I also got to take in a concert from one of my favorite bands, Lamb Of God. They are a really heavy band and, as they say about themselves, are pure American metal! I was on the fence about going alone, but it turned out to be a good decision. I had a great time and heard some head-blasting music. It was good motivation to get my butt on my bike and ride hard.
Lamb Of God playing the song "Omerta" at Marathon Music Works in Nashville
The next race on my agenda was the Tour de Grove weekend in St. Louis. Shannon and I really like going to St. Louis. We are learning our way around town and finding cool things to do in our down time between races. We managed to get to the Soulard Farmers Market on this trip. They had some great produce at every stand. Some of the biggest carrots and oranges I have ever seen! We spent the weekend snacking on delicious fruit. I think I had a juicy orange about every 4 hours. They had livestock as well. I tried to get Shannon to buy me a duck to serve as our race mascot, but she didn't seem to think that would be a good idea.
The St. Louis trip kept the high-stress theme of this year. We began the weekend by getting out of work late. I worked a half-day and got way behind. It really irritates me that some of my coworkers always want help, but they are unwilling to help me, even when they know I really need to leave on time. Anyway, there was an accident on the interstate right where we normally get on, so we took backroads through a thunderstorm to Hopkinsville to get around it. We were expecting a little construction traffic around Paducah, but not the major slow-down it turned out to be. We got stuck six times total throughout Kentucky and Illinois, due to a blend of construction, accidents and heavy volume.
I thought we were going to miss the Midtown Grand Prix race. We got there with just enough time to register and change. But today turned out to be my lucky day. The races were running behind. Yes! Finally we caught a break! I got in my full warm-up, plus had time to line up early and get a second row start spot. I almost embarrassed myself when I couldn't get my feet out of the pedals. I was right in front of the pit, in front of a ton of people and suddenly had a beginner moment. I thought I was going down and started to aim for the grass next to the sidewalk, but just as I started to fall, my foot came loose and I saved it. Whew! Dodged the embarrassment, but still took the nose of the seat straight into my right glute. That felt awesome.
Cat. 4/5 riders come through the start/finish
Participants in the "Drag" race. Yes those are men looking like ugly ladies.
Cat. 2/3 riders packed on the start line
The race started crazy fast. We had over 120 riders in our Cat. 2/3 field and they all wanted to be up front right away. I did a good job being aggressive and staying in the top 15-20 the first 15 minutes. I made some brave moves to hold my position through the corners, leaning on guys at times. Whatever it was that had me spooked with cornering at Athens and Roswell was long gone now and I was back to good ole aggressive me. My glute hurt the first few laps, but then finally started to go away.
The course was a figure-8, gradually climbing from turn 1 up through turn 3, then descending from turn 4 down to the final turn 8. There were some potholes right in the preferred line between turns 7 and 8 that kept us on our toes all night. The cool thing about being behind schedule is that instead of racing in the evening sun, we raced into the night and got to finish under the lights. I always like the night races. It's so fun to go fast at night. This was not the same place we raced last year. This course was in the heart of Midtown and close to St. Louis University. I like this course more so I hope we come here again next year.
Midtown Grand Prix course
Cat. 2/3 Men underway
Me peeking into the shot during the early laps
I slipped back in the group a little after 15 minutes. I wasn't hurting, just got shuffled around. The pace got crazy high about 30 minutes in and I couldn't move up. We were strung out single-file from the front to the back. I was about 75 riders back and that put me way, way behind the front of the race. I just prayed there would be no split and hung on to the wheel ahead. Once the pace slowed, we bunched up so much that passing was difficult. I got shuffled around a lot and found myself in a bad spot with 5 to go. I was probably 90 back in the group which had been whittled down to about 100 now.
Front of the group dives into turn 7
Small break of 3 tries to ride away
Turn 2
Me (#321) way back in a long line of riders
I punched it hard up the climb between turns 2 and 3, but couldn't move up enough by the end. I was just able to crack the top 50 by half a lap to go. There was a crash coming out of the final turn that I slipped right through and wound up finishing 43rd. I moved up a lot in those final laps. I know I have the strength to get to the front, I just can't start from so far back. We averaged a blazing 26.7 mph for 54 minutes, which is super fast on such a tight, short course with that many riders.
