Men's Category 3

This race is a beast.  Slated for 55 miles, with one major climb then undulating terrain complicated by strong wind out of the east set up a painful afternoon...

OK...Here is the deal, this race SUCKED!!  I could sit here and tell you about how we triumphed over the elements and our teamwork was the only reason we survived the hellacious onslaught of rival teams...but I would be lying.  Truth is,  this course is tough, complicated by starting an hour late (which personally, my wife was REALLY happy about when I called her @ 7:30 and told her I was just leaving) as well as a stiff eastern wind, 80 starters, Casey's apathy (we were dangerously close to loading our bikes and crap in the car and maiking a beeline to Dave's for beers and burgs on the barbi!!)...pride got in the way.  I over-trained last week so my legs felt heavy and sore...great!  Now, sprint uphill eight times for two hours with 18 year olds!!

Late racing blows....last few years it was getting up at the crack of dawn but at least you were home around noon...this three and four o'clock crap nullifies your entire day.  Then, stand on the side of the road where you can feel your muscles tighten and your head just get out of racing altogether...still want to keep reading?

Did I mention that only two of us showed up?  Try bitching about the sorry state of affairs to the same guy over and over, he doesn't want to hear it!!  You don't get as many differing perspectives on how bad things really suck!  Nor do you get an ounce more of sympathy...Casey didn't want to be there, so I felt guilty that he felt guilted into going so that I wouldn't be the only frickin' Trocadero at the State Championships!!  

So, that is how the race started, real excited to be there...All things considered there were accelerations up the beast then up the rollers on the back side, which pretty much kept things together.  I half expected my legs to warm up and get used to the damage, they just felt worse and worse.  Casey had somewhat planned all along to pull the plug if it looked fruitless to save his legs for the TT the following day.  A small break was established around lap five consisting of some horse from Illinois then Fred and Freshman Steve...they were gone and all efforts by Clif Bar and Wheel  and Sprocket to bring em back failed.

Casey decided to pull it at 6 laps and spare himself the Magic Carpet Ride up the the hill 2x...On the last lap, last corner I was sitting pretty in fourth wheel (about 10th overall with the guys up the road) thinkin' that all I had to do was just maintain my place up the hill in the sprint...I got about 10 feet into that pipe dream when my legs EXPLODED!!  I know I have a penchant for exaggeration, but I was screaming in pain.  The cramping was so bad I almost fell off the bike.  I think I screamed like a female tennis pro most of the way up, watching about 300 guys pass me in my useless, pathetic condition...I paid THEM $25 for THIS?

I think those that went for the beers and burgs won out on the day...