First of all, congrats to Bob and his ability to come back from the "Crab Cake" incident. I'm sure that Indy State Championship is not far off. I, on the other hand, was at Spring Prairie this past Sunday. Treat these next few paragraphs like an accident on the Dan Ryan: you don't really wanna look, but it's quick and it makes you feel better about yourself.
After a neutral start up the daunting 18% climb, we, the 4/5s that aren't from Packerville, began our first of six laps on the six mile or so course on country roads. While I was beyond joyous about staying in the top eight to ten on said lap numero uno, I was passed by about 80% of the field on the first "official" climb on the 18%er. "I know I can, I know I can" just wasn't enough to get me to stay on the back.
After a few more rollers, one at 8% and another around 10%, I honestly considered sitting up. But why did I drive 100 miles? Why did I pay my own money for the race AND gas to get there? Why have I spent almost seven days a week training? To quit? It sucked, but I chased down a few guys and started to work with them. When our pack grew to seven, I corraled them all to take short pulls (20-30 seconds) in order to keep the confidence. After sweeping up a couple more riders on lap three, we all eventually rushed up the finishing hill like we were in the main pack.
Now, I would LOVE to end this with a tale of my first top ten finish, or how I flatted and still got a PR; but what was most satisfying was getting back to my car and seeing some riders from other teams. When I asked them how they did, a few of them answered that they had dropped out. DNF. Wow. All that time, effort, and money to get a DNF. Yeah, it sucked, but I am proud to say that I finished, no matter how far down the list. A moral victory? Nah, just a love/hate relationship with this biking hobby.
Sully
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