The Ups and Downs of racing

One of my goals for the cyclocross season was to upgrade to Cat 3. I could have upgraded before the season even started based on previous experience, so I guess my real goal was to earn my upgrade with race results. After my two podiums at the New Belgium Cup, I figured it was a good time to pull the trigger.

Last weekend was my first in the new category. As a friend of mine told me when we were warming up, the biggest difference between the Cat 4's and Cat 3's is that nobody in the 3's is just there to have a good time. Everyone there is giving it their all, even from the back row, to get to the front of the race.

I lined up Saturday at Xilinx without expectations. I had no idea where I'd fit into the pecking order, I just knew that it was going to be an uphill battle against some strong competition. My start was pretty terrible and I was getting passed left and right. If I wasn't dead last going into the first corner, I was pretty damn close. Not a great way to start the day. Following a long singletrack section, I started picking people off in areas with more passing opportunities. Shortly into the second lap, I'd probably passed 10 people or so. I was going for pass through a grassy corner when I hit a bump in the grass that ripped my tire off the wheel. Game over. I was about as far away from the pit as I could be, so there was no hope of salvaging my race. Nothing gets me quite as frustrated as equipment failure, but I should blame myself for not checking the glue on these tires at the beginning of the season.

So I lived to fight the next day at Monarch High School CX. I was determined to have a better race, and this was a course that suited me better with long power sucking grass stretches. I took up my now familiar place at the starting grid near the back of the group, but I at least held my position when the whistle blew this time. There are a lot of 180's on this course that gave me a chance to catch my breath, and then I'd hammer it on the wide grass sections and pass people.

On the second lap, I took a gravely corner too fast and went down pretty hard. I got up quickly and remounted with a brief look at my arm to see the damage. It looked bloody, but all my body parts still worked and I continued to race with my battered bike.

One thing is for sure, people aren't exploding at the end of the race in the 3's like they typically do in the 4's. I could never let off the gas, or I'd get caught from behind. I gave it all I had (and then some) to hold my position, even as my legs were cramping on the last lap. I finished the day in 21st place. It's going to take me some time to work my way up through the cat 3 ranks, but I'm determined to do it.