Black and blue, bruised and battered, but oh what fun...!

I completed in my first Gran Prix, down in Louisville Ky. A UCI event, so I was unable to ride in the elite cat, but luckily there was a 3/4 race on both days. I had planned on visiting my sister but throw in a race weekend, i couldn't pass it up!

I started looking at this course months ago and i thought it was going to be awesome. it was really long which means you don't have to do a lot of laps (yes!!!). The video on the website showed highlights from last year and the biggest obstacle (no pun instead) was a LARGE staircase called "The Green Monster." I left for Ky late and had to suffer through a 2 hr traffic jam to Indiana (should've taken about 30 mins). After arriving at the hotel in pitch black darkness at midnight (and stupidly watching tv for a couple hours, as usual), i awoke to yup, pitch black darkness. The sun doesn't ride (ahem rise...) until after 7am in those parts and since i didn't get to pick up my race info the day before, i was up and bike ready at 615am. I packed up the car, grabbed my bagels, juice, cereal and coffee. I programmed thet GPS to get to Champions Park and prepared for the drive to the course. Right turn out of the parking lot, left turn at the intersection...and park the car? Lol, yeah...the course was right across the street from the hotel. Oops :-) So...park, unpack, eat, pin number, pre-ride the course, listen to race day music, find sister, play with dog, warm up and its RACE TIME!

Saturday Womens 3/4 30 mins
About 25 riders lineup at the start line. We were given numbers according to our rankings in the local series and if no ranking, then by registration time. Since I didn't have a rank, I started 16 riders down. Not too bad and it did make me glad i had pre-registered. The ground was pretty dry and the sun was just peaking through when the gun went off. The large pack of juniors waiting impatiently behind us would start about a mintue back and we'd all mingle at somepoint through the course. This was the largest pack i'd cyclocrossed with (and considering that i've entered into a 58 rider race later this year, i was excited to get the practice!) but for some reason, i wasn't nervous. I clipped in slow, though, but i was able to make some place going into the first turn. The course was very technical with lefts and rights coming up quickly. I wouldn't be able to do the course justice with a description, but check out the course map. Throughout the course, I was trading spots with 2 other riders and i also saw everyone else riding through the 3 sandpits and i thought "well...if everyone else is doing it..." and i tried it myself. And i did it! Yes, its nots a figment of my imagination, you CAN ride a bike THROUGH SAND! The last time i tried, i just toppled over. This time, i built up some speed, kept my cadence as high as possible and i pedaled through! yes! Round and round, over a set of barriers, up steep small hills and back down, runups with stairs and behold...the Green Monster. At least the steps were covered in "Drink Guinness, its good for you" logos (as my sister said "After running those stairs, you need a Guinness"). The Monster changed to a short flat section down a steep enbankment. The enbankment reminded me of when i was kid and my sis and i would ride down this hill on a little ten speed schwinns...no pedals, no helmets, a bump in the middle that would send you flying...ah good times, and that was my favorite part of the race! Others would clip in and slow at the top of the Green Monster and i just jump on and WHHEEEEEEE (no i didn't say that, i didn't have enough air), eh just clip in later. On the second lap, I entered the last sand pit too slow and tried to jump off the bike but I was still clipped in (oops!) and just fell over. Bike hit my knee and i bent the rear derailluer but i was able to recover and finish ahead of the 2 other riders i had been trading spots with throughout the race. Lots of fun, a good placing in my opinion and i knew i worked hard!

Later, my sis and i explored Louisville (I went to the Colonels' headquaters!) and its a cool city! We checked out the shops on Bardstown Rd, got stuck in massive highway traffic (semi overturned and 3 accidents all within a 3 mile stretch!), went to the mall, i took a nap, checked the bike, and then headed back out for dinner (spicy pasta...yum!)

Sunday Womens 3/4 30mins
Ah, wiser this time around. I did not pack up the car and since i "pre-rode" the course yesterday, i slept in until 7am. Grabbed the mandatory carbs and rode over to have the SRAM guys check out the derailluer (they're so great). The bike handled itself very well during my warmup and i once again lined up. Today, i had a bad position, somehow i was now in the last row (rather than the 2nd) and behind a squrrielly rider. I don't know why, but once the gun when off, she started swerving all over the place (ok, maybe it was like a 5 inch radius, but completely unnecessary) but instead of getting around her, i entered the grass behind. Going into the first turn, the rider next to me hit the pole and tape and i narrowly missed a crash. Phew...keep going, next turn, a rider behind me bumps my wheel but i stay upright. What the hell?!? Its ok...i slowed a little but pushed forward. The course was a little different this time around and the first barriers seemed to come up quicker. Under the bridge back out towards the sandpits. I'm once again trading spots with another rider but that just makes it exciting. I noticed that she slowed some in the sandpit and i thought to myself i could pass her there. Sandpit #2, she takes the line "most traveled" (ie flat and easier) and i pulled left into the deeper part to pass and BAM! my tired sinks and just stops, i endo and flip on to the sand. Another rider hits my tire (not me tho) and she gets up quick. My water bottle is a foot away and other riders are now coming through...i hear "watch out!!! on your right" and various other phrases and i grab my bike, try to stay still and all i can do is wait so they can go around me rather than trying to run and cause another crash. I ran through the next sandpit but ugh, my momentum is all gone. I don't hurt, the bike seems to be responding well and i just try to push it. I took the Green Monster slow but i can now see two other riders. I keep pushing it through the turns and barriers and by the time i hit the pavement to start the last lap, the first of the two is right in front of me. I take a large drink of my water and the first time ever, i threw it to the side. Granted its not a ton of weight, but it can't hurt to get rid of a full bottle when i know i'm not going to use it. Thru the corners, i hear her teammates telling her to get away "don't let her push you like that" and i get around at the first barrier. 2 juniors crash just to my left but once again, i avoided it. thru the trees, to the run up, on the short pavement, up the steep hill to the first sand pit...i rode through it (this time in the easy line) to make sure i'm not afraid of it but the rest i ran through. She caught up to me after somewhere after the 3rd sandpit and the Green Monster so in those last few hundred yards, i threw on all the gears i had left and sprinted as much as i could. i hit the pavement and looked back, she wasn't there. i crossed the finished line ahead, once again, of the riders i kept changing places with but much further down from Saturday. Thats alright, the bike was ok (thanks SRAM, although i don't think they believed i really endo-ed until they saw sand in my shifters...) i finished strong and i had SO much FUN! I'm sore today and i think i may have bruised a rib or 2 (yikes!) but wow, i can't wait to do this again!

The Green Monster One of the sandpits
Approaching the barriers Saturday's Pro Winner