Whadya know? I can finish a race on the road. I was down in NC visiting family this weekend and stopped over in Salisbury, NC to race the High Rock Lake Road Race. This time out I managed to do a lot better.

The course was a 13 mile nearly-pancake flat loop on immaculate tarmac. Apparently it had just been paved and boy could you tell. It was silky smooth and clean. Chances of getting a flat today were way down. The field in my Cat. 3 only race was rather small with no team really having more than about five guys. Franklin Street Cycles, Salisbury's team, and Pfeiffer University were the main groups. The rest of us were on our own.

We did five laps plus a finishing section of about a mile--the total listed was 68 miles. I can say that I raced this one tactically very smart but just got a bit unlucky in my final decisions. I spent the entire race sitting in the back and avoiding taking a pull at all costs. It was really amazing to me how many times people tried breakaways when it was obvious they weren't going to work without happening very close to the finish line. So there I sat. Many times I would look back and find myself completely in the rear. That doesn't work so well in a crit, but in a RR like this one, it's not such an issue.

It was without question the most boring race I've ever done. Each time we came through the feed zone I could casually chat with Jess while exchanging a bottle and wave at my parents. The pace wasn't all that slow, but when you never find yourself on the front, it isn't that hard. My biggest concern most of the time was that I really needed to pee. Not being confident enough to do that on the bike, I had to try and focus on other things.

Heading into the final lap, I was poised to see what I could do. My bet was that it was all going to end in a bunch sprint so I continued to ignore the breakaways. But somewhere in the last four miles or so a group of 7 or 8 made it off the front and there wasn't the usual push to bring them back. Either everyone was thinking like me and not wanting to waste energy or they were tired already. I'm not totally sure. I tried to surf between a few of the guys that were trying to bridge across and they didn't like that at all! Shocking ;-) I was still thinking that the break would come back so I didn't want to work at all--just cover my bases if it didn't.


Well, we never bridged up far enough and that group never came back, so I retreated to the peloton just before the entered the finishing mile and tried to get ready for the sprint. I was able to bully my way into a line of riders once the finish line came into sight and once the sprint started I gave it all I had. I finished 3rd in the field sprint and somewhere around 10th or 11th on the race I think. Not bad for 'cross training. Good base miles. Considering that I got 3rd in the sprint, I think the field may have been more tired than I anticipated. Had I tried to take off and bridge on my own, it may have worked. Who knows? That's road racing I guess.

I finally got some pain in my legs today. It came via basically derny pacing on the trail home from work. Pat rode his electric hub motor powered bike in front of me and gave it full gas. I sat in his slipstream and held on for dear life. The stops to cross roads and slow down to pass folks on the trail served to make this a blend of tempo and intervals. In short, I think it was a perfect workout for a crit or for 'cross. I'm thinking if Pat's willing that I'll make it a fixture of my workout routine.

The legs felt good, but I'm glad I'm finding the holes in my fitness real quick. I don't have much of a sustained top end power push. The few accelerations I did were solid and overall I'm in good shape--meaning I'm not dying right now writing this. So more work this weekend in the High Rock Lake Road Race at home in NC and then we'll see what I've got after another week of training.

2007 Cyclocross Schedule

Looking back at last season, I raced only eight times. I raced every MABRA race (Charm City, Ed Sander, AVC, IC Lite, Coppi, Race Pace, and the Championships). I only raced once in the MAC, my home turf of Lake Fairfax Park for the Captial Cross Classic. Most of that season schedule was determined by splitting time between Arlington and Jefferson Hills, PA where Jess was living.

This year, there shouldn't be any restrictions on travel, so I'm set to race a full slate. The plan now is to race sixteen times. I'll race all but two of the MABRA (AVC and the Championships), all but one of the MAC (Highland Park), as well as Whitmore's early in the season, the new DC race, the NJ stops of the USGP, and the late season Rockburn 'Cross. IC Lite was dropped from MABRA and is now part of the PA series.


It's possible, depending on how I fare during the early MAC races that I could end up going to Highland Park. But the drive is awfully daunting when there's a race so close in Sykesville, MD. It's also possible that I could end up racing the MABRA Championships if we don't travel for Thanksgiving. With a schedule so full (10 out of 12 weeks racing) I think I'll be challenged to keep races rather than to add more.

