I wanted to be on my best form of the season for this final weekend of racing, but things just didn't work out that way. I was unable to do much riding on my off weekend and in the week leading up to the race. Between work and the weather that continues to be awful with rain nearly every single day, I had few opportunities to get out on the bike. On Monday, I woke up with some major neck issues. My neck has been sore since sleeping in the car at Ft. Payne, but it was really nothing more than just a little soreness in the morning. Working on the computer seemed to make things worse and got it really aggravated going into what was my toughest week at work in a long time. I had a lot of patients that week which meant a lot of time on the computer doing notes. I was in agony on Tuesday, but Shannon kept working on the muscles and was able to get them to relax. It gradually got better each day after.
Sheep on a quick evening ride I squeezed in one day it wasn't raining all day
The sore neck made me nervous about racing Music City Crits #7 on Wednesday night, but I knew I had to get the legs going at some point. I did not feel great in the race on the oval course. My legs felt weak and I had no acceleration. I tried to attack a few times, but could barely get to the front let alone off the front. It was quite the opposite of the way I rode the last time I raced at the speedway.
Me and John Carr on the start line. John had on the red mohawk for being Most Aggressive Rider the prior race.
Photo by Marsha Williams
A break lapped the field and in it was Justin Lowe. I train with Justin occasionally so I thought I would try to help him get a good finish as I knew I was not going to have much for the sprint. A second break nearly lapped us at the end of the race, but I went to the front at six laps to go and gave all I had for two laps. It wasn't much to brag about, but it kept the second group from lapping the field so Justin only had to deal with five riders in the battle for the win rather than eight riders. He got shuffled out of line in the last two laps. I tried to get back to him to pull him to the front, but I just didn't have the legs at the pace we were rolling. I did well to hang on until the final lap when I came off the back of the bunch on the backstretch. It was a tough night, but good to get the legs going and did not bother my neck at all. If anything my neck felt better afterwards.
I had one more hurdle to clear before the weekend. I got my Epic out of the garage on Wednesday to find my rear brake lever was not working. I thought the pistons in the caliper were stuck so I cleaned them and it made no difference. I had to take the bike to MOAB Bikes down in Franklin where David Carpenter took care of it. The piston inside the lever was broken, which is a non-serviceable part. It was a warranty replacement, free of charge. They got it fixed and I picked up the bike on Friday with everything working and ready to race. Thanks MOAB!
We had some extra planning and packing to do before this weekend as we were going to stay in Helen for a week for some exploration and vacationing. The original plan was to drive to Boston after the Helen race for the Boston Rebellion Pro XCT, but after the way I have been feeling lately I made the decision to not go and save the money. That would have been a very expensive trip for us and I did not feel we would get our money's worth with the way I am riding right now. So, we changed our plans to spend the week in the area that covers the corner of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. By the time we got it all planned out and packed, I was worn out. I really wasn't even excited to leave for the race on Saturday. I just wanted some rest!
Shannon found a basement apartment for rent in Blairsville, GA, about 30 minutes from Helen. It turned out to be a great place to stay. It was a quiet spot on the edge of the mountains, away from the hustle and bustle of Helen. This place was cheaper than any hotel in the area. It was clean, spacious and even had a kitchen where we could cook breakfast and dinner each day. The people we rented from, Steve and Penny, were super nice. They helped us find some hiking trails for later in the week and even gave us veggies from their garden for dinner. Steve got me a hose so I could wash my bike after each race. They didn't know much about mountain biking, but they asked a lot of questions while we were there and even did some research about it online. I think we made cycling fans out of them while we were there.
Shannon in the kitchen of our rental basement apartment
There was a Short Track race Saturday afternoon for SERC points. I came into the weekend with a 12-point lead, which is sizable with the turnout we have been seeing in the Pro class lately. The Short Track awarded just five points to the winner, but I did not even think about skipping it. With the way things have gone this year, every single point matters and I was not giving anyone five free points because I wanted to save my legs for the XC. With the lack of riding this week, I would likely need a short race like this to be ready for Sunday.
