Room for improvement

This past Saturday was spent battling the wind and cold in Lancaster County. Back for another weekend of racing, the Strasburg Road Race was a testament to poor planning. Registration was slow (so much for mandatory pre-registration), start times were pushed back twenty minutes and did I mention it was cold? Just a week ago, it was 80 degrees and sunny. I came home with a sunburn. This weekend, I came home with a windburn and very little feeling in my toes.

Serves me right. I couldn't imagine what Nate was talking about when he asked if I had enough warm clothes at 530 in the morning! I packed plenty of layers, but no one warm article of clothing--say a bearskin blanket or sheepskin gloves.

The race itself was uneventful.

Except for the tumultuous straight-aways which confronted riders with a 20 mph headwind. What could have been a straight-away for sprinting was turned into the March of Penguins.

Except for my chain dropping in the middle of a hill as I shifted desperately into my 17, then my 18, then my 20.

Except for me losing the pack on the first lap (of 3) and having no one to work with. Actually there was one cyclist who I worked with, except by the 2nd lap she blew up and left me alone. I tried to convince her to stay on my wheel, if only for selfish reasons, so that I could draft her strategically up the hills or into the wind.

Alas, alack.

Despite this, I finished. And not in last place, either. I felt decent enough, but still have lots to work on. But that's what these early races are good for--they tell me before it's too late, on what areas I need to focus more.

Cadence Time Trial Series #1

After a winter spent on the trainer, maniacally following the color-coded grid of workouts, the first contact my race tires had with pavement was last Sunday at the Cadence Time Trial Series in Lancaster, PA. I knew I had become stronger and fitter during the past 12 weeks, but it is always hard to know how exactly it will translate on race day. The time trial course, though shorter than usual, is hillier than most. I raced on the same course two years ago, where I held my own in first place during the series (not hard to do when you’re the only female competitor)! Anyway, my personal record on the course was 40:38 and I was determined to break it.

My life, these days has evolved into a whirlwind of work and play, starting in the wee hours of the morning as a coach for two local rowing teams in the area. After that, I split my days between two places of employment, only to find myself out on the town catching up with friends and family during the evenings. Such was the case on Friday night. After catching a late showing of Brokeback Mountain (which I highly recommend) with Gretchen, my beloved friend (and PVC teammate), I ventured home around 1 am. Four hours later, I was up packing for the race. Nate and I were on the road by 6am. I awoke only for a pit stop at Big Apple Bagels, my favorite bagel place in Pennsylvania. By 830 am we were on location.

Having not raced on this course or in this series in 2005, it was exciting to witness its growth in the racing community, especially among the women’s fields. My field had expanded considerably with more than 12 women represented. Unlike other time trials, the Cadence series starts racers in order of registration, not by category. Therefore, I found myself eightieth in line to start. As starts go, it wasn’t my best. I was a little slow off the line, for no good reason. However, it didn’t take me long to get into a good position on the aero bars and put the hammer down.

It’s funny how much can change in two years on the bike. I remember the very first time I raced on the course. It was only my second road race ever, and my very first time on the aero bars. I remember how I seemed to ooze painfully around the course—how every mile seemed like a lifetime; how the hills went straight up without mercy. Yet, last Saturday, the course wound along at a pretty good clip and the hills weren’t nearly as painful. Was I improving as a cyclist after all? It’s a step in the right direction.

I finished the course in 10th place among the women, 99th out of 106, but best of all I shattered my personal course record by more then 2 minutes (38:06). A decent start to a very long road season ahead.