climbs of Meetinghouse Road would be early, at the 10 mile mark. We also checked out the final 1km dirt climb that would come just 2km before the finish. I said the winner would sprint up it and other people would cramp to a stop.
Friday night Jake and I had the ritual Chipotle pre-race dinner then went and hung out with the Miller School team, who were eating late.
Saturday, Greg and I lined up for our race. The sun was out and it was warm (I shoved my arm warmers in my back pocket before we even started).
The pack was fairly sedate for the first 10 miles, but as we neared Meetinghouse, we started to race to stay near the front. I was comfortably in the top 10 as we hit the first paved climb and then top 5 heading onto Meetinghouse. I was able to easily pick my own lines on the descents (it's basically 3 one-minute climbs back to back, all over gravel/dirt). I came out of Meetinghouse Road 4th wheel and it was exciting to take corners where I had seen Jake in past years making the select group. Next we hit Stage Road, a longer, stair-stepping gravel climb that used to the final climb before the finish. This year everyone was fresh. Greg drove the pace on the pavement into the climb. I slotted into the top 4 and dug in to stay there. It was HARD. I thought my stomach was going to explode as I responded to all the surges. I was determined to stay in the top 10, assuming that this was going to shatter the group. I came over Stage Road 4th in the group. After the descent someone looked back and said there were only 20 of us left. But on the long pavement section after more people, including Greg, reconnected and the group was probably more like 35. Still I stayed near the front but avoided doing any work.
The next big climb was Juniper Swamp Road, which was steep and the dirt was still wet and soft. I struggled about half way up. My wheels were sinking in and it felt like I had a flat. I got gapped off the group by a few seconds, but me and Greg and a few other guys were able to fairly quickly chase back onto the group of 30? More transitional miles lead us toward the second feed zone at mile 50. Jake was supposed to be there. he was going to ride with Miller School then drive my car over to the feed zone and get me a bottle. As we climbed up the feed zone I looked but he wasn't there. I grabbed a neutral water bottle. I was starting to suffer with the signs of pre-cramps.
Immediately after the feed zone was Joe Bean Road. A long paved climb. The field shattered. I was starting to cramp but was able to stay in touch. A group of 5 was able to pull away, then a group of 10. I was a few seconds off the 10 over the top and quickly joined them. People were trying to organize a chase. I made the mistake of pulling through. Immediately after we hit Riddle Road (I actually read the sign). It was another steep gravel climb, this time I cracked. I was gapped off the group. I struggled over the top and on the gravel descent I couldn't see anything as all the sweat poured down into my eyes. Damn. There were still like 15 miles to go. Mostly "downhill". I was badly cramping. Greg and another guy caught me after a minute or two. But they quickly dropped me because I couldn't pedal hard enough yet. They would power on and eventually catch the front group of 15.
I spent seemingly forever alone in a strong side/head wind. Finally 2 guys caught me (and expressed shock that I got dropped on the downhill - no respect for the lightweight). I had to dig in just to stay with them. They yelled at me to pull and complained that I was sandbagging them for the final climb. I told them I was cramping. I pulled through a few times but it really was all I could do. But sure enough, we got to the final climb and I dropped them. I tried to get one of them to come with me, but basically my meager efforts -- basically just keeping my legs turning over -- was too fast. Gravity is a bitch.
I finished 21st.
My climbing had been among the best until those cramps on Riddle Road. Jake had been delayed so got to the feed zone after us. He had to untie my shoes because I was afraid I'd cramp if I bent over. Greg had finished 16th about 2minutes ahead.
Sunday morning Jake lined up with a super strong field of 17-18 year olds (the kid who won did the junior Paris Roubaix a week ago). Miller School had 8 (I think) boys starting.
We expected the juniors to be aggressive early. Miller School rider Pedro Martin's dad, Ivo, and Bill and I hopped in my car and drove at break-neck speed around country roads to try and see the boys come off of Meetinghouse Road. We just barely made it. Ethan Reynolds of Hot Tubes was already 30 seconds off the front, followed by a very depleted group of about 25 that included Jake, Tanner, Marcio, and Spencer from Miller School. They had already shredded the field.
We hopped in the car and drove to the first feed zone several miles north of Cambridge NY. We hung out for a while. Ethan Reynolds had pulled out a 1.5 minute lead, followed by Gage Hecht who was trying to bridge solo up to Ethan. Then there was a group of 15-20 boys about 30 seconds back. Spencer and Marcio were there, but Jake was not. Jake appeared about 30(?) seconds behind that group, pulling away from a group of 6, trying to make his way through the cars to re-gain the group. He looked strong. A few minutes later, Tanner rolled up. He had hurt his hip flexor. He told us Jake had flatted after Stage Road.
