Conversations from a Road Race
This season has become, yet another change in focus.
Last year I did no triathlons because my foot was broken.
The year before that I did no triathlons because well, I was training for a 50 mile run.
This year, (and last) all about triathlon.
Which is good, actually because I have noticed that there is not 1, NOT 1 Mountain Bike Race on the USA Cycling website for the state of MN. Did I mention, not 1! Anyway that’s not today’s story.
So there’s this triathlon here in Winona, called Trinona, I’ve known about it for years, and now that I am here, I’m giving it a shot. It’s not my ‘A’ race, it’s a ‘B’ and 2 weeks later is my “A’ race in Chicago.
But I really want to earn a podium there, to do well, so all of my training is going into making that as much of a possibility that I can control.
So I found some ‘C’ races to help me get ready for it.
One was in Cannon Falls, that was last weekend.
A little 19 miler.
My thought process going into it, was what a great brick workout.
I don’t know the course,
I know it’s going to be windy,
I know there’s a ‘climb’ to the finish, that’s not ‘as big as the climbs in Winona’.
I don’t know any of the racers,
I don’t know any of their skills.
And I know the start is uphill into the wind.
Rule #1 Be Safe by racing smart.
This story is true to the best of my ability, and the conversations are sometimes out loud and sometimes in my head.
The conversations in my mind are in no way meant to be derogatory, but humorous.
So we’re at the line, and I am tucked off the front to the left.
START!
I’m off the front and everyone is tucked behind the new girl.
I’m working, but I’m smart, I’m not working THAT hard.
I pull off to the left (which means someone else take the pull)
No one does.
So I get back over.
I pull off to the left.
No one takes the pull.
I am not going to pull you ladies up this hill into the wind, you’ve got to by CRAZY!!
I get back over.
I pull off to the left no one takes the pull,
I get back over.
This is bullshit. These girls actually think I am stoopid enough to pull them up this climb into the wind on the start of this race. No WAY!
So I slow down to about 10 mph. It may have actually even been slower than that!
They didn’t like that too much.
They finally decided they had had enough of my shenanigans, which is good, because I had clearly had enough of theirs. And I hopped.
A girl jumped to take the lead after the turn, but I just didn’t have any jump, I couldn’t there was nothing there.
“Are you going to let her do that, and get a way with it?” from the Peanut Gallery.
Why yes, I have no jump, and why don’t you put your money where your mouth is,
“Help yourself, go get her”
I had no jump to get that jump either.
So little miss panties in a wad, made the jump with another girl, and off they went.
Me, I was doing everything I could for work.
There were two other girls in our group.
I wasn’t thinking it’s all me, I want to win this thing; ME, ME, ME!!
I just wanted to have a hard ride, and do everything I could.
I kept getting spit off the back…
catching up,
getting spit off the back,
catching up,
5 to 6 times.
Finally it looked the the other two girls were getting tired of spitting me off the back, and I caught back up,
“Damn, you guys keep spitting me off the back”
“Sorry”
Then, it was the 3 of us, with the 2 of us working together.
The 3rd one finally worked a little bit.
I wanted us to hold a strong echelon, working together, taking short pulls off the front, that would get us all there faster and leave a lot more on the tank.
We caught the girl whom had her panties in a wad, we passed her, and she caught on for a second, but couldn’t hold our pace.
So, how did making the jump work out for you in the beginning when you were sitting behind me, taking my pull??
A junior boy caught us, he was the team member of the girl we were riding with. The other girls began pacing him, I thought it was illegal to draft someone from a different category,
3B5. Taking pace or assistance from any outside means is
forbidden, including holding on to a motor vehicle or taking
pace from riders in a different race that is concurrently on the
same course.
Plus, in a NM race we had that come up, and that’s what someone told me. I guess, I really need clarification on that rule.
So anyway, I told the girls, I thought drafting off of him was illegal, and that we could get DQ’d. They held pace for a while, but I’m such a stickler for the rules, I just couldn’t have anything to do with it.
There was a camera man on course, and I went off the left in a non-draft position, and the girls told me
“get behind his wheel” like I didn’t know that was the fastest spot.
“No thank you, I don’t want any pictures of me doing something that may be considered illegal.”
He was off, thank god.
And the team mate said,
“We need to catch him.”
“Ok, go ahead” Pull us up there. Feel free, what’s stopping you?”
Oh yea, you’re drafting off of us two stronger, bigger riders, that’s what.
Bye, bye junior, good luck.
and p.s. stop looking behind and only look forward, each time you look back, you’re wasting precious seconds that could be going forward. If the rest of the group is going to catch you, they’re going to catch you, and they are less likely to catch you if you don’t waste time looking over your shoulder.
“Is this the climb?”
No.
Finally we are working together in more uniformed way.
“Is this the climb?”
Yes.
I see the finish line.
I will pull you both all the way up this climb.
And you will sprint to the finish line for 3rd and 4th place.
You’re welcome.
Out for a 6 mile run afterwards and a 5th place out of 11.
I really like the girl who got 4th place, she reminded me a lot of Rachel Chavez in NM. Super strong rider, same build, and of course, kicked my ass.
This weekend I was supposed to race Friday TT and Sunday Road Race at the La Crosse Omnium. I felt tired all week, 3 cups of coffee tired, just didn’t feel right, wasn’t really sure what was going on, freezing in the pool on Wednesday, freezing. Come to find a little fever yesterday. In my 30’s I would have raced, faked it, and lost 10-14 days of training. For a “C” race, I don’t think so. I’m kinda sad, but….