Highlights of the season:

1. Charm City. This is one of the most enjoyable racing experiences around. It's the first week of the season here in the Mid Atlantic and everyone is jazzed up for 'cross. The course is well designed and fast. Not to mention that I pulled off a B-series win last year.

2. Whitmore's. I've heard great things about the course design here and with family on Long Island this trip should be fun. I figure a weekend experiencing the big time racing scene will get me better prepared for . . .

3. Granogue. The MAC opener. I've raced it only once, back in 2005 and I loved it. Hopefully it hasn't changed much because the course was epic and seeing the Kona boys roll was the highlight of my first year in 'cross. Reviews from last year were more than enough to make me feel bad about missing this one. I won't make the same mistake again this year.

4. DCCX. To have a real cyclocross race inside the district will be a unique experience. In its first year, there's very little info out there about this one, so it's anyone's guess at to the venue and course layout. But knowing a few of the CityBikes crew, they'll pull off a great race.

5. Tacchino. This is Squadra Coppi's race and the one course that I get to play a hand in setup. Last year the course was a good blend of technique and power. The hill in the middle helped me shed some of the competition and I do more than hope that this year's course will again play to my strengths.

6. Beacon. I've never been to this one, but every picture I see of the sand and the stairs reminds me of the action across the pond. I'm very much looking forward to a race that requires a good bit of running. Hopefully by this point in the season I'll be battle hardened.

7. USGP. I don't always hear good things about the USGP series, but there's no denying that it always draws out the big boys. It's too bad we lose 2 races out of the MAC series because of it. I can't wait to see the action after I'm done racing. It'll be my first time in attendance at a USGP race. I'm not sure what to expect from the racing at my level at an even like this. My guess is MAC+, so a very high level.

8. Cap Cross. I can't say that I truly enjoy this course because every time I've raced here I've performed below my expectations. But this year, if I can stay focused on racing for the entire season, this race will be a grand way to finish things off. It's my home course, so I think it's about time that I did something here that I was proud of.


One topic that's been very interesting to me this year has been budgeting. Jess and I are detailed about our budget and so I figured I'd come up with an estimate of exactly what it will cost to race this season of 'cross. I figure the cost of just racing comes in three ways: fuel, hotels, and entry fees. With the cost of the races being $25 plus a $2.80 BikeReg.com service charge, the grand total for waging war on two wheels comes in at $27.80 per race. My estimate of fuel is based on the roundtrip mileage in the car listed above. Conservatively (at least right now) I'm estimating gas to be $3.00/gallon and the Honda CR-V to get 26 mpg. That works out to $0.12/mile. Planning ahead, it looks like I'll only need 3 night in hotels. Staying in a HoJo and a Days Inn keeps the costs low there. Grand total: $976.45 for a season of 'cross.

Of course, this calculation doesn't include things like some of the inevitable eating out on the road rather than cooking at home. Nor does it include equipment costs in the case that something breaks. But I think $1K for the season isn't a bad estimate of what this hobby truly costs.

Raceday! Wake Up Call! I traveled up North to Williamsport, MD for the River City Classic. It was again this year, the Age Graded Criterium Championships, but they also held a 3/4 race. Last year I led this race solo for quite a while before being reeled in to setup for the sprint. This year, well, things didn't exactly go the same way.

I've made it no secret that I haven't raced much this road season and that any racing I do at this point is with the intention of getting ready for cyclocross. It's a good thing that I did get out to race today, because I got the wake up call and additional motivation to train that I have needed for months. This was quite a quality field on a moderately technical course and I was no match.

I lined up near the back, intent on being passive the entire race. Once the gun went off I found a spot 3/4ths back from the front in the peloton and settled in. The first several rounds, the turns were pretty slow as folks figured things out, but after that we got crankin'. I never really found my way up towards the front as I should have, and instead I started losing ground.