Bill stayed with Tanner, so Ivo and I jumped in my car and headed for the second feed zone. We figured out a way that we could stop on the way and try to see them again before hop-scotching up to the feed zone. We saw them as they came off the gravel section after Juniper Swamp, basically mile 40. Ethan Reynolds' lead had extended to 2 minutes, but Gage Hecht was not with him or even ahead of the group. The group was smaller still. You can hear my nervous father commentary on the video as I scan to see if Jake has made it:
It turns out Jake had chased for approximately 15 miles. He had made contact with the group just before the Juniper Swamp Rd climb. Tired from the long chase, he said he got gapped on Juniper Swamp, but, like me, was able to quickly get back to the group on the descent. Interestingly, Gage Hecht was now 30 seconds behind (he got a flat). Ivo and I jumped in the car, but made a wrong turn and ended up behind the boys' group. We were trapped and followed them for several miles. I was afraid we wouldn't get to the feed zone in time. But I figured out a way to turn off and speed ahead of them. I had to literally run to the feed zone from the car as I could see the boys coming across the field. I got there in time to hand Jake a bottle.
This time Bill joined me as Ivo waited to give bottles to Pedro, who we heard was still out riding the course. We drove back to the start/finish. And waited. Based on Jake's subsequent report, this is what happened out on the road: Having used a lot of energy chasing early in the race, Jake got gapped again on Joe Bean Road. He said they were still in sight on Riddle Road. He joined up with a kid from Canada and told him that they could work together and get back up to the group. So they chased for probably 10 miles on the flat in the open wind, finally catching the group with about 7km to go. Jake said he made his way forward in the group and hit the final climb in 7th, but the work he had to do chasing back on twice caught up to him and mid-way up the climb his hamstring cramped badly and he couldn't keep up with the boys who were more fresh from sitting in the pack.
From the group, Jake's soon-to-be teammate at Furman, Cooper Wilsey, jumped free to be 2nd (Ethan Reynolds finished many minutes ahead). His Miller School teammate Marcio did a great sprint for 5th.
Jake rolled in a minute or so later in 23rd.
It was tough. He rode strong to chase back from an early flat tire (and confusion in the wheel van over junior cassettes slowed the process) and then to re-gain the group over the final 15 miles. But bad luck finally found him after years of clean rides at Battenkill. I'm sure that if he had been able to ride with the pack the entire race he would have been competitive for a top placing. He took it well, though, recognizing that it was the flat tire, not his fitness that failed him. He showed real determination to chase for so long and get back to the group.
We re-packed the car and started the 8.5-9 hour drive back to Crozet. But first we stopped in Saratoga Springs to pick up some huge gourmet cookies. It was a long drive, but at some point Jake realized that it was probably our last timing doing Battenkill. He said in the future he might do the Pro/1/2 race and I could do the 50+. So maybe we're not done. It's been a great run and I'll miss it next spring.
April 5, 2015 -- Sunday, watching de Ronde Van Vlaanderen (aka Tour of Flanders).
Yesterday Jake & I raced at the Morgantown RR (technically in Pennsylvania most of the time, but we'll call it West - by god - Virginia). But back to that in a moment.
Updates -- The great college search and application process (Version 1.0) has finally concluded. One of the top 5 jobs as a parent is get them into college (others: keep them alive; teach them to use the toilet; ?) Jake had been looking at Univ of Colorado Boulder, UVa, and Furman University*. He got accepted to CU Boulder early, in December, but then got a better chance to look into Furman when we visited in February and immediately loved it and wanted to attend. Most incredibly, Furman has a varsity cycling team, and they offered Jake a scholarship (yes, bike racing scholarship, incredible to think of).** So, a great opportunity for him to get a high quality education and also race with a strong and growing team (and I love the Coach, Rusty Miller). But Jake had to be accepted through the regular process, and it's a very selective school, so not easy to get into. They wouldn't announce their decisions until April 1st. So, we waited...anxiously. Last Friday evening Jake got the email -- he was accepted. He was very happy -- so much he almost showed it.
That's my sweatshirt from 1984
In the Arlington front, Liam had applied to Thomas Jefferson High School, which is a VERY competitive school focused on math and science. It is literally the number one public high school in the country. It's technically Fairfax County but they make a very small number of spots available to Arlington residents (we heard 9 or so this year). There are multiple rounds of testing, and Liam had made it to the final group, but we heard last week that he had not been in that chosen small group. Ultimately, it's fine. He had started to think that perhaps he didn't want to go anyway. But super proud of him making it to that final selection. So now he'll just get straight A's through Yorktown and we'll be on to College Section 2.0.
