Specialized BicyclesIt was bitter-ass cold, Chadwick was at home watching a Care Bears Marathon, and Pete ran a bike with gears. What else do you really need to know?
By all accounts this was quite a challenging course, especially for those of us who aren't into that whole "shifting" thing. It was a deliciously painful cross track, loaded with nasty off-camber switchbacks, one set of barriers, a few straightaways, and some steep, quad shredding climbs. I'm sure I need not mention the staircase.
Apparently a lot of people were crashing during this race. I was told of a 4 or 5 rider collision near a large tree, and a mass of bodies tangled inside the sand pit shortly thereafter. I don't think Pete ever wrecked, but I'm pretty sure the rest of us did. I'd hate to hear that Pete scratched that pretty S-works...
Nick, Bopp, and myself started on the front row, and I'm not sure where Pete was. (Chadwick was at home in front of the TVin his whitey-tighties). While we stood there freezing, Buddy walked around talking and threatening to start the race. When he finally blew the whistle, I couldn't get my right foot clipped in, so I'd say about 20 people passed me before we made it to the first turn. Not that they wouldn't have passed me anyway, but geez man, that's frustrating. Nick turned some heads by taking an early lead and guiding the pack through the first set of switchbacks. I'd say he held that lead until the first straightaway, when the cyclists behind him started shifting gears. You can only do so much with one speed...
There was a set of switchbacks at the far end of the course on a steep hill. They were pretty tough, but they were only a taste of the pain that lay a bit further down the track. I think we zig-zagged up and down the hill about 6 times in that section.
At the top end of the last of those curves, you dropped down a short decline to a small straightaway through some frozen mud. There were a lot of ruts through that little section, and if you weren't careful you could get caught in one of them and wipeout.
Perhaps the most ominous and punishing natural feature to the course was a really steep, tall climb going into a sharp left turn. Most of the people I saw were only making it about half way up before they had to dismount and start pushing their bikes. After that left turn you dropped down about ten feet and came right back up. It was like trying to ride a "W" going sideways on a ridiculously steep hill. It was pretty much a nightmare. I was lucky enough to wreck once while going up that hill, and was subsequently run over by a guy on a really nice blue Redline.
The only cool thing about this part of the track was the super-fast downhill directly afterward. That whole section was just a dirty, dirty female dog.
This course also sported the sexiest sandpit I've ever seen; I heard it told that Jeff Yielding had 10 tons of sand hauled in just for us. What a guy, he knows how to put on a quality race. The pit was mostly rideable, which made it a friggin' blast. It was not without its problems though, as our own Nick Smith found out. He went chugging into the sandbox right behind some guy who decided to flop down in the sand. With nowhere to go and no other options, Nick smashed straight into the guy and went flying into the sand himself. The carnage that ensued swallowed up about another 8-10 guys. And since Nick's bike, (and his body), were at the bottom of the pile, he was one of the last racers to get out of that mess. The wreck put him pretty far back in the field, but he earned back most of the spots he lost as the race wore on. This whole debaucle worked to Bopp's benefit though, as he ran past the heap of victims on his way to another top 10 finish.
The barriers, (You know, the ones that Fuhrman didn't bunny-hop), in this race were pretty easy. They were on some nice flat ground right next to the food tent and the DJ. An easy remounting area made this part of the track very nice. Even I looked PRO on the barriers...
Somewhere in the middle of all this, there's a little obstacle I like to call the Stairway to Hell. If you've never climbed the Hermann staircase, you haven't lived. I think it's something like 60 steps, and they all hurt. Thank God for cyclocross fans, if there weren't people cheering us up those steps I don't think we would have made it. I don't know if anybody threw up, but I had to choke back the urge on the last 2 laps.
About half way thru lap 2 the weather started to change. The sun came out and the mud wasn't frozen anymore. Things got a bit tricky after that, and a lot more people started wiping out because the track had changed so much in such a short time. Hey, remember that really steep downhill I talked about earlier? At the bottom of that hill riders had to negotiate a fairly tight right turn. Yeah, that part got mushy and scary real quick when the sun came out.
Four laps of suffering and it was over. Pete took 20th, Nick 18th, and Bopp got 7th place. Pete raced again, bringing in a respectable 7th place finish. Barry did the Old Fart race, fishing 8th.
This report wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention that Jessica and Alvyne provided some awesome cookies and brownies for all of us after the race. Add to that, they stood outside and froze their asses off with Skippy and Andy while cheeringus on for an hour. My parents even came out to witness my sorry ass 37th place finish.
That reminds me; if anyone knows anything about rotary engines, call Jessica. She's got questions that need answered:)
Post race fanfare is always a highlight, and this race was no exception. The team consumed 2 gallons of Dopplebock beer from the brewery, 2 six packs of Pilsner, and who knows what else as we stood by the firepits screaming and blowing horns at other riders.
After a fruitless hunt for freshly-cooked porkrinds in 3 different towns, it was time to call it a day. Jeff Yielding put on a damn fine race, and I think I speak for everyone when I say I 'm glad we were there.
Witty comment here.
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