There were two big battles going on for this weekend. In addition to leasing the SERC standings, I also was leading the GSC Series, but it was tight. I came in with just a single point lead over Chris Lessing for Pro/Cat. 1 19-39. Chris was also in a battle with Pete Edmondson for the Cat. 1 19-39 title in the SERC Series. Pete led Chris by just two points. Chris had a lot to race for this weekend. I was hoping those two would battle in the Short Track and wear each other down before the XC.
The course had been dry, but a small shower came over before the Short Track began, soaking both courses. I did a lap on the XC course for my warm-up and it was a little on the muddy side. A small creek crossing had turned into a big creek crossing, one that made me leery about crossing as it was hub-deep. The lap took longer than I expected and I was almost late getting back to the car. The White Wave Short Track was already starting. I was glad they went first!
White Wave Short Track underway
The Short Track was a 15 min +1 lap race over a grass and gravel course. You began on a gravel road with a slightly downhill run to the first turn. The turn was a 90-degree left that then continued down the gravel road before a short downhill and another long straight. A tight left turn onto a bridge took us across a creek and into the grass. There was a long straight in deep grass before a couple of corners that took you onto a short, but steep uphill. The grass was wet and deep, making for a tough climb up what I called "Mount St. Helen" to the finish line. Our group was the entire Yellow Wave of Pro, Cat. 1 and Cat. 2 classes so we had a decent group of riders on the start line. I was disappointed to see I was the only Pro. I was guaranteed the five SERC points with a finish, but this is not how I wanted to win the series.
Yellow Wave lining up for the start
Pete Edmondson on the start line
The start was fast. The younger riders in the group bolted to the front. They were a little sketchy as they sprinted for position. Several of them got into each other and we nearly had a crash before the first turn. Then in the turn there were two riders who tried to cut the corner in the wet grass. They were unable to hold their line and drifted wide into the middle of the group, nearly cleaning out the guys in the outside line. The turn onto the bridge was more of the same with guys dive-bombing the inside of the turn. I was way back when we reached the grass the first time. I was concentrating more on not crashing rather than moving up at this point. After the first lap, Diego Varara from Columbia was off the front with everyone else chasing. I moved up on the gravel road and was then again almost taken out getting onto the bridge.
Yellow Wave underway
Me on the back of a second group on the first lap
Diego Varara out front
Chris Lessing leads a chase group that formed behind Diego
After three laps, a group had formed up front, including Chris, Pete and myself. We had now pulled Diego back into our group. The younger riders in our group were very aggressive, taking too many chances in the corners for my liking and also trying to block on the gravel road. I attacked on the hill just to try to get rid of the sketchy riders. My attack cut the front group to four riders. Chris, Pete and Diego were able to follow me. I actually felt pretty good today. The legs were a little stale, but I was still able to follow the fast guys and go on the attack. I went again about halfway through the race, but still could not get a gap. The gravel road was too fast to pull away on if someone was close to your wheel. People could sit on you and do no work at all. I felt like we hammered the grass climb every lap, then everyone sat up to on the gravel road. It made it hard to get away because everyone was recovered each time we hit the climb.
Me on the attack
Photo by GoneRiding.com
Front group down to four
The race was crazy overall. Besides some of the sketchy riding at a fast pace, we also had a van get on the course. We were flying down the gravel road and all of a sudden there was a van coming at us taking up the whole road. It was out there for two laps before if finally left the course.
Chris and Pete were clearly marking each other. I dropped back behind them to save everything I could. When I was at the back, Diego put in a big attack on the hill with about three laps to go. It was a fast acceleration. I doubt I could have followed him even if I had been right on his wheel. Pete and Chris just let him go. By the time I got around them, Diego had a huge gap. I put in one effort, but couldn't shake Chris or Pete. After that, the three of us just kind of looked at each other. Tactically, it was the perfect situation for Diego. He got the gap over a group that was marking each other. Nobody wanted to chase. He was gone.
Chris and Pete chasing Diego. I'm a little behind right here.