The final turn before the finish was just slightly more than a 90 degree turn, and I really never figured out how to make this one at any speed. It's been my MO in crits that I can't corner well enough to be a factor, but I've never had it cost me the way it did today. Each time we came to that critical juncture on course, I lost maybe five yards. And every time I did that, I had to get out of the saddle and sprint up the slight incline to catch back on. It was a classic case of the criterium accordion--except that I didn't do the contracting part for too long. I'm not sure exactly when it happened, but at some point, a group of three of us lost contact with the peloton and that was all she wrote.

We were toast. But silly me, never having been dropped before, I got more and more frustrated at myself for sucking in the turn and not having enough power to catch back on. I didn't start working with the other two until after a few laps and by that point it was painfully obvious we weren't going to finish the race. The peloton eventually was out of sight on the straightaways, then out of sight through the alleys and then, with ten laps to go, the official blew the whistle. I sat up, unzipped my skinsuit and coasted uphill to the car.


Probably the most embarrassing thing was that I had enough time to change into my street clothes and jog back to the finish in time to see the winners sprint to victory. Ouch.

So why did I suck so much today? Well, I've got three reasons er excuses. The first is that I think the quality of the Category 3 group this year is a lot better than it was last year in my first season on the road. Back then, I was continually frustrated with the lack of aggressive pace and that's why I was out solo. This year, there were some major players in the race and they made this one the hammerfest that I've always been looking for. Congrats to all the racers who finished in the main field. You guys raced hard and should be proud. Especially the three juniors who were in there battling right up to the finish.

The second is one that's already been discussed: I can't corner worth a crap. I did improve some as the race wore on, but I never mastered that final turn. I think I could have masked the third reason a lot more if I had been good at riding the corners fast.

The final reason is of course the reason that I'm glad I showed up today: I'm out of shape--or I'm at least I'm out of top end speed and raw power. I have a decent amount of fitness. My legs are used to lots of aerobic mileage, so I've got some base to work with. They have not, however turned a stroke in oxygen debt in quite a while and today showed that. The speed of the race was a shock to the system and my legs were screaming.

Between now and September 23, when cyclocross kicks into gear, I've got to get some speed back. It's going to take some tempo workouts and some racing. I need to spend some time in agony, some time remembering what it's like to pedal in anger, and some time riding with the motivation of not embarrassing myself. In short, I've got a lot of work to do and not a lot of time to do it in. But I've got motivation now, and this year, that's been half the battle.

It's time for me to start blogging again. Charm City is only 39 days away and 'cross season will soon be upon us. Let's see if I can make some regular posts as a sign of the cyclocross season.



I've dropped off the racing map since the Poolesville Road Race back in May. My motivation for racing on the road completely deserted me and so I deserted the racing scene. Since then I've only raced once--a lap at the Pleasant Valley Road Race--and I flatted. But there's something about 'cross season that I knew would stoke my competitive fires again.

I'm now riding every weekday and trying to regain my form. I think I'm nearly back to having a reasonable base and since 'cross isn't as reliant on lots of mileage, I'm hopeful that this season can be a full success. I'll start throwing in some tempo eventually and next week I should have my 'cross bike setup to start skills work. "Racing" at MIT's alumni meet should be a shock to the running system. Maybe by then I can get enough miles on my new shoes to make the purchase worthwhile.

If nothing else, I'm motivated by the fact that I'll be a step above the MABRA B's this year. Since I finished second in the MABRA B series last year to Todd Hesel and won two races (bookends), I think several of us are due to take a step up. I'm planning on racing the MAC B's and MABRA A's. MAC B's are a lot more competitive than the MABRA B races, so that will be halfway between where I came from and fully making an A leap.

I raced last year's MABRA Championship with the A's and that's what I've remembered all off-season. It was Thanksgiving weekend, I wasn't training well, the course was awesome--though muddy, and I sucked bigtime. I remember that racing for an hour was a long time and I remember the lonely feeling of knowing only one man was behind me in the race. I had no speed and no control and I felt like I had no business being in the race. So this year, I'm hoping to erase some of those memories and find some success at a level above MABRA B's.



Since my first exposure to the MAC scene at Granogue two years ago, I've been hooked on 'cross. I can't wait to finally get in a full season of MAC racing--though I'm not especially looking forward to all the cash I'll have to spend on gas and hotels. It will be intense and a little less laid back than the MABRA races, but I think it will be a lot of fun and I can't help but get better.