Mixing It Up With The Big Guns

Amazing what four long months of winter training does to a cyclist’s mental state. The season’s first race up in Kenosha was a great chance to catch up with old friends that I haven’t seen since August. Then again, it was also an interesting glimpse into the mind of uber-dedicated cyclists who were hungry for a chance to test their conditioning. Let me tell you- on a whole, we are one burrito short of a value meal, my friends.

“I have logged 1,500 miles out on the roads so far this off-season.”

“I did a 2hr CompuTrainer session earlier today, then road up to Kenosha to race in one of the fields, only to ride back home immediately after the race.”

“I won the Masters 40+ this morning, then lined up for the Master 30+ race immediately afterwards and captured 2nd place in that race, as well.”

Well, let’s visit the mind of the average American…. “Uh, I think that I’ll roll out of bed around 11am, then sit in front of the TV and watch the basketball conference championships while drinking PBR. Oh wait, I also think that I need to change my clock… do I fall back or spring ahead?”

Yes, folks, Sunday was the start of another Chicagoland road racing season. The familiar sound of floor pumps and derailleurs graced the 80th Avenue industrial park in Kenosha. Those were the welcome sounds. Unfortunately, there was also a very unwelcome sound that would bring on the pain throughout each and every race- the sound of gale force winds. I was planning to race the Masters 30+ race, but sit in the field to conserve energy for the Cat 3 race later In the day. Well, the “Who’s Who” lineup at the start of the race made it quite clear that my plan to “sit in” wasn’t going to play out exactly as planned. Druber was flashing his Scarlet Fire threads and Leader bike. A hoard of Verdigris Masters racers rolled up from the Northbrook area with Delfino in tow. Within two laps, the attacks had begun and the hammerfest was underway.

I did a solid job of mixing it up with the big guns, even driving the chase for a brief period into the head wind. I decided that it was best to scale back the effort to preserve some matches for the upcoming Cat 3 race. Well, the headwind on the long back stretch made it quite clear that there was to be no “sitting in” on this particular day. Either I suffered to stay with the group of Cat 1’s and Cat 2’s or I suffered dealing with the headwind. I chose the headwind and forced myself to push out 350W-450W on each headwind climb. Well, the gas tank was tapped out by the end of the race, but I managed to finish only a lap down from Druber and his breakaway companion. There would be no Cat 3 race for me later that afternoon, but I took great satisfaction from enjoying a Chipotle burrito (carnitas, of course), the company of my family, and sore legs by the time 2:15pm rolled around- the start of the Cat 3 race.