We were back to Jackson Park near the Museum of Science and Industry - the home of Relay Cross. This time they changed up the course and there were no partners to rely on... it was all on each of us.
At Glenwood George dabbled in the single speed race as well as the 55+ race so I decided to join him. I like the idea of doing two races but waiting around 3 hours for the Cat 3/4 is just too much.
Besides the beautiful October weather the big news was that it was my first race on my Cervelo R5-CX cyclocross specific bike. (The bike created for Wout and Mariana Vos). I built up the frame with the components from my Crux and it didn't disappoint. The handling was impeccable. I kinda suck at turning but between that and the counter-steering technique I was practicing last week I was actually catching up to people in the corners... I never thought I'd say that.
The 55+ race was first and got off to an awkward start because the official walked away from start line and we weren't sure when he was gonna blow the whistle. A whistle from a distance blew and off we went and my start was ok. Not near as good as Glenwood but slotted right up there in the top 15 (there were 28 of us at the start). After getting some really good Cross Results points at Trek CX I moved up to the 3rd row which helps.
The one technical challenge that was on the course (and not included in Relay Cross) was a 180 up a short embankment (right near Lake Shore Drive). On the first lap I knew it was gonna be a mess and sure enough someone slipped out and the rest of us were running. The rest of the first lap was a back and forth with a few different riders. It was really fun to try and move up and protect corners.
The course was dry and didn't even have any dew. As I mentioned in another race report the first race of the day (8am for us) doesn't have the lines burned in yet so while that means good grip (Green means grip) it also means that you don't have lines to follow. I started pre-ride at 25/26 PSI and lowered it in the middle. Probably ended up around 24/25 which seems to be my sweet spot. My rear tire slipped a few times throughout the race so maybe I could have gone a little lower but since I didn't go down it was probably right. It was a fast enough course to go with a higher pressure but it was fairly bumpy and it is better to smooth out those bumps with a lower pressure.
My legs felt good (other than right after the sprint start). I kept my power and had the energy to keep pushing throughout the entire 40 minutes. It was a light week on the bike which may have accounted for the freshness.
Most of the second half of the race (5 laps total) was spent catching up to the back end of the 35+ race which had started 2 minutes in front of us. Trying not to get stuck behind people which can let others catch you from behind is a challenge.
Early on I had a back and forth with #32. He finished only 5 seconds in front of me which means I should have pushed that much harder. Next time.
I finished 14th/28. I continued my goal of finishing top half and achieved my goal of top 15. I hope to keep moving up. My last lap was my fastest lap and and I was pretty consistent all around so I am pretty happy. Average HR was 164 with a max of 173.
For the single speed race I had no idea what I was doing and just hoped to pick the right gear. In the 55+ race I shifted 150 times (SRAM AXS app lets me know this) and now I wouldn't be able to shift at all (I took the battery out of the derailleur). George had let me know for Glenwood he picked too easy of a gear so I went 1 gear harder than I thought might be right. I have a 35 tooth small chainring up front and I'm pretty sure I ended up in the 17 in the back. The course was pretty flat except for that 180 turn mentioned above.
The legs still felt pretty good surprisingly and the lap times reflected that. In fact my fastest lap all day was the last lap of the SS race. I was in traffic the whole race which makes it a lot more fun. Trying to pass people or trying to hold on to wheels. On the second lap I tried to make a pass but ran out of real estate when the course jogged right. I hit the brakes but also the bushes. Thankfully the new frame seems to have come out ok.
Just before that I had passed a couple people and now I had to chase back again. With the adrenaline rush from the vegetation I kept going and not only caught the 2 people but also passed the guy who put me in the bushes. He ended up 6 seconds behind me and there were two guys who were 8 and 2 seconds in front of me so the motivation was there the last couple laps. I tried to pass the guy right in front of me on the last lap but couldn't do it and was hoping to take him in the sprint but as I took the last corner and ramped it up my back wheel hit a couple of holes and that was that.
I ended 25th out of 39 which isn't too bad as it was my second race and I had never done a SS race before. Looking forward to doing it again this week. Avg HR 165 Max 181.
Upcoming race is Sunrise Park in Bartlett.
Full Race - 55+: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-xTTf6pjyw
First Lap - 55+: https://youtu.be/esC5mYRMw2Q?si=WJQ4enUGPb-h5ok_
First Lap - Singlespeed: https://youtu.be/x9mbw5CmDDY?si=YdMKYP9Y93gt8FUg
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