Video highlights from Midtown, including a crash during the finish sprint of the Cat. 4/5 race.
Shannon eating yogurt next to the Flying Cow. It's a great place for a post-race treat in Midtown. Even on a cool night.
Saturday brought the big race of the weekend, the Tour de Grove in the Mangrove area of STL. It's not my favorite course and not my favorite area of town, but the hype of the race makes it the highlight of the weekend. The Pro payout is huge and brings in the top riders. I again did the Cat. 2/3 race, which had over 130 riders starting. The course was changed slightly this year, eliminating the back section that featured the tricky chicane that caused our big crash last year. It was basically a big, flat triangle. The front stretch was forever long. It made Roswell's front stretch seem short. Turn 1 is a bit tighter than 90 degrees and narrow compared to the front stretch. There's a short stretch then from turn 1 to turn 2. Turn 2 had a wide exit onto the long backstretch. The final turn was just shy of 180 degrees, but is plenty wide to roll through safely in a group.
Tour de Grove new course
Cat. 2/3 riders on the start line before the race
I felt good in warm-up, but struggled in the race. I started a good 100 riders back. the pace wasn't bad early, but we were spread all over the road so I wasn't able to move up a ton. I tried to be calm and not move up too quick. Then we had a crash in the middle of the group in turn 1 about 10 minutes into the race. I got held up behind it and had to ride hard on the back stretch to get back to the group. Then there were gaps on the front stretch and a crash on the left just past the start/finish line. I had a hard time closing those gaps and was about to be shot off the back when there was yet another crash going into turn 1. Three wrecks in one lap. Yay. This one was sure to get me dropped, so instead of dodging it, I slid into it and took my free lap. I didn't go down, just kind of rolled into the wreck instead of trying to swerve through it like I normally would.
First lap of the Cat. 2/3 race
There were over 130 riders, but Shannon still found me and my black kit on the start
One rider hurting himself early
Group is packed up this lap...
...next lap things are blowing to pieces after the first two crashes.
Many riders were in the pit and they just sent us off as soon as the pack came. I was probably 80th when the crash happened, but found myself in the top 15 after pitting. That never happens! I felt good for a few laps and stayed up front, then the pace got high again and I was shuffled back. I yo-yoed the rest of the race, moving up in the group, then fading back. I could move up every 2-3 laps, but couldn't hold the pace after making the effort to get there.
One rider off the front solo during the second half of the race
Exit of turn 3
Me squeezing into the shot, but mostly blocked by the rider in red.
2 laps to go. This would be the end of the day for me.
Highlights from my race shot on the GoPro
I faded really bad at the 45-minute point and found myself clinging to the back. I lost the group at 4 laps to go and was pulled from the race at 2 to go. It sucked to get pulled, but I gave it my all and survived another hard day. I wound up 94th on the results. We averaged 26.3 mph for the 61 minutes I was on course, and that average includes a lap of sitting in the pits. I hit 41.6 mph one lap down the back stretch just before turn 3. Crazy!
Below are pictures we took during the Pro races, followed by a video.
Pro Women come through the start/finish
An Optum rider
Pro Women in Turn 1
More from Turn 1
I'm hoping this sign was directing you to the building behind the dumpster, but I'm not sure...
Pro Men sprint off Turn 3
Turn 3 at The Grove
The bottleneck happens almost every lap going into Turn 3
Pro Men on the front stretch at Tour de Grove
Tour de Grove Video
Sunday was another beautiful day of sunshine and warmth.This was the third and final race, this time in the Dutchtown South area of town for the Dutchtown Classic. We again had a huge field of well over 100 riders for the Cat. 2/3 event. Shannon and I went to church on the way over to the race and still had plenty of time to get ready. We are really learning our way around town now and don't get lost every two seconds like we did the past few years. I decided to do my warm-up on the road this time. I cruised some of the, how should I say, less attractive areas of Dutchtown. They were not the friendliest streets, but also not bad enough to make me nervous, especially with other riders out doing a warm-up with me. I turned around on one street and there was a lady standing next to the sidewalk. She muttered "You better ride that bike fast if you want to get out alive." And she smiled. I was like "What does that even mean lady?" I wasn't sure if she was kidding, if I misunderstood her or if she was going to kill me. Either way, it helped get the heart rate up on the climb back to the course.
