race report: Gran Prix of Gloucester Day 1, Verge NECCS #3, 3. October 2009

Got on the road at 6:45 a.m. and hydroplaned my way up 128 to Gloucester. When I arrived it was still rainy and disgusting. This is why I pack seven pairs of socks for every 'cross race. I shucked my jeans, pulled up my bibs, threw on the rest of my warmup Spandex, sucked it up, and went for a quick pre-ride before the Cat 4 men took the course. It was soggy but not completely terrible, but I knew the conditions would probably change more than slightly before my race (i.e., duh, more mud, we can always run mud if we have to). With the schedule running late and times in between races tight, my next three objectives were: 1. get the pre-ride gunk off of the frame and out of the drivetrain, 2. keep the drivetrain running pre-race, 3. keep rolling around because the trainer is at home and broken (normally, this would be cause for celebration; on a rainy day, not so much), and 4. stay as warm as possible while doing 1, 2, and 3 in the middle of a gale.

Sooo... 1. The bike wash wasn't crowded, so cleaning the stuff off was easy enough. 2. In between running around to reg and doing other pre-race stuff, I kept lubing the chain (I am really liking Pedro's ChainJ this season; it's drippy enough for a wet race, but not as gunk-attracting as SynLube) and running it through the gears. 3. I rolled around halfheartedly. 4. Rolling around seemed to make me colder, so I got in the car and slathered on a bunch of embrocation before attempting 3. again. This sort of helped until the start line. It was pouring rain and the 3/4 women were staged two minutes behind the cub juniors; the 100-odd seconds without a jacket were pretty uncomfortable.

Once we started, the discomfort of the rain was, of course, replaced by the discomfort of the race. I always have a difficult time with the uphill start at G-star, and Saturday was no different--made it into the hole shot about mid-pack and had to start picking people off through the grass chicanes. Got crashed out behind Clara Kelly in a corner, got back on again. The lack of a proper warmup started to hit me; my transitions onto and off the bike were slow as a result. Same problem after the runup--I normally rock remounts, but I was shaking and struggling to find the pedals. My legs felt like some sort of ancient machinery. By the time we were rolling past the ocean on the south side of the park, I wanted to jump off the bike and jump into the harbor. I know that sounds emo and dramatic, but it really felt like the more preferable line.

Then something happened--I don't remember where or how it occurred but I know that by the time I was back on the grass, my legs were warm again and I was attaching myself to Michele Harrison's wheel. I was able to focus on the task of wearing the wheel down, and I started enjoying the task of picking lines through corners in the mud. I don't remember where I passed Michele, I just remember that it happened. Hope's wheel was next. I think we battled it out a few times, but I got by eventually. Then it was Cathy's wheel again. Sometime during the last lap, I found myself in front of her and behind Julie from IBC, with Julie just almost within reach. I crashed out after trying to remount after the last muddy chicane-turned-runup, but righted myself. Didn't catch Julie, but kept my position to finish 14th out of 75 starters. Considering how I finished last year, and that finishing in the top HALF of Verge races was one of my season goals, with the hope to maybe be 15th at a smaller race like Sterling... that was unfreakingbelievable for me. So, so happy. I <3 mudders!

race report: Green Mountain Cyclocross, Day 2, Verge NECCS #2, 27. September 2009

It was cold and rainy when I left the hotel, and colder and rainier when I arrived in Williston half an hour later. I decided to get a warmup in and switch to a dry skinsuit. Said "screw it" to cycling fashion and pre-rode with a hoodie tucked into my bibs under a wind jacket. The "bringing CXy back" factor was pretty low, but climbing in fleece warmed me right up. As the weather worsened, I retreated to my car and cranked the heat while pinning my number, embrocating, and calling a girlfriend who was racing Blunt Park later that afternoon. Not my usual pre-race M.O., but apparently it did the trick. When I showed up at the start line of this race, it was cold and rainy, but I was feeling relaxed and happy. Cathy heckled me a bit in the staging area, asking me if I was done with my goal of chasing her now that I'd achieved it. We bantered a bit and then I responded that my goal for the race was to find out what it was like to race happy. Ha! No way was I showing my revised goal of "beat Cathy by season's end."

The start was hard. Tasha grabbed the hole shot again; I went through in about 7th or 8th. I was trying to stay in front of Elizabeth, who'd beaten me the day before and at Palmer, and then, somewhere early on in the first lap, I found Cathy's wheel again and just.stuck.to.it. Cathy's an expert mountain bike racer, and as the conditions were crap, I knew she'd have a good line. Plus, she's Cat 2 on the road, which makes her, like, a beast.

I tailed Cathy for a bit, and I think I finally got around her in a corner going up the hill after the stairs. Given what happened the day before, plus, you know, New Super Top Secret Season Goal, my race could have probably ended with that, but I kept my head down and kept looking ahead. My legs and mind were working together and I was enjoying (!) the ride, even though it hurt. I came down the recovery sections trying not to slide out, but probably smiling. And when I saw Tasha ahead, I jumped on her wheel and started tailing her because this, this was just crazy and not possibly happening.

