Having just wrapped up a long season of endurance mountain bike racing and a 5th place overall in the North East Ohio (NEO) cross series, I travelled south to Yellow Springs Ohio for the Ohio State cyclocross championships.
It was your typical cross course with lots of corners, one double barrier, two single barriers that were low and far enough apart to bunnyhop and one sand section. Rain earlier in the week made the course slower and softer then had been in previous days, but it also made some of the single track sections a little slick.
Gun went off and I was sitting in the top 8 riders going full out and within one lap we pretty much gapped the rest of the field.
Things stayed tight for awhile, and then gaps opened up as the pace went up at the front. I dropped from the main group, but kept them within site.
A few laps later, a few more riders got by me, but I kept the pressure on by concentrating on the corners and jumping the single barriers on the backside of the course. I would catch and drop a few riders.
With 4 laps to go, I was sitting in 8th spot overall, 3rd Ohio rider. This is usually the point where the race hurts the most and riders start making mistakes.
2 laps to go, I close the gap to the next two riders and one of them goes down in a tight 180 degree corner. I hammer out of it in search of the next rider and drop him immediately.
1 lap to go, over the double barriers. The rider in front of me does not remount as fast as he had before and I press hard on the pedals to get in front of him before the single track section. I ride the section as fast as I could, jump the barriers and hit the 180 degree with enough speed to ride it in my big ring. Coming out of the next corner, I had at least a 5-10 second gap and I was closing in on 5th place overall.
I would cross the line 6th overall with 5th place not much more then 50 feet ahead of me - but I would finish up as the 3rd Ohio rider on the day which was a great way to wrap up the 2010 racing season.
sologoat out
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