After Worlds in early September, I was needing a break. It's not just the legs that need a rest, but the mind from all the racing logistics and traveling.
Bumpy flats...ugh.
Photo courtesy of Melanie Long.
And throw in a Vegas/Interbike trip, a wedding weekend, family in town, a job search (btw...know anyone who wants to hire a bike racer?) and September was just a good time to hang up the wheels and take care of...well, pretty much everything else.
But this weekend was time to get back in the saddle...and why not do it at intensity?
Tom and I headed up to Fort Collins, Colorado for Saturday's USGP 'Cross race. And the end of my racing repose was greeted by 40 degree temps, rain, wind and a jack hammer bumpy course.
Johnny had it all, a trainer, a rain suit
and my greenest envy.
Which reminds me...next time I see a rain suit on sale....I'm buying it, even if they call for forty years of drought the day before, because the one day you need a good rain suit in Colorado, it's worth its weight in gold.
Totally under dressed for the occasion (when in doubt..always go formal wear), I was lucky enough to mooch a trainer from Johnny Coln and some tent space from Action Wipes for a warm up. Tho I'm as much a fan of water for our dry Colorado climes as the next tree hugger, starting a race in soggy chammy doesn't top my list of 'Good Times.'
That said...it was maybe the best day to jump in a race. Because rainy days kinda tip the inclination toward movies and roller rides (or smokes and drinks - it's always a toss up) - but a race plan gets you out the door with little deliberation.
And to boot, muddy slugfests are just amusing if nothing else. Riders are spinning out, sliding out and getting taken out by mud. The gal ahead of me hit a fence post rounding one bend. She was fine but her shorts weren't...they were fully shredded up front for a little Betty-bits exposé. Luckily her burlesque attire was only on display for the last lap...or parade lap..however you want to look at it.
Sunday's plans to head out to Heil Trail in Boulder were well
-timed. We got sunny skies and tacky trails for a good day of riding. And we got back in time to watch Sunday's Elite USGP streaming on Velonews...which was all followed by a TV showing of Breaking Away. It was a day cosmically aligned for cycling love.All in all...not a bad weekend to get back on the bike.
