This year was the inaugural cyclocross race at Quarry Road
Recreational Center in Waterville, Maine, put on by Embrocation Cycling. Because I actually own a cyclocross bike (It’s
my road bike/skinny tire trail bike)… it would have been bad bike juju if I
didn’t enter a cyclocross race that took place in my back yard. Local races are fantastic… you wake up at a
reasonable hour, race, and you’re home before dinner… no hotels, camping, packing food, or tightening up during a long
drive home. This is what it must be like
to race bikes when you live in southern New England.
Upon arrival to Quarry Road Recreational Center (fantastic
facility), I checked in quickly and got ready to ride the course. I ended
up hooking up with with Christian from Pat’s Bike Shop in Brewer, who is a
really strong rider but had never raced cross, so the preride was a bit like
the blind (him) leading the blind (me)... but a good time nonetheless. The course was a good mix of hard gravel,
soft sand, and grass. It also had a TON
of very tight turns and a few of those silly barriers where you have to
dismount/remount ( 2 of the barriers were knee height, and one was basically a
short set of steps made out of railroad ties.)
Different than what I’m used to, but the course was a blast to ride and
was manageable overall. This put my mind
at ease a little bit.
Before long, the announcement came out that called the Cat
4/5 racers to the starting area. Not
really knowing what to expect in a cross race, I slotted myself in the very
back of the pack so I wouldn’t block out someone who deserved to be in
contention. The common advice that I got from
seasoned cyclocross racers was basically to start fast, go “all out”, and it’ll only hurt for 40
minutes. Piece of cake.
Ready… go
I went “all out” for a minute or two … then there was a split
in the course about 100 yards in where it was not clear which way to go. Apparently a section of marking tape had
fallen or something… so we were called back for a restart. Not a big deal at all. I actually kind of liked it because I got
another crack at starting position. (At the point where the race was halted, I had
moved up to near the front of the field… so I didn’t slot myself as far back
for the restart)
Ready … go (again).
I went “all out”
(again), and was sitting in the lead
pack off the start line. Apparently there
are different levels of “all out.” I was
going “all out” at a pace that was sustainable for about 2 minutes… which is
not the same as going “all out” for 40 minutes.
I was quickly dropped from the
lead group. It was also around this time
that it occurred to me that I had no idea what I was doing in the way of riding
a cyclocross bike…. Both of these things contributed to what may have been the
least efficient riding performance of all time.
While we are on the topic of inefficiency… dismounting/remounting during
a race is a lot different than the time I practiced it on flat, smooth, hard
ground. I’m pretty sure that each time I
remounted my bike after the barriers, I had the grace (and success) of someone
trying to climb on top of a floating beach ball. This race was supposed to be a learning
experience, but I didn’t like getting passed because I couldn’t get back on the
bike.
As the race went on… I started to get the hang of cornering, and I
was able to carry a bit of “free speed” through the course. I never got the hang of
dismounting/remounting for the barriers, so I continued getting passed
regularly and had to fight hard to regain position. However, I found that the railroad tie steps
could were bunnyhoppable (sp?), and I
was able to clear these barriers faster than the people who dismounted… this
allowed me to pick off a few riders that had passed me early on in the race. Because I was too far behind to work my way
back into contention, my goal was to finish strong and battle it out with some
people who were in my section of the field.
I had a pretty good battle going with a guy (I forgot his name) for almost
the entire final lap, but I was able to shake him with about 200 yards left in
the final lap. It was all over very
quickly. Overall, I finished somewhere mid pack, and
learned a lot.
Things I learned:
- Ernest Gagnon is an impressive and fantastic human. I had the honor of racing with him and I got a chance to talk to him after the race. Google him now.
- Warming up is important. Lately, most of my events have been long/endurance, so warmup occurred during the race. This is not the correct strategy for cyclocross. My body was not “ready to go” until halfway through the race.
- It’d be useful to learn the correct pace for a 40 minute race.
- I need to learn how to handle a cyclocross bike. Free speed is important in an event where you corner 10 million times.
- Cyclocross is fun
Local races are sweet.
Our team should do a better job supporting them.
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