Diego out front solo with two laps to go
Me leading the chase now
At one to go, Diego still had a big gap and it was clear he was going to win. I tried to go for second, but Chris was too strong in the grass and gapped me before the final climb up Mount St. Helen. Pete then came by me and tried to catch Chris, but was unable to get him before the line. Diego crossed the line first, Chris second, Pete third and me in fourth. I was ok with fourth as I had raced well, but not dug too deep. The race tightened the points up for the Cat. 1 SERC Series as Chris gained one point over Pete, which had them separated by just one point. I now had a 17 point lead going into the XC.
I went to the creek to wash the mud out of my jersey and take a dip to cool off. I had been swimming a few minutes when I heard them call me to the podium. Turns out Diego was disqualified for taking outside mechanical assistance with one lap to go. His handlebar had come loose and one of his team members, who is also his interpreter, tightened the stem for him during the race. Dave Berger, the promoter and official, was standing there and told them not to do it, but they did it anyway so he really had no choice but to DQ Diego. So, Chris was awarded the win, Pete second and me third.
Yellow Wave Short Track podium
Photo by GoneRiding.com
I felt bad for Diego as the outside assistance rule is one that has changed back and forth many times over the past few years. I could see how it would be easy to get caught up in the moment and forget what the current rule is. But you have to know the rules and you sure as heck better pay attention to the official. When he says no, it means no. I hated to see Diego have the win taken away because he was clearly the better rider today. He had more acceleration than any of us and tactically he rode a better race. He deserved to win. Heck, he stopped to tighten the bar and still was first across the line! I went over to Diego after the podium presentation and told him good ride and that he was the best rider out there today. He seemed pretty disappointed.
Here's a short video from the Yellow Wave Short Track:
Sunday was the big day where both series would be decided. The course at Unicoi State Park is a tough one with ample climbing to be had by all. There are plenty of climbs on course, with the biggest climb coming near the end of the loop. This was the first time I had ever come here and I had mixed feelings about the loop. It was tough, but there were few areas that were technically challenging. The sections that were rough and rooty were very short, so it would be hard to make up a lot of time with skills. I know I'm not the best climber so it would be a tough three laps for me.
View from Hogpen Gap on our drive over for the race Sunday morning
Low morning clouds hanging in the mountains
The XC course started on the gravel road used for the Short Track, but took a right at the bridge rather than a left. The trail went up immediately with a steep and fairly long climb as you entered the woods. That climb was followed by some rolling terrain on wide singletrack and doubletrack before a fast descent on an open powerline section took you to the next climb. This climb was shorter, but still tough. It was followed by some fireroad before a fast singletrack descent with several rough places that could ruin your day if they caught you off-guard. We then crossed the deep creek that was still up from the rain that fell on Saturday afternoon. It was again hub-deep so some riders chose to run instead of ride across to save their bikes. Next up was another long climb with a few steep sections, followed by another fast descent with some small technical spots. You then hit a short steep hill that brought you around to the bottom of the longest climb, which was mostly doubletrack and fireroad all the way to the top of the mountain. We then descended back to the creek for a slick bridge over the water before one final climb up the powerline. It was then down a short descent and back to the Short Track loop where we finished with the grass section up Mount St. Helen to the finish line. It was a tough 7-mile loop with around 1,100 feet of climbing per lap. It reminded me a lot of the old race courses at Fontana Village, NC where we used to end the SERC Series. The woods looked similar and the climbs were similar, though I don't think the course in Helen is quite as brutal as some of those race loops at Fontana. That place always hurt!
I went to mix my bottles before the race and realized I had no drink mix. We had changed the jug we store it in and that had caused us to overlook it at the apartment. It was still sitting on the kitchen counter. I didn't fret over it and figured I could make one race on plain water.
There were just three Pro riders when Dave called us to the line. It was me, Nathan Haslick and Elliott Baring. There were four Cat. 1 19-39 riders and two Cat. 1 40-49 riders so we did one big combined start. I was glad we combined because I wanted to race Chris head-to-head for the GSC title, not have to compare times with him at the end. For the SERC title, all I had to do was finish as my 17-point lead could not be overcome with only three riders starting the race. That took the pressure off for my main goal and let me focus solely on the GSC title.
