I Just Can't Help Myself

A beautiful spring day outside Ellijay

I just had to start this up again.  The urge to write something down, even if nobody but me reads it, was too strong to ignore.  I found myself composing blog material as things happened and realized I needed this to keep my own stuff straight.

So, anyhoo, I'm baaaack!

One big tree

Road Racing, Bicycle Style

The Kid on the line for the crit in Quincy Fl.

I'm just going to skip all the other cool things I've gotten to do over the past months that we've been apart. Like Mountain Bike Marathon Nationals, Dirty Pecan Clay Ride, and other assorted cycling adventures.

Dr. S Works and I contemplating 60 miles in the woods

The Kid is home from UF for the summer so we've been able to ride together quite a bit, whether he likes it or not.  He did the crit in Quincy Fl. this past weekend while a group of us rode over and watched.

The Kid heading into a Quincy corner

I had decided to try my hand at road racing on Sunday.  That crit business scares me.

Me in the orange helmet. No that's not the front of the pack.

Turns out road racing isn't my strong suit.  All the advice I got was "try to stay with the lead group", and "keep your nose out of the wind".  With about 1k to finish the first of 3 laps I failed at both.

It was kinda hot, oh, and windy also.  Making the next 33 miles somewhat unpleasant.  All by myself, long straight roads, and some fairly good hills.  I was going so slow on the climbs the horse flies could catch me.  Adding insult to whole affair every once in a while a small group would roll by me an holler "get on".  I'd call on the legs to go, but nothing happened.  I imagined they were like Scotty on Star Trek, "I'm givvin ya all they've got captain" (say it with an Irish brogue).  Yes, I had very much blown up.

I have been replaying what I might have done different.  I was in heart rate zone 5.7 when the pack started to drop me.  I don't have much more in me than that, and I certainly can't stay in that neighborhood very long.  Should I have backed off earlier?  Found a secondary group to stay with?  Who knows.  Unlike MTB racing road very much involves other riders to make it fun.  Off road you spend a lot of time by yourself but the ride is still engaging, not just grinding pedal strokes.

On the positive side I finished 18/21 so I wasn't last.  And it was a great workout.  

As I sat under the pop up in the middle of the pasture after the race.   I reflected on how many hot summer days I had swatted gnats and hoped for a breeze to blow after racing something with two wheels.  Enduros, hare scrambles, motocross, and now bicycles.  Big Jim had provided me with an ice cold brew and I got all melancholy remembering.  Hey, that's what old guys do.  I got to race bikes with my son, I didn't crash, and at 59 I'm still trying something new on two wheels.