Even though I had this killer new bike, sexy red gear and a wonderful support group, I definitely wasn't mentally or physically ready for the first race of the year...but who is?
However, I sucked it up, got into the mode and rode my bike out to Louisville (home of Miss Tingle) for the annual Louisville Crit. It's 50min of hard riding, it can't be THAT bad, right?!?!
I wasn't nervous one bit, just didn't feel like I was ready to be hammering out huge efforts and really putting the foot to the pedal. It was a good thing I knew several of the girls there because it made it seem just like last year when I had all the confidence in the world :) After the gun went off, we all packed together for an hour of fun around a 0.6mi loop with sharp turns and mild hills. I found myself at the front early in the race and at about 15min made a bit of a small move (which was really stupid) and unfortunately smashed my legs/lungs a little more than I thought. I ended up getting popped off the lead group for the entire race chasing as hard as I could to get back on. Finally, with 3 laps to go, I hooked back up with the leaders and somehow made my way to the front AGAIN...hmmm...I knew the sprinting legs were non-existent so I just tried to mix it up in the back and hammer out the second to last lap and see what happened during the final lap. As planned, I was completely toasted in the sprint but happy I finished where I did...rough way to begin the season, but hey, it's over and now I'm ready to begin racing hard!
Big thanks to Bryce who helped get everything ready for me. He even drove out with extra food and clothing and cheered me on so hard until I caught back on...I think he may have needed a little sunscreen :)
Even though I had this killer new bike, sexy red gear and a wonderful support group, I definitely wasn't mentally or physically ready for the first race of the year...but who is?
However, I sucked it up, got into the mode and rode my bike out to Louisville (home of Miss Tingle) for the annual Louisville Crit. It's 50min of hard riding, it can't be THAT bad, right?!?!
I wasn't nervous one bit, just didn't feel like I was ready to be hammering out huge efforts and really putting the foot to the pedal. It was a good thing I knew several of the girls there because it made it seem just like last year when I had all the confidence in the world :) After the gun went off, we all packed together for an hour of fun around a 0.6mi loop with sharp turns and mild hills. I found myself at the front early in the race and at about 15min made a bit of a small move (which was really stupid) and unfortunately smashed my legs/lungs a little more than I thought. I ended up getting popped off the lead group for the entire race chasing as hard as I could to get back on. Finally, with 3 laps to go, I hooked back up with the leaders and somehow made my way to the front AGAIN...hmmm...I knew the sprinting legs were non-existent so I just tried to mix it up in the back and hammer out the second to last lap and see what happened during the final lap. As planned, I was completely toasted in the sprint but happy I finished where I did...rough way to begin the season, but hey, it's over and now I'm ready to begin racing hard!
Big thanks to Bryce who helped get everything ready for me. He even drove out with extra food and clothing and cheered me on so hard until I caught back on...I think he may have needed a little sunscreen :)
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