Tasha and I caught up to Olivia in front of us, and we became a chase group for a while. We got separated on the pump track section (they were riding up the whole thing, I rode up half and dismounted for the steepest part, then remounted at the flat top and rode down) but then got back together. Then Tasha dropped back and I was racing Olivia. I know that I passed her somewhere in the last lap, and she passed me right back. Meanwhile, my front derailleur was having the issues it usually has in bad conditions, and the large chainring became unusable. But I made the best of the cassette, and was still in such disbelief from "OMG! in front of Cathy! in front of Tasha! is this happening?! whose legs are these?!" that I stuck to Olivia on one of the final climbs and got her at the top. That instantly made all those long, lonely hilly training rides on the road this spring completely worth it.

I managed to hold Olivia off coming down the hill, kept the bike under control until the finish straightaway, and then put my head down and hands in the drops and sprinted. I was still stuck in the small ring, but the effort was enough and I snagged 4th, just off the podium, for my best Verge finish ever. I was beat but I broke into like the biggest grin ever--and at the time I thought I was in 5th.

So, other than the mech issues, one fumble with the bike on the pump track in lap 2, and a bit of braking in the corners (erring on the conservative side was, I think, understandable given the wet weather), everything came together for me during this race. I felt confident, I pushed hard but I meted out my energy with care, and I had just enough left for the sprint. Great day on the bike racing some really awesome women.

Green Mountain Cyclocross, Day 1, Verge NECCS #1, 26. September 2009

After a super-long, tiring week, the early, 3-hour drive up to Williston was actually gorgeous and calming. When I left Somerville the sun was rising over the Mystic. Mist was rising over the lakes throughout New Hampshire, and when I arrived at my destination up north, it was dewy and sunny and some of the trees were already changing color.

I hit registration, then took a couple warmup laps on what I soon realized was going to be a difficult, atypical 'cross course. Set at the Catamount outdoor resort, the rather lengthy course was full of chicanes and climbing. There was also a steep hill with logs in the woods (for me, that means "runup") and a descending (yay recovery) section thereafter.

With a front-row, slightly uphill start, I managed to get through the hole shot just behind Natasha taking it, then settled in for more climbing as some other women passed me. I still felt fierce, though, especially when I found Cathy Rowell's wheel and stuck to it for about half of the very long lap--chasing her in a 'cross race was one of the goals I set for myself early on this season. Yes, I told Cathy afterward, she was actually on a list that was hanging on my kitchen wall:



Fortunately, Cathy did not find this creepy--in fact, she was flattered. Whew!

Back to the race: we hit the power/recovery descent, zoomed back toward the parking lot and toward a chicane on a hill that (for most riders, including the pros) was best taken as a runup. I attempted to block Cathy by running past and remounting in front of her, but blew up from the extra effort and started fading back. I lost a few more spots after that, which didn't do much for me mentally, particularly since one of my crossresults "victim," Emily Curley, had snagged a spot in front of me and was successfully holding on to it. The following two laps were lonely and painful.

Finished a fairly respectable 12th--which would have been my best Verge finish to date (see: the rest of the goals list, which I totally need to update anyhow due to the upgrade), except that the field was only 21 women. I was happy about chasing Cathy, but definitely hoping to do better on Day 2.

The rest of Day 1 was fun and amusing. Here, for example, is a photo of my pal Jen riding the trainer in a skirt:

race report: Sucker Brook 'Cross, 20. September 2009

First things first: Auburn, NH is NOT off Route 95. I should have relied on MapQuest like I did last year, but unfortunately, I printed the promoter's directions (which said 95 not 93), and was halfway to Portsmouth before I realized the mistake. That's what I get for a. not MapQuesting and b. not being from here. I then proceeded to grumble and grouse my way through the back roads (thank heavens for the road atlas in my car) until I reached 93. Fortunately, I'd hit the road with time to spare, and arrived at the race at 7:48--

"7:48?!?! Where... where... WHERE IS MY CHAMOIS?!?!"

--yeah, um, sorry, where was I? Oh right, finally in Auburn, after getting lost. Reg was mercifully quick (I probably avoided the 7:30 crowds), and I pinned, stuck on the headphones, and got a good lap in. OH MY GOD I LOVE THAT COURSE. The off-camber was a bit steeper than I remembered it being last year (then again, last year I was sorta like "Whaaaa where am I?!?! hold me" for my first few races; now I'm like "oh right, I'm in the pain cave, yo").

Anyway, the start. Was stuck behind some folks--guhhhh I wish more races would stage by 'crossresults--and also, uphill starts aren't my strong suit, even when paved (seriously, give me a muddy track or flat grassy field any day of the week). Once I got to the gravel/grass, I started battling for position and taking places back. Didn't do a terrible job, either. At one point (I think lap 2?) I was battling Julie from IBC. I have NEVER fought it out with her--she is a BEAST. She ultimately passed me, but damn, that was rad. (Also glad to see her having a good race after coming back from an injury.) Also, I stayed in front of her teammate who beat me last week.

