treadfast

we headed up to lake geneva saturday afternoon. we have such great friends they offered to meet us off of 50 and take our kids. we were able to pre-ride with just ourselves. we started off together with our friend brad.
we seperated as they had extra climbing and i wasn't waiting. they'd catch me soon enough. i was a little disappointed at how much i was using the brakes, but then i thought about last year and how i felt exactly that on the pre-ride. so i figured i'd feel the flow more during the race. brad and john caught me and i felt as if i had to turn it up a notch to impress them. my heartrate jumped and i felt a bit sloppy not to mention breathing heavy. i fucked up the steep singletrack climb with the loose rocks and they both sailed passed me. once they passed me i settled down and felt good again. not sure why i always feel that way with john behind me, maybe the need to impress? who knows. anyway, i finished and my back was screaming. i sat down on the ground and tried to get everything stretched out.
john headed out for another as i caught up with amelia for a bit.
we headed to jerry's house for some barbecued chicken burritos courtesy of the goat and destiny. hung out for a bit and then crashed in the daanen's spare bedroom.
thanks again to jeremey, destiny and jerry. it was nice leaving a bit after 9am and getting there before citizen started.
after watching gage and julie start i headed back to the truck to get dressed. what to wear, what to wear? it was freezing! a lot colder than i was expecting it to be. i ended up in just a jersey and shorts and a jacket just to warm up in.
i wasn't looking forward to this race after pre-riding it. in fact i was kind of dreading it. in my mind it was the "dreadfast". i never thought about not racing it but didn't have fun associated with it. my back hurt so bad on the pre-ride and a few other reasons had me feeling like crap.
i had a front row start. the start wasn't so bad. i'm definitely better at starting than last year.
i was right, the course felt more flowy during race day, i'm sure the little bit of rain helped. i still suck at eating food. i sometimes forget parts of the course i need to remember so i can set up for them- the switchback from widetrail to singletrack- i forgot about that one every lap. the first lap was okay, 2nd lap felt good but i had back pain scares and the 3rd lap i felt the left leg getting that crampy feeling- i know i didn't drink enough (one bottle the whole race). i'm not ashamed to say i rode a lot of the race in my little ring- it kept my heartrate down and my legs fresher. the skills are there and hopefully i'm getting fitter. i'm trying to get the best out of the time i have to ride during the week thanks to my friend brian. i've definitely noticed that my starts are better and i recover sooner.

pic courtesy of renee

i loved the geneva course. it kicked ass literally and figuratively. iola seemed to be worse as far as catching slower riders. at iola it seemed like everyone was bunched in the singletrack whereas at geneva everyone was a little more spread out making it easier or even possible to pass. i was a little surprised at how some people slow down so much for a small log. something that the slightest lift of the front wheel and they'd sail over no problem. but that's racing. i still enjoy it and can't wait for the next.

john had the race i thought i was gonna have. he had a rough start being bumped off his bike and spent the rest of the race chasing. he said he wasn't feeling it. he was surprised at how good his result did turn out.


pics stolen from the goat

john was 7th age and 21st overall. i was 1st age, 6th overall.