nationals

Last weekend was the big event for Toronto cross, as our fair city played host to the National Championships. I had mixed feelings leading up to the event - a lot of signs seemed to indicate that, on both organizational and course/location fronts, possibility of "gong show" was quite high. I debated not racing... but... it was Nationals! Plus, I had decided to stay in Elite this year to see if I could improve over last years result... so I had to see, even if it was just for myself. So, of course, my debate of not racing was short-lived, and I did register.

Heading into the race, I had three publicly-stated goals:

1. Finish on the lead lap
2. Finish not-last
3. Don't have a loose and crooked helmet (even if I failed at 1 and 2, I would still look good in the photos)

Let me state here that the race and the course were both better than expected. My cynical heart was expecting total chaos, and but the participant experience was quite smooth - other than the lack of pins at registration. It may have been a total shitshow behind the scenes, but you wouldn't have known. The course was quite hilly and did not suit my strengths at all, but it was not nearly as bad as I was mentally prepared for.

Anyway, showed up quite early, as the Boy raced at 10am, and before the 9am race was the only opportunity to get on the course to check it out. I did a couple of laps at an easy pace. The Boy had a great race in the biggest field of the day. He finished 12th, and I was really proud to see how strongly he fought the entire race.

After watching the Boy's race, I was more excited to get going for my own. I had to remind myself to sit down and eat - I don't normally race so late in the day, so making sure I got more food in between breakfast and race time was pretty important! I got kitted up and had time for a few more laps in the gap before the afternoon races.

All of a sudden, it was time to line up and get started. My initial start, for the first grassy stretch, was pretty good. I came off the line quickly and held my position. The other part of the start, once we turned onto the pavement, suddenly sucked. I just kind of got swarmed. Chalk it up to "not used to riding with more than 10 women", or "don't forget, you need to keep going hard". By the time we hit the woods, I was either last or second to last, and not so impressed with myself.

This is normally the part where I could give some kind of lap-by-lap race recount. I actually can't for this race, which probably means I was working pretty hard. Or was pretty worked over. Regardless, I know that I hung on to the strung out field for a bit, and moved up to 18 (of 21). I managed to squeak by Mandy on one of the run ups, but she rallied and got the spot back and then some, moving up even further in what I think is one of her first cross races. The gap ahead of me grew, and the gap behind me seemed pretty solid. I really, really hurt. I wanted to DNF - the climbs were absolutely killing me, I felt like I was working so hard, it hurt a lot, and being at the back of the race, I didn't feel like I was getting much payback for the effort. (An aside: does it actually hurt less when you are fighting near the front? Or does the excitement of being in the thick of things help you forget and/or shelve the pain? Discuss!) I felt like I had people cheering for me on every corner of the course, which helped so, so, so much. Besides, it was only 40minutes... I could handle it, I just needed to toughen up.  I just tried to focus on doing each thing as well as I could - fast over the barriers, good remount, pedal through the corners... I screwed up one of the off-camber sections, and just heard Rachael remind me to stay focused - it helped so much. Before I knew it, I saw that I was catching on the girl in 18th. I had a lap and a half to go, and I could catch her. I caught her on the paved section, and led through the woods, just before we got the bell for last lap. She got out of the saddle and hammered out of the corner after the woods, and I let her open up a small gap. There was still a full lap left and I knew that I could reel her in again; it was nice to race with a bit patience and confidence. Sure enough, I caught her again at the first run up, and gapped her on the remount. Held onto 18th for the finish.

I have never worked so hard for such a low result. I admit that I felt frustrated when I first finished - it is very hard to go from racing in the top-5 at local races to the back of the pack for one race. On the other hand, well, it's Nationals - the largest and most competitive field all year. I know I'm a long ways from top 5. I also know that when I set my schedule at the start of the season, I've never put much emphasis on Nationals - it's just hard to not get wrapped up in them when you're actually there.

Anyway, musing about the importance of the race aside, I am happy for a number of things from this race. First, I improved on my result from last year (from 19th in 2010 to 18th in 2011!), and second, I achieved two of my previously stated goals of finishing "not-last", and of not being lapped. The straight-helmet thing seems to depend on the photographer, the time, whether I am on an off-camber section or not, and all other weird witchcraft. I think I might just need to go shopping for a new helmet over the winter to solve this one!

2010 Nationals

So, my first real cross nationals have come and gone (when Nationals were at Hardwood Hills in 2005, it was my first year, and I did the "Open Challenge"). Before getting into my own race, I want to highlight the awesome race that the Boy had. He had a great race, grabbing the holeshot, and staying with the front group. He faded a bit partway through the race, and then rallied to recover a couple of spots and finish in 6th. Such a great ride, and really fun to cheer him through!

I wasn't going into this with particularly high expectations, but I did have some thoughts on what I thought was good and achievable. Unfortunately, I had a ride that I am far from thrilled with - I just didn't have the legs or the lungs on race day.

My start was, to be frank, awful. I went from the second row to the back of the pack in very little time (see the video for a "how not to start" lesson from yours truly). Riding in a pack is something I definitely need to work on to get more comfortable here. I was riding with a small group of about 3 girls, and it was pretty good. There was some back and forth, and after riding up the "run up" while they ran, I thought I might be able to pull away from them. Oh so wrong! I put it in the big ring at the top, and my legs rather quickly told me that they weren't down with that. After a couple of turns, the girl behind me powered past me, and though I put in an effort to stay with her, it was the last I saw of anyone else. Well, at least until Wendy and Katy blew past!