The other rad thing about the race was that, for me, it was technically pretty solid. My PSI choice (34/32 on Mud2/Jet) worked fantastically on both the grass and the doubletrack dirt/rocks. A couple other people got flats, so I was glad I stayed up in the 30s. I didn't ride the first sand pit section--I ran half and remounted on the grass area--which is what most offroad riders would consider the sissy line, but was what I knew would work for me. Yeah, I probably lost one place to Sally (I already told her I'd be out for blood next time, hehe) because she was screaming through the sand each time, but I didn't lose two or three places from crashing in it halfway through... that would have sucked more. In fact, I actually didn't crash at all. I had one minor mech issue--a shifting thing that I fixed in five seconds--and one near-miss, but I righted myself and didn't go down.

Mentally, I was also with it, though when I reached the point of nausea halfway through the last lap I may have dialed back a little more than I should have; the gap between Sally and me widened as a result. What I needed to do was catch her in the barriers and gap her BEFORE the sand, but I wasn't thinking clearly and, naturally, my dumb plan to recover on the pre-sand doubletrack and THEN attack fell through.

It was otherwise a smart race for me, though, and I snuck into 10th (out of 32 starters, including some chicks who've scored Verge podiums in the past) within 2:00 of the leader. Second top 10 3/4 finish this year--hell, EVER--so I'm delighted with the result.

race report: Quad 'Cross 2009, Women's P/1/2/3 Race (Spank Me Sunday #3), 13. September 2009

My original race plan was: "one lap of racin', four laps of drinkin'," but I'm pleased to report that during the elite women's race at QuadCX, I actually enjoyed four laps of racing and one lap of drinking. That's right, enjoyed. The course was fantastic this year, and the best thing about the race was being able to ride it again.

I wasn't as nervous for the start of this race as I had been for the earlier one, but once we got going I freaked a little and lost some places on the grass--which is a nice way of saying, I dropped to the back. And tried to catch on. And managed to chase Meg from Hup about half a lap, then lost her and was racing in DFL.

So in short: it hurrrrrrrt. Still, it was fun despite (or maybe because of?) the pain. A bunch of my friends cheered for me, including my roadie teammates; they must be catching the CX bug because they kept yelling "beer beer beer!" at me from various parts of the course.

Speaking of, about a minute or two after Mo Roy and Anna Barensfeld lapped me, I Henny-thugged it in the single barrier section. The resultant burning in my stomach distracted my mind from the pain in my legs for the final lap, and though I got lapped by a few more women, I managed to hold the last one off at the final climb. Yay! My guts felt absolutely wretched afterward, but I'm glad I survived a double day. I plan to do a few 1/2/3 races later in the season, and hopefully won't get lapped if I have fresh legs!

I finished at -1, but one of the MRC elite racers rolled a tubular, so I am listed ahead of her in the results! Muahaha. That'll probably never happen again.

race report: Quad 'Cross 2009, Women's 3/4 race, 13. September 2009

Worked on a lot of my old and new goals in this race, with a decent degree of success--very happy.

Improve pre-race focus: check. My admin on Sunday morning was in order and stellar. Okay, so my trainer broke again, but I rolled around the MCC grounds blasting the Afghan Whigs' Gentlemen on my headphones. By the time I rolled to the line, I was ready to slay dragons. ("What, no dragons here?! Okayfine, I'll slay some damsels, whatever.")

Good start: check. Second into the hole shot behind Natalia G., held it for about 3/4 of a lap. (Being up there is nerve-wracking. Gotta work on that.)

Reduce crashes: check. I wiped out on some wet asphalt in the woods, but recovery was pretty quick. May have had another minor crash or two elsewhere, but again, quick recovery.

Fight back when passed: this was hard to do in laps 2 and 3, but on the final lap, Giulia and I were battling it out and I was in the game. She passed me, I passed back in the barriers (per my plan!), etc. That was rad. She drafted me across the parking lot to the final grass section and then advanced--oops, my mistake. Still, finished juuuust behind her, and turned some former nemeses into victims. Also awesome.

Get my head back in the game, block other stuff out: check. By the end of the race I had tunnel vision: didn't know what was going on outside the course, who was cheering for me, etc.--just knew that I was fighting Giulia. Happy to see mental improvement over the course of a race.

Season goal of top ten finishes in 3/4 races: check. 9/30 starters (28 finishers). I'm pleased.

I'm bringing CXy back.

Here is the new and beautiful assortment of socks procured for this year's 'cross season:


Here is what I have been doing to them in practice:




These days I'm learning a lot about what not to do on gravel. Thank Goddess for OxyClean!

Photos courtesy of Krautmaster E., a.k.a. Mom, who was in town last weekend.