Yellow Wave start line
The start was fast. The younger riders in the Cat. 1 19-39 were again quick off the line and through the first corner just like in the Short Track. There were some sketchy moves again in the initial corners, especially in the turn into the singletrack. Several guys chopped the inside and it caused a huge bottleneck. A few riders ran into each other and we completely stopped at one point. I thought I was going to gain a few spots out of the melee, but actually ended up falling back to 8th in the line when it was all sorted out. The front was very aggressive. I saw a lot of elbows and blocking going on in the first few positions as we went up the initial climb.
I didn't have good legs on the first few climbs. I got gapped near the top, but I didn't panic. I knew it was going to be a long, hard day and it was not time to dig deep yet. The trail was not as wet as I had hoped so everyone was going fast. Chris and Pete were racing each other very hard and were out of sight several times, but I kept catching back onto the lead group on the descents despite them not being very technical. Each time the trail went up I could see either Pete or Chris on the front. They were taking turns pushing the pace as they battled for the Cat. 1 19-39 SERC title. I just played the yo-yo game the first lap. I would drop off the back up the climbs to save a little leg, then catch back on by the bottom of the descent. It worked well until the big climb near the end of the lap. I dropped too much time and was unable to get back to those ahead on the downhill. After one lap, the front was starting to bust up some. Elliott Baring was leading a trio of Cat. 1 riders which were Chris, Diego and Pete. Nathan was sitting second in Pro at 45 seconds back, with me another five seconds back in third.
This was not where I wanted to be after lap 1. I wanted to be with Chris, not chasing at 50 seconds. Still, I stayed smooth and ran my pace on lap 2. I still didn't feel great, but I was not getting tired either. It was getting hot on this lap and very humid. I started to worry about my lack of electrolytes coming in with not having drink mix. I was taking more gels than normal to help with calorie intake, but I wasn't sure how many electrolytes they contained compared to my drink mix.
I caught Nathan just before the creek crossing to move into 2nd. Chris and Pete were still well ahead of me. I chose to ride the creek crossing every lap despite it being close to the hub. My theory was that if I hit it fast enough the parting of the water from the wheel would be just enough to keep the water from going into my hub bearings. I'm not sure if that logic was correct or not, but carrying my bike was just too slow for staying in this race.
On the climb after the creek, I suddenly started to have shifting problems. I tried to adjust the cable, but there was no fixing the ghost shifting I was having. I could only get it to stay in first gear by holding pressure on the shift lever. The only other gear that would work was 5th. I tried to look at the derailleur to see if it or the hanger was bent. It looked ok, but it's hard to tell while you are riding. It doesn't take much tweaking to wreck your shifting now that the gears are so close together with 11-speed cassettes.
I had to deal with jumping gears the rest of lap 2 and into lap 3. I was able to climb away from Nathan to secure second and caught Pete. He had blown up from battling so hard with Chris. I was hoping to see Chris as well, but he was still out of sight. After two laps, Diego and Elliott were riding away to the wins, now 1:20 up on Chris. I had cut off about 10 seconds on Chris, but still sat 40 seconds behind him. I had my work cut out for me on the final lap.
Elliott Baring leading Pro
Photo by Steve Hampton of H & H Multimedia
(Check out his photos, especially if you raced Helen. He got some great shots!)
Me running second on lap2
Photo by H & H Multimedia
Photo by H & H Multimedia
Kayley Burdine leading the Pro/Cat. 1 Women
Photo by GoneRiding.com
The ghost shifting continued, but I didn't let it slow me down too much. My legs were feeling stronger so I just kept it in fifth gear and pushed harder up the hills rather than running second or third gear like the previous two laps. I got really good at knowing exactly what gear I was in. I could skip right to a gear that worked rather than trying them all until I landed on one that was stable. I got a little help from Cat. 1 40-49 rider Jason Bewley, who I had ridden with nearly the whole race. He pulled me along on a few of the flat sections and I pushed him on the descents. His leader was up ahead with Chris so we had a good reason to work together. On the second climb of the lap, I caught sight of Chris and Cat. 1 40-49 leader Wes Garland. I took over pulling duties from Jason to finish closing the gap, but Jason was feeling the effort and dropped back from me.
