I came into the Cross the Way races at Lock 4 with some stale legs. Saturday's course looked twisty so I was excited. There weren't too many long power stretches for me to get smoked on. It was a nice day too. Temp was in the upper 40s with a little mud on the course. Up to this point, this was the coldest cross race of the year. It seems we have had nothing but good weather. Not what you would call "real" cross weather.
A CX 3 racer
Andy Reardon warming up
Me out for a warm-up lap
John Carr on the Frankenbike
It was a little slick in warm-up, but the course thickened as the laps were put on it. We had just 6 riders in the Pro/1/2. I was glad to see Andy Reardon and Will Fyfe on the line. I did so well at my last cross race without them. I wanted to see if I could hang with them here. I didn't have the greatest start, but I fought hard to catch back up. All I can say is that the legs just weren't good enough. I didn't ride bad, I just got beat. I'm sure missing a week didn't help. I felt slow and it showed.
Pro/1/2 start line
Chasing after the first lap
I soldiered on throughout the race despite rolling around in 5th. I made a run after Troy Tucker and another guy at one point, but couldn't get it done. Andy would beat Will for the win. My goal for the weekend was to win the Cross the Way Series title, but I took a hit today with one race remaining. After 3 of 4 races my lead was a slim 5 points over Fyfe.
Fyfe and Reardon round a corner
Troy Tucker
photo courtesy of Marsha Williams
photo courtesy of Marsha Williams
After the race, it was off to Kaylee's apartment to clean the bike in the rain. It began raining on our last lap and poured a cold rain on the SS and Junior racers. After cleaning my ride and managing to break my water bucket after dropping it in the parking lot, it was time to get ready for the STAR company Christmas party. We didn't stay too late so I could come home and prepare myself for the battle that was sure to come the next day in what looked to be crazy weather on the horizon.
It was snowing when I woke up on Sunday. It snowed off and on until the start of the race. It was colder today, around 32 at the start of the first race. The snow was melting on the ground, combining with the overnight rain to make for some slop. The course was the same, just run in the opposite direction. The Series title would be decided on this fourth and final race. Andy didn't come today, leaving Will as the favorite. I knew I had to ride much, much better than yesterday if I was to stand a chance at all. It looked more like my kind of conditions today.
My start sucked yet again. I never really got onto Troy and Will's wheel. I tried hard on the secod lap and just dug too deep. I had to recover and they just pulled away. I have a hard time keeping my hands and feet warm when it's this cold. My circulation just sucks. I get it from my Mom. And I can't stand it when I can't feel fingers and toes. Maybe I'm just a wuss, but it drives me crazy. I usually can wear shoe covers and get by without issues. Nobody else was wearing shoe covers so I tried to be a tough guy and go without them. I paid the price with numb feet by the 3rd lap. The temp dropped to 27 by halfway through our race. I was already riding crappy, so the frozen toes just stuck out in my mind more than usual. I was in last so I just started to run some of the climbs. It helped get my feet warm and keep me working hard when I felt like calling it a day. It was a really boring race. The ground began to freeze, so the mud lost some of its slickness. I was glad just to finish and only lose one lap to Fyfe, who won the race and the overall. I was very disappointed to lose the series, but that's what happens when you don't prepare properly with your training.
Photo courtesy of Marsha Williams
The snowfall picked up at the end of our race and covered the course during the SS race.
Went home with an extra bike on the rack
My shins were aching all week after the Lock 4 races. I had to take another week off running and this time held on the weights too. I have been spending a lot of time on weights this year. Work got busy and I didn't get to ride that whole week either. Missing 5 days in a row is crazy for me. Bet I haven't done that without a serious injury in a good 5 years. I wasn't motivated to race, but a few patients and coworkers persuaded me to go on down to Fayetteville and take on the last Beat the Freak Cyclocross of the year. I have been telling race promoter Kevin Freeman for the past 2 years that I would come down and do one of his races. It was time to make good on my promise.
I woke up with a sore throat, but the car was packed and there was no backing down. I made the drive down in time to set up the new SS on the course. It was chilly day in the mid-30s, but the sun was out helping it to feel a little warmer. The course had some interesting features, but was flat as a pancake. There was a double sandpit early in the lap, followed by an open power stretch that was nearly a half-mile long. There was a big log at the end of that stretch, then a little singletrack before another long power stretch that lead to the spiral of death. This thing was just a big wad of tape that...well....spiraled. A short run-up over 2 large logs followed the spiral, then a set of 3 barriers came before a mud pit and the end of the loop.
CX 3 start
The Pro/1/2 race was first for me. I was ready to go on the normal bike with the new SS in the pit. There were just 3 of us in the Pro race. Travis Book was rocking it early on, hurting me on both the straights and in the spiral. He was just hanging it out in the corners. I lost contact with he and Barret Krei at the end of lap 2 and dropped like a rock after that. I just couldn't put together a good lap. I'd have some power for one long stretch, then have noodle legs on the next. It was weird, but I kept digging despite giving up 30-40 seconds per lap. I had a slipping seatpost just to make things harder. With only one lap ridden to set up the SS, I wasn't willing to make a bike change and just dealt with the seatpost issue. Needless to say, I finished 3rd. My result sucked, but being off the back gives you time to try other things, like bunny hopping barriers. I was able to ride the last 3 laps without dismounting, clearing the log run-up and 4 barriers, including the one coming out of the mud pit. Kevin said that had been tried before, but never completed. Score!
Nate Newton during the CX 3 race
After riding terribly in the Pro race, I didn't expect things to be any different in the SS. It seemed like a wasted trip down here. Somewhere in the 10 minutes between races, I came back to life. The new bike had a huge gear on it and left me with no choice, but to hammer. I was last off the start line and out of the sand. On the first long power section, I picked up 2 spots and then moved to 2nd around Book before the spiral. The bike came with road tires and I just left them on. Good call as the mud was now packed and I was rolling like a champ. There was a $10 prime for the leader of the first lap. I saw this as an opportunity to at least salvage something out of the day. I put in a hard dig before the mud pit to get the lead and a small gap that I was able to hold to the line and get the prime. Then I just settled in and tried to hold the gap. I just knew I was being caught on the long straight after the sand pits, but I had actually opened up the gap even more. I knew then that I could win if I stayed on the gas. I kept the hammer down and the big gear rolling the rest of the race, feeling no leg burn and no low back pain like I did in the Pro race. My lap times were much faster than in the first race. How does this happen?!! I should be tired now?!! Maybe that SS race showed me that I need to quit spinning so much and push a bigger gear. Obviously I have the legs to do it. I won the SS race by about a minute. The All City bike sports a 1-0 race record. Can't wait to take it out again! And by the way, I wore shoe covers for this race. No more frozen toes slowing down Super D!
Tim Hall
Tim in the mud pit
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