On his 14th Birthday
With Jake a big boy now, this spring I'm doing some road racing. I'll do Tour of Battenkill in late April, and so wanted to get in some races before that, and also toward being in shape for Cyclocross nationals next January. Two weeks ago we did Black Hills which went poorly for me (Jake had a flat tire), so we won't talk about that.
Jeff Cup
Last Sunday, we did the Jeff Cup just outside of Charlottesville, so just 20 minutes from our Crozet Team House. Jake did the 3/4 and I did the 45+ (which unfortunately they ran with the 35+). So me, life-long cat 4 on the road, was with 36 year old life long Cat 1s and 2s. I would hold on. I felt ok on a lot of the climbs and held on to the group for about 45 miles before cracking. Rode the final 10 mile lap alone. Generally, I was happy with how I felt and getting back into the rhythm of the pack. I was 30th in the 45+ (but 3rd Cat 4 of that group). Jake had some stomach issues after attacking off the front two different times in the first two laps, so had to pull out (I had some stomach upset a few days later so maybe something went around our house).
First time off the front
Jake & Tanner at the top of the big hill
Morgantown RR
Jake was eager to target the Morgantown Road Race. It's a very hard race, with a bunch of grinding West Virginia climbs. You'll recall he/we last did it in 2012 (here). It's a good course for Jake. Only the strong and good climbers make it to the end. I signed up for the 40+.
It's 4 hours from Crozet, so we drove to Wisp Resort in Maryland Friday night to shorten the trip Saturday morning. A cold front came through overnight and it was only 31 degrees when we left. There was sleet as we drove over the mountains to Morgantown (it's up in the corner where W.Va and Pa meet). The course was different than 2012. This year there were 7 (depending on what you count) climbs. Looks like this:
Climby
So they sent 40+/50+/60+ men and women Cat 123 all at once. We started off briskly and I was sitting in trying to do no work
and just follow. There were some hard efforts responding to attacks but
also some easy times. We were going fairly hard from the get go. We hammered hard up that first climb, and people were constantly getting dropped.
I genuinely don't remember exactly when I was disconnected from the front
group. It was about mile 25 in, I think it was on that very big climb, I
think it was on the kicker at the top, not sure. I got gapped in part
because I was having to fight up after people opened gaps on a descent just
before the climb. I hooked up with about 10 other people, including the
leaders of the Women 123, one guy was 60+ the rest 40+ I think.
One guy, who was bigger, was killing it on the long flats
and into the wind but at some point I realized that me and one other guy were
climbing much faster than the rest, but there were 20 miles left. I kept
it in mind.
I was suffering no doubt. On what I thought was the
last climb, 43 miles in, I pressed from the bottom and sure enough I got a
gap and only the one guy could come with me. We had a gap, but couldn't
hold it on the downhill. I couldn't help much on the downhill.. On the
next climb about half way up again I stood up and accelerated then drove
away. The one guy came up to me. We had a decent gap this time and 5 miles to
go, all basically gradually downhill. We hammered on the downhill but I was struggling. The group was far enough back to be out of sight at times. I was pulling
through but my legs were near cramping and locking up. I couldn't help enough
but I felt bad so I kept pulling through. with 2 miles to go he gapped
me. I tried to hold them off alone for a while, but w/ 2km to go the
group caught me and made me sit on the front. I soft pedaled. Then at
1km to go I drove it hard to lead out the 2 women. Then I slid in behind
them. The sprint was uphill I went all out, legs trying to cramp.
One 40+ guy had come around but I held off the others. So I was 11th
among 40+. The guy I had been with was 9th, so I would have been 10th.
Pretty good for a lifelong Cat 4.
In the meantime, up ahead, Jake had a great race. He followed a more conservative strategy and hung with the ever dwindling lead group, ultimately down to about 8. He sprinted for 4th out of that little group.
He was riding for his Cat 3 team, PTS (with the cow hat)
It was a beautiful evening to drive back through the mountains and valleys of West Virginia. Good times to come in the final season of SoigneurDad.
*Ok, so there is a family history with Furman. I went there my freshman year of college in 1984. Back then it was controlled by the Southern Baptist Convention. I wasn't so happy with the very conservative/religious student body (although I did run track in the spring, which helped), and ultimately transferred to U.F. We found out this fall that Furman had split with the Baptists and that the student body had diversified. After our visit, Jake and I were comfortable that he would fit in (yes, I asked several students very pointed questions about this topic). So, things change, new opportunities open. Special thanks to Peter Hufnagel of Miller School who helped with this.
** The governing body here is USA Cycling, not NCAA. USA Cycling considers a program "varsity" if it meets certain criteria (I think there are 4). One of them is giving scholarships. There are I think just a few less than 20 varsity programs in the country, although it is a growing thing.