I was 10 seconds back as we hit the creek crossing for the final time. Upon emerging from the water my shifting was suddenly fine. I have no idea what caused the issues, but the water fixed it. I'm guessing maybe a small rock got jammed up in the derailleur somewhere and then was washed out with the splash of the water. Whatever the problem, I was glad it was over!
I was not gaining a lot on the climbs, but I ate up the guys ahead of me on the descents and made it across to Chris as we approached the longer climb for the final time. I felt good and was already thinking about where to attack. I doubted that he would let me catch up so easily unless he was really hurting and could not do anything about it. We started up the climb with Wes leading Chris and me. All of a sudden, I felt a cramp coming on. It was on the inside of my right thigh. I have never cramped in a hip adductor before. I unclipped my right leg and pedaled with just the left for a minute, but the cramp did not ease up. I pounded on it with my fist hoping to provoke the reflex response to relax the muscle. Finally, it eased up and I was able to clip in again and use both legs. I was still with Chris despite the issues. Then the cramp hit again. I was able to unclip my foot and pedal with my heel for a while. The extra knee and hip extension seemed to stop it from getting worse, but it wasn't going away. It was not a fatigue cramp at all. My legs felt good. It had to be from a lack of electrolytes. I was paying the price for forgetting my drink mix on the hottest day of the series.
I lost about 15 seconds by the top of the climb, but still had a chance. The cramp stopped on the descent, but I was not able to get back to Chris. I was still about five seconds back as we hit the final rise on the powerline. I pushed with all I had, but Chris had enough left to hold me off. Just before the top of the climb, I cramped yet again in the same spot. It got worse on the descent and I couldn't pedal when we hit the grass. All I could do was watch Chris ride away to the title. I was able to get up Mount St. Helen and finish 2nd in Pro, but I was 30 seconds behind Chris. He beat me by one spot which made us tie on points for GSC. The tiebreaker is the final race, so he won the tiebreaker. It was awful to be so close and feel so good prior to that cramp. It was something that could have easily been avoided. I am happy for Chris though. He is a great guy and very fun to race with. I couldn't lose to a better guy.
Diego and Elliott did some major battling the last lap. Elliott was a little upset about Diego using elbows to keep him behind on the descents. They came into the finish together and headed for the finish side-by-side. Diego pinched Elliott into the barriers in the final turn. Elliott backed off as he said it was not worth crashing over when they weren't even in the same class. Pete recovered some from his tough second lap and finished second in Cat. 1 19-39. Chris's win in the Short Track and XC gave him the SERC title also through a tiebreaker as he and Pete finished even on points as well. It was a tight end to both series and a great weekend for Chris! Nathan Haslick took 3rd in Pro today. I won the SERC title by 18 points with Nathan finishing second. Kayley Burdine won the Pro/Cat. 1 Women today, completing her sweep of both series. She won every SERC race she competed in this season (eight out of the nine rounds) and won all six rounds of the GSC series. She is an animal!
Looking a bit worse on the third lap when I came by Steve Hampton
Photo by H & H Multimedia
Mark Poore reaches the finish
Chris comes through to win the GSC Series
Me coming in with cramps
There is a short video posted below. It includes the finish where Elliott and Diego came in together.
Video: SERC/GSC finals at Helen, GA
After I crossed the line, I cramped badly in the adductor again and had to lay down in the grass. Shannon stretched me out, but then I cramped in both hamstrings when I tried to get up. I fell down and spent a while laying in agony in the grass until I was finally able to get up and walk to the creek to cool off. I have never cramped that bad in my life. Electrolytes are definitely necessary and there is no doubt that I gave all I had today.
