How to pass on a race located at riding distance from my home? The time trial at Stony Creek is not part of the Michigan championship I am pursuing but the race is well organized, the course is fun and the competition is always stiff.
The entire week the weather forecast called for no rain on race day, so I was a little surprise when I actually wake up hearing the rain drops hitting the roof. It was not a heavy rain by any mean and it stopped by 8:00am leaving two hours for the trails to dry up.
Doing the full range of mountain bike racing from the time trial to the 100 miles format, I always have a problem settling to pace that is going to bring me to finish line the fastest. Furthermore, I was the first competitor to start and while I would have nobody that could hinder me on the tight single track trails, I would not be able to gage my speed.
No matter, how often I ride there my legs are burning right from the get go as we are riding on the grass shoulder along side the road. Luckily, the first creek crossing is always welcome to cool them but more importantly, that signify that the single track trails are not too far away.
My Bontrager XR1 tires were perfect, rolling extremely well on the double track but still maintaining sufficient grip to handle the humid turns in the single track. Being familiar with the trails and the race layout, I proceeded with extreme caution when approaching the greasy spots and the infamous wet wood bridge.
I was able to maintain the pace to the second and last creek crossing. I then put a harder gear for the last mile to the finish. I was delighted to hear I had the fastest time. Next race is the Wilderness 101 in Pennsylvania; quite an adjustment in race length.
No comments:
Post a Comment