Cyclocross at Xilinx

I haven't pinned on a race number since sometime last spring, but my racing hiatus came to an end in Longmont today. It was my first race of the cyclocross season and my first race in a new category. Having just come off a long vacation, I wasn't expecting much from the legs. I just wanted to get out there and remind my body what it's like to race. I didn't have any points this season, so I was stuck starting in the 5th or 6th row. It could have been worse, though. We probably had close to 100 racers, so I was starting somewhere the middle of the pack. The normal 1st lap chaos ensued, but I was a little surprised at what gave people trouble. The group got really bunched up as we had to come off the pavement over a curb. I ended up getting off my bike and running because it was just faster. After that, things settled down quite a bit. I mostly just rode within my limits and tried not to go into the red too much. The course was loose in spots, but overall not too technical. It was good practice for me, and I felt like I rode a lot of stuff faster than I would have in the past. I started to fade at the end of the race, which is about what I expected after having a bunch of time off the bike. I found myself on the back of a group of 5 going into the last set of barriers. It was a short distance from there to the uphill finish, and I felt confident that I could out sprint some of those guys. Unfortunately the guy in front of me decided he was done racing, sat up, took a bizarre line into the barriers, and gapped me from that group. Damn. Bummer of a way to end that race, but overall it went pretty well. I finished 19th.