Elliott was down at the creek with me when we got word that Diego was moved into the Pro class after he protested that he was put in the wrong class. Neither of us were happy about that considering we did not know he was in our class during the race, so we headed up to the trailer to talk to Dave about it. Elliott protested the change, but was denied. Dave explained to me that Diego has a Pro license and he intended to register as a Pro, but the online registration confused him. I can understand that because Pro is not an option when you pre-register through the First Place Racing system. You select Cat.1, Cat. 2 or Cat. 3 and then you are split into age groups once you get to the race. Dave felt he could not leave him as a Cat. 1 because he had a UCI Pro license, which I agree with totally. Dave said he was going to give them the benefit of the doubt that it was an honest mistake and move him to Pro. The only other option would have been to throw him out completely, which would have been harsh. I respect Dave's decision because he was put into a tight spot and had to make a decision right there. He never should have been put into the position. I may have understood why Dave made the call he did, but I did not feel good about it. Elliott got ripped. Not only was a win taken from him, but also a lot of cash. Elliott didn't care about the win, but he wanted the money that he earned. If it was my race and I sincerely believed the mistake was due to confusion with registration, I would have paid the Pro class like they finished and then paid Diego equal money to the Cat. 1 winner. If that was less than what Elliott got for winning Pro, so be it. Your mistake, your loss. Elliott did not go up for the podium which is totally understandable. I got up there, but it didn't feel right. But out of respect for Dave and my sponsors, I got up there and accepted my placing.
Revised Pro podium. I wasn't feeling good about the change at this point.
Revised Cat. 1 19-39 podium had Chris Lessing on top. What a weekend for Chris!
After the race and banquet, I thought about the situation more. After some reflection, I really disagree with how it all went down. This is why I feel that way: First off, this should have never happened because his UCI Pro license should have been caught at registration. We show our license at every race. A UCI license looks different. If you are riding in a foreign country it requires you to have a photo on the license. He should have never been given a 100 series number for Cat. 1. Registration should have caught that. Second, it is your responsibility to know the rules, know the classes and get yourself into the right class. Ignorance is no excuse. Neither is a language barrier. As a UCI Pro, it is expected that you will travel abroad to places that don't speak your language. As a professional, you are expected to respect the rules of the country you are racing in. Third, the race schedule had all the info on it needed for him to know he was not in the right class. It has the class order list that clearly shows Pro is separate from Cat. 1. Out to the right of each class is listed the number sequence. Pro is 1-49. Cat. 1 19-39 is 100-199 numbers. Again, your responsibility to look at that.
Other than me losing a few dollars of payout, the result did not affect me that much. Diego was much stronger than me. I wouldn't have beat him no matter what number plate he had on. But I believe the race would have played out differently. The results may not have changed, but I know it would have been raced differently, especially between Elliott and Diego. When a mistake is made, the person that makes the mistake should be the one that suffers any sort of consequences, not the ones that followed the rules. Elliott should not have to lose his win and money, I should not have lost money and Nathan should not have been booted off the podium completely.
The thing that really bothered me about it all was when I thought back to the start line. Dave called Pro riders to the line first, separate from Cat. 1. If Diego thought he was signed up in Pro he should have lined up with us. That would have raised the question about his number and we could have sorted it out before the start. But he didn't roll up until Cat. 1 was brought up for the combined start. His interpreter was there so even if Diego didn't understand the call for Pro (which is the same word in Spanish) then his interpreter should have alerted him.
It shouldn't have been a big deal, but they really could not understand why we were upset about the change. It's not hard to see that we felt deceived. Maybe it wasn't intentional. If it wasn't, I know I would have been apologizing to everyone I raced with so they would know for sure that it was an accident. That's all that needed to happen. Just own up to it and move on. There's no way in Hell I would have felt good about winning that race knowing the way it happened and that so many people were upset about it. Instead of getting some sort of apology we got called complainers, sore losers and unprofessional. To me unprofessional is breaking the rules and then demanding respect for your performance.
The interpreter said I was only mad about it because I couldn't stand losing to a young, foreign rider who speaks no English. Age, country, language, race, etc. had nothing to do with it. Don't try to turn this into something it's not. The actions are what caused the problem.
I'm sure I'll get plenty of complaints about this post. It won't be the first time I have offended someone with my writing. I try my best to tell the story the way it happened from my point of view in the most truthful way possible. The way I look at it, if I write about something you did and you get offended because somebody wrote about it, then you probably shouldn't have done it.
I hate that the final race will be remembered more for controversy than the great racing that happened in the Unicoi woods. This definitely casts a dark shadow over the end of what was otherwise two great series.
No comments:
Post a Comment