I was really happy to hear that I was riding the run-up, while a lot of the girls just ahead of me were not. They were, however, pushing a bigger gear through the top section. Thanks to Brad and Rachael for yelling at me encouraging me to use the big ring - I needed a bit of a push to keep working, and it definitely helped. The Boy stationed himself at other painful points on the course, generally near the top of a climb, to remind me to keep going at times when throwing in the towel seemed like a really nice option. When I asked him point blank if I could quit, he told me to just keep going on the course to the finish area, where I could tell the commissaires I was a DNF. Of course, by the time I got there, I was feeling better, and just went around for another lap.

I finished one lap down, in 19th. I am pretty sure that on a better day, finishing on the lead lap was definitely achievable, as well as a couple more spots in the finishing order. One of the coolest things about racing was definitely the depth of the field. Definitely the strongest I have ever ridden in - honestly, how many times will I line up right next to Catharine Pendrel, Women's World Cup champ???

alberta - part 3 (the race part)

[scroll down for previous parts]
One of the primary reasons for choosing southern Alberta and Canmore as our hot vacation spot this summer is that it's the location for Nationals. When I first told my mom about the trip, she sort of exclaimed "you race at a national level?!?". Um, nope, but the Boy does. And today, I rode my own race, the National Challenge - pretty much the same course, with fewer laps and no current world cup leaders on the start line.

I did a total of two pre-rides, one on Thursday and one on Friday. On Friday, I managed to convince myself that this terrifyingly steep loose drop called the Eyedropper wouldn't be in my race, so I didn't even bother pre-riding it throwing my bike down and sliding on my feet/bum. There were two other places I flagged for cross-style dismounts, and since I was only here to ride and have fun, just didn't worry about the things I couldn't do (and possibly could have, if I spent more time practicing them).

The first major thing for this race was the riders/managers meeting, where I learned I'd be doing 2 laps. Oh, and that the Eyedropper would be in my race. Hmmm, guess I should have given it another go in practice! I knew from looking at it and from experience, that it would actually be harder to run/slide down than to ride, and it was more a question if I would have the balls to do it on race day.

We had one day, Saturday, off between pre-riding and race day. On Sunday, we woke up early and nervous. Not sure why I was so nervous - I think partially wondering how I'd do with the course, and partially just pre-race nerves, which apparently happen for me whether the race matters or not. We got up to the Nordic Centre, and I had a short warm up before they were calling for riders to the start area. It was a pretty small group, even though they had put the Minime, Novice and Sport women all together for the start.

The course starts with a lot of climbing. Out and up on the gravel access road, under a bridge to come back, and then onto a little section of single track leading to the dreaded Eyedropper. I flubbed the corner before it, and decided that I did not yet have the balls to ride down it. With two riders close behind, the safest thing was to wait for them to pass, and then slowly make my own way down. After I was safely back on terra firma and on my bike, I started up the main climb. More gravel road, winding up to the start of the single track. I caught Lee and a Calgary woman pretty quickly, and stayed ahead for the first downhill single track - a swooping section, which I really enjoyed. It led out to more climbing, mostly single track. I was making pretty good time, and caught one guy from the tail end of the previous group. Up, up, up, followed by a nice, easy double track descent, followed by Laundry Chutes, which was my next section for hoofing it. It was here that Lee caught and passed me, and the Calgary woman caught me, and passed me when I messed up another corner a bit further down the track. I could hear her bear bells ahead of me for much of the rest of the race, but she was stronger in the single track, and I never closed that gap again. So, back out into some climbing (gotta love a trail called EKG), and by this time, my lower back was hating me. I was considering DNFing when I came through the start/finish - I was in pain, I wasn't having much fun, and I just didn't want to do those climbs again. One of the last sections of single track included a long-ish steep chute, and it was another place I kept balking in pre-ride. Today, I kept telling myself it was no worse than anything in the Don. So I rolled up to it, and pushed myself back off the saddle, and rode it. It was so fun! I was super happy, and that kept me going right through the last few fast sections of the course. In fact, it kept me going right to the start/finish, where I forgot that I wanted to DNF, and went back out for lap 2.

Lap 2 was basically the same, except that I rode the Eyedropper. It was so thrilling! I made a mistake and dabbed on the corner previous to it, but there was a woman at the top who talked me through the whole thing. She reassured me that I was still ok, and I could do it. She coached me as I rolled up to the top, and let go of the brakes and rode down. I was so elated, I let out a good "Woot!" at the bottom. All these people who had seen me walk down on the first lap saw me ride that sucker for the first time, and it was so exciting, I actually wished I weren't racing so I could go back up and do it again right away! Otherwise, there were no changes. I nearly caught the bear-bell woman at the top of the course, but she as just far enough ahead that I never caught her.

Final result was last for the Sport women (and actually beaten by the Novice ladies, too), 13min back from the leader. But somehow still one of my most satisfying races, so definitely no complaints.

After a quick cool down, it was time to see the Boy off for his call-up and spend some time in the feedzone. Unfortunately, it was not a good day or a good course for him... altitude, lots of climbing, and very little by way of technical. I heard one of the elite women describe it as "I climbed all that, for this?!", and I definitely had the impression than several riders didn't think it was as good as they could have done. Regardless, the Boy made me proud, riding as best he could despite feeling like he could hardly breathe on the climb. In the end, a double flat ended his day partway through lap 3.