I felt surprisingly well at the start, especially considering how tired I was at the end of yesterday's race. The course in Dutchtown is like two crit. courses rolled into one. You make two rectangles per lap. The start/finish is located on a hill, very close to turn 1. The first turn is a 90-degree right, followed quickly by a 90-degree left. Then comes a long straightaway that gradually descends to turn 3. This turn is a sweeping 90-degree right. It's more like a yield lane than a regular turn. Some people consider it two turns. Turn 4 awaits before a long gradual climb up the first half of the backstretch. The second half of the backstretch then descends to a tighter, more off-camber turn 5. Turn 6 then ends things with a fast 90-degree right that takes you to the finish climb, which is a short, but fairly steep sprint up one city block.
Dutchtown Classic course
The race was fast! We were strung out early on and I was at the back yet again with a poor starting spot. I got stuck behind a guy that was walking on the start. I don't know what happened, but he was off his bike walking across the road just a few feet beyond the start line. I played my cards right today though, moving up every chance I got. The back of the pack crumbled behind me. I kept working my way up, but no matter how far up I got, there always seemed to be a gap behind me.
Cat. 2/3 Men come out of turn 1 in the shadow of the nearby Catholic church
Turn 2
Me on the outside in turn 2
Long single-file line down to turn 3
One rider off the front early
Halfway through the race I was hurting bad after a few prime laps. I was about to come off the back when the pack slowed. I guess everybody else was hurting too. The rest of the race I just concentrated on staying mid-pack of the 60 riders that were left. With 3 to go I moved up to the front, getting myself inside the top 10. I got shuffled back down the backstretch with 2 to go, but found an opening up the right side coming up the hill at the start of the final lap. I made a big effort to pass as many as I could before turn 1. It turned out to be a good move. I was on the inside and a crash happened on the outside, right next to me. I slid right by it unscathed. The only problem was that a small gap was now ahead where those riders had been. The pace was super fast and that small gap was very hard to close. I was around 20th going into turn 3. Only about 35 of us were left in the front group after the chaos of the crash.
Turn 3
The line is stretched from turn 3 all the way to turn 4
Turn 4
This rider stayed off the front for a while
The pack chases
Me sprinting to try and stay on the back of the crumbling pack
Riders were being blown out the back like this every lap
Coming off turn 4, the group slowed and fanned out across the road. The right side had been the place to move up down the backstretch for most of the race. I wanted to stay on the right and use that to move up the second half of the backstretch, but the group blocked that side of the road initially and so I went left, following one wheel through the group. There is a very slight bend down the back that is bordered by a tall, abrupt curb. The group pinched us both off, nearly ramming us into the curb. I don't know how I missed the curb. We were doing 25 mph and I couldn't see anything but curb, but somehow I did not hit it. I had to check up the brakes and that sent me to the back with no momentum going into the descent. There was a crash on the left just before turn 5 that further strung out the group. I spent the last 2 corners and the sprint just getting back up close to the group.
Orange guy still out front alone
The slight bend in the backstretch that nearly put me on the ground the final lap
Video: My full race from the GoPro mounted on my stem. Last lap was the most exciting lap of the race.
I wound up taking 33rd. We raced for 60 minutes with a 27.5 mph average speed. It was yet another fast race for the Cat. 2/3s. I was not happy with my placing, but I was glad to be up there fighting in the final lap. I put myself in a good position today and was aggressive the final laps, so that is some improvement. I just wish I had been a bit more patient and waited for the right side of the road to open up that last lap, because eventually it did open up like I had expected.
Bike Art from some of the local kids
The Dutchtown shop windows had pictures hanging all over them
Pro Women
Four broke away midway through the race
One rider tried to bridge to the break, but never made it across
Pro Women's peloton comes off turn 4
The break in turn 3
The bunch chases through turn 3
Race winner Theresa Cliff-Ryan just after the race
Pro/1/2 Women's podium
Pro Men on lap 2
Turn 6
Pro Men head toward the finish climb in the closing laps
Race video from the Dutchtown Classic
So my big Spring races are in the books and it's time to sit down and evaluate it all. My results were nowhere near my goals, but I have made some progress. Now it's time to tweak the training plan and keep getting better for the round of races coming in the Summer. Can't let the undertow of disappointment bring me down.
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