I knew I had lost a little bit of fitness due to the injury, but I was feeling good about the whole race experience. I now realize that I race much better when things aren’t going so well. 2 of my teammates and I rode up to the race – making for a nice warmup, though.

Upon arrival we all took a pre-race lap to note the turns and the wind direction. Then I registered very smoothly in comparison to some other people, as witnessed at the table. After that I found a field house men’s room entirely to myself (and the cleanest I’d ever experienced at any cycling event). I even wheeled my bike in with me! Done with that, I then went on to achieve a personal best at number pinning (which still needed an amendment later, but a big step forward for me nonetheless). Things were on the up-and-up!

This was my first race in a Category 4 only field. I had raced with many of the guys out there before in combined fields, ‘cross, etc, so it felt no different. The pace was also no different. And, my penchant for making aggressive moves early also went un-changed.

I was unable to start in the front, near where I wanted to be, but after a lap and a half was able to make it up there. After railing the 3^rd turn hard, I found a wheel ahead of me that I wanted and thought could work with on a break. The wind hit me before I could latch on and make the suggestion. Then the rest of the pack swallowed me up and spit me out.

After that I was a bit confused as I looked back and only saw my teammate, Joe. The aforementioned pack now seemed much smaller that the field did at the line, numbers-wise. In retrospect I would find that my jump had dropped tail end of the peloton. So, it was just me and Joe, in “two man’s land.”

Me and Joe; pre-race. Photo: Zach Thomas.

At first I thought we could work together to bridge, so we traded hard pulls and tried to get some other stragglers to latch on and help with the effort. No one else could hang, so my pulls became less and less strong due to the fact that bridging was becoming impossible. That didn’t stop Joe and me from working together and finishing strong. It was truly a team effort and I felt very proud to be out there lap after lap working with him for the crowd to see. I wanted to “fist-bump” at the line but he ended up a little farther back on the final straight and I didn’t want to hit the brakes.

This was the best crit I’ve been to yet. The combination of the amenities, the weather, the team work and the course itself was not to be beat. I, on the other hand, was. I often don’t look for my results, but this time I really don’t mind not knowing. I raced well and am happy. I initially wanted to pass this one up but now am looking forward to next year. I think that says a lot!