Charm City Cyclocross - 1st cross race of the year!

Sunday was the first cross race of the year - Charm City Cross in Baltimore Maryland.

Thought I would put my best foot forward and attempt another year at a handfull of cyclocross racing. Prior to Sundays race I had made it out to two practice sessions with the DCCoD and hoped it would be enought to help lower the ensuing pain I know I was in my future.


For Sundays race I set a realistic goal of a mid pack finish in the Masters Cat 3/4 35/45+ race. Sorry - no top 5's, top 10's or anything link that - I just do not ride enough or for that matter do any sort of interval work that would allow me to have anything resembling a top finish.

Charm City...and my race almost did not happen - I am out riding the starting section heading down to the start line and some idiot in front of me decides he wants to get off the course by cutting across the course right in front of me on an off camber hill. I have to swerve and lock up my brakes to keep from T-boning him and in doing so I rolled my front tire (tubular/clincher). I run back to the car and get the tire remounted....race back to the start and line up almost in the last row. Thank goodness they rearranged the line up by numbers and I end up in the 6th row out of about 10. Super large turnout with around 100 racers line up on the Masters Race.

Race starts and I get held up a bit by some riders who just don't know much about riding a bike. It's really as easy as jumping on and turning the pedals around in circles! I start moving up a bit and my race prodeeds as follows - I handled the bike, technical corners and barriers very well and probably made 95% of my passes in these areas - Flats are where I struggled for the most part, plus I had no real accellerations out of the corners. I'd really have to say my favorite sections where the tight switchbacks - I was pimping everyone in these sections, everyone was swinging wide to cut into the turns while I was taking the inside lines faster and more aggressively. I think there was one corner right before exiting the field section and back across the road where I passed a group of 4 racers in one corner! Pimp-o-mania!

Two laps to go and Henry's teamate Tom M. was gaining ground on me. I did my best to hold him off, but my fitness just is not there and I was starting to struggle.....one lap to go and Tom pulls on my wheel. I try and tell him to grab my wheel and I'll pull him thru on the road section, but it was too late as Tom had already pull along and past me. I was able to keep from loosing ground on Tom on the last lap, but just did not have the energy to close the gap. At the finish I was right behind Tom(with 2 racers inbetween).

I finished in 24th place which was much better than I expected so I guess I am satisfied. I really need to do some work on accelerating out of corners - here I'm slow as a pig.

Michael