The CCC season doesn't start until October so the pre-season for us entails motoring up to Wisconsin. The nice thing about the Wisc CX Series is there are a ton of races to choose from. This was opening weekend and on Sunday it was the LAPT Lion Cross near-ish Milwaukee.
Bryan Connelly (UPB) and I signed up and headed up to Tichigan, WI. The forecast was cool rain all day just like back home so I didn't even use the bike rack and stored the Crux in the rear of the car. No sense in washing off all the lube BEFORE the race. I also brought an entire 2nd kit (shoes included) as we were doing 2 races and didn't want to be sitting for an hour in cold/muddy/wet clothes.
When I got there the rain was coming down so hard I didn't get out of my car. Wind was 20 mph steady with 30 mph gusts. No thank you! We were in a parking lot with a grassy patch in the middle. It was designed to be a retention pond and by the time of the first race it absolutely was a pond.
Eventually, it let up enough to make a dash for the bathroom (absolutely needed) and to registration. The race director was out on the course making changes because the new conditions would have made the hill un-ridable and maybe un-walkable. My head space was questioning whether the race would go on at all due to the damage we would do to the park or at least if it would be delayed.
Come 9am the first race started on time. I was amazed. I had a lap and a half of pre-ride (less than optimal) but was able to identify the main features. An off camber left turn up a sharp/short hill, an accordion section which would line everyone out, 2 barriers back to back, and a sand pit. A tiny bit of gravel paths but otherwise all grass. Very wet grass.
Ours was the first race. Cat 4/5. Bryan was in the 35+ group and I was in the 50+ group which started about 30 seconds behind. My field had 29 racers and Bryan's 17. I was predicted 7th in my race based on CrossResults.com points which meant I had a front row start. This doesn't happen for me in CCC races because we don't split the categories here: 45+ includes Cat's 1-4 (Another fun reason to head north of the border to race).
I want to call out the Thursday crew here and say I am grateful for the practicing. We practice most aspects of racing (no sand at Spring Rock Park) and especially starts. I had a great start in my race. Basically, what that means is I was able to clip in on the first try and was able to put power to the pedals immediately. I'm about 50/50 in practice clipping in so it was really exciting.
Into the first corner I was in about 3rd position and had a good runup the first hill so at one point early in the lap I was in first position. I've never been in the lead of a race before and it was pretty crazy running through my head. Heading into the accordion section (a succession of tight U-turns back to back - about 6 of them) we started to catch a couple of the 35+ racers. I made an effort to get past one of them which I knew would clog the other racers behind me. I was able to hold the lead for just a little bit but it was a highlight.
In pre-ride I wasn't able to ride the sharp/short hill so in the race I just ran it which I think worked out for me. Trying to ride and getting stuck would have been slower. Bryan said he was able to ride it which is really impressive.
Eventually a few people passed me and I wasn't concerned about trying to hold wheels. The race was 30 minutes long and I didn't want to blow up on the first lap. I kept my pace (169 HR AVG) and counted how many people were passing me to get an idea of my placing. I was shooting for at least a top ten. I counted 4 and then I eventually passed one of them back so I thought there were three. Because of the mixed fields I was using rider numbers starting with a 5 to judge who was who. Unfortunately, the Wisc CX Series had number issues and some people were racing with last year's numbers. More on that in a minute.
I am using a new bike this year - Specialized Crux - and it is really a gravel bike in the 2022 model that can be used for CX (Pros are using it so why not me). I was pretty happy with the cornering and my ability to handle the course. The course was wet and full of puddles but it wasn't really muddy (yet). The sand pit was a volleyball court and of the 4 laps I was able to ride it twice which I was excited about.
Behind me I could see the next racer was there but not close enough to be an immediate threat. I kept my pace ("Early Season Slow") and motored through. I finished 5th. I thought I was 4th but #262 snuck past me and I didn't realize he was 50+. [Honestly though I probably wasn't going to catch him]
I'm pretty excited with 5th - the Wide Angle Podium! If this was ABR I would have gotten a medal LOL.
Also, I now realize why the pros change bikes every lap when it is nasty out. My brakes were grinding with all the mud/sand in there. I'm sure my gears weren't very happy either. I could feel it and hear it. At first I thought I was just rubbing the new chain guide I put on. Luckily I had extra water bottles and used them to clean the brakes/gears for the second race.
The second race was the Cat 4 with the young guns. I had a second row call up and had another great start but 30 seconds into the race I could tell I had no power left. I immediately turned it into a technique practice. Trying to find the green lines (Green is grip) and staying on the bike while others were running. The course was much more muddy now. Not quite peanut butter thick but the rain wasn't as heavy so it was more viscous. I didn't bring mud tires (Mounting issues) so I was spinning out in a few places. Thankfully the same 30 minutes took 3 laps and I was spared a 4th. Only managed to clean the sand once and walked up the sharp hill instead of running. That's ok. The race legs will come. 22nd/33.
There was a BBQ joint on site and Bryan and I sat down to some post-race brisket and beans. It never stopped raining but was lighter than it had been. The best part of the day was watching all the racers dip their bikes in the new created pond to clean them off (and themselves). I was too cold and tired and my poor bike is still sitting in the garage a mess.
My prep for the races included a drive to Purdue Saturday for a football game in the hot sun and a bunch of walking. So, all concerned it was a good day. The Battle of Waterloo is in 2 weeks and I'm hoping to make that. Until then...
