Yankee Springs

Rather than take pictures (the digital camera's batteries died), I chose to race last minute. After running into several friends at the race, I didn't get a chance to actually warm up. Needless to say, the race kicked my butt and exploited my every weakness.

One, being that I didn't tune my bike. My handlebar grips kept sliding off in the cold weather. I kept having to smack them back into place while riding. Two, I got huge blisters on my thumbs because of one.

I battled with a friend Carey, who rides for one of my favorite bike shops. We both started the race together (2 racers launch every 30 seconds) and we jockeyed for placement throughout the entire race. I rode carefully trying not to crash, and I didn't. Carey rode aggressively behind me, crashing several times. He disappeared for a few minutes, then was on my tail . Repeat for 7 times.

The final stretch was on the grass parallel to the road to the parking lot. I could feel him breathing down my neck, and I managed to keep my front wheel ahead of him. It was a photo finish, but the electronic chips we wore (like court mandated tethers for criminals) showed my time was 0.7 seconds behind him. Results got confused and I ranged around 14th place of 24 racers in my class, give or take a few. [final postings bumped me down to 17th place]

Placement was not a priority, as I raced fixed gear. First time trial with this setup. Raced clean, no mistakes, except for being out of shape. Reminds me of a good quote..."There's more to the world than increasing its speed."

Whatever, a great race. Happy to do it. Stat-wise, only 2 minutes slower than last year (I was 5th place last year) and that's with a handicap.

Another number plate for the garage wall. Cool.