Dude.... Buddy: SM 3 CO CX Championship

After a whirl wind of activity at the house to get everyone out the door Sunday morning I left a little later than I wanted for the final day of racing at the Colorado Cyclocross Championship. I arrived with just enough time to get ready and get in a few laps before the course was closed and the racing began. I road two laps at a pretty slow pace, I didn’t race for a couple of hours and I didn’t need to start warming up yet. I just wanted to remember the course and get the legs moving. Everything was exactly the same as the day before. If anything it was burned in better, making it even faster. I knew how I was going to ride it, this time I was hoping the body would feel a little better.

We set up the team tent near the start and I watched the SM 4 race and cheered for my teammates. I got everything setup and basically just tried to stay warm. Sunday was much more festive around the tent. A number of the cat 4 racers stayed around after the race, the single speeders were in full force and there was a much better vibe compared to Saturday. A couple of non-racing team members showed up just to “check it out.” After the cat 4 race I hopped on the trainer and started getting warmed up and focusing on the race to come.

I’ve raced with the 3’s a couple of times but hadn’t earned any call up points so I had to start at the back of the pack. Again, I found myself in the last row. Even a few of the racers that had upgraded with me this year had managed to get some points and were called up. This time there were only 58 racers. The whistle went off and I was ready for the first laps silliness. This race however was different, when I saw a gap I could move up into it. I was able to find a number of gaps and I kept moving up.

Soon things were getting strung out, like they always do. I just focused on the racer in front of me. Close the gap, pass then focus on the next guy. I intentionally tried to not sit on any ones wheel for long. I figured I would keep this up for as long as I could. Soon I was passing familiar faces, I thought they were sticking to my wheel but it turns out that wasn’t the case. The race was hard but I my body was able to put down the power. During the last lap I began to notice that not many single speeders had come around me. I understand this is a bit of a success indicator for the 3’s, when you’re not passed by the single speeders that start 30 seconds behind us. In the final straight away Carlos, a powerful Gates Carbon Drive rider came by. By staying in front of him for so long I knew I must have had a good race.

In the end I finished 26th but having started last I felt pretty good that I passed 25+ racers. I ended up finishing right with racers that had been called up and received good starting positions. The racers that started with me were still in the back of the race. This is a race where I wish we had lap times because I bet I was competitive with at least the top 15. This felt like a great race, in the end I raced the same number of laps as the 35+ open race the day before, however I did it 2:15 faster and 3 bpm lower. Just as it has been all season, I was much better the second day. It felt great to finish on a strong note and gave me high expectations for next year.