"It looks like you know what you're doing"

Can you believe someone said that to me today as we were coming up to the Berlin Fairgrounds where the race finished? There was a very strong cross-wind coming into the finishing area up near Grand Rapids, and it was completely tearing apart the field. I finished fourth and I'm very happy with that considering I was in the front of the group almost the entire race doing all the work on a crazy wind-swept course. I would come up to the front and then pull off, and no one came around me! What the hell! I've been working and talking to Mike about staying towards the front of groups during races, but I shouldn't be IN the front for 70% of the race.

Today's race was two laps, the first lap was pretty mellow until we took a right and started heading west. The road was slightly downhill and everyone just took off and we started pushing a high pace. We took another right once we got through Lamont and it was the first of really only 2 climbs. I found myself in front coming into this hill, just like I found myself most of the race, and for some reason I decided to attack. Not really attack like I was trying to form a break, just the kind of attack where I'm pushing 20 or 21 mph going up a pretty significant climb. This broke up the field pretty good, leaving only about 6 or 7 guys with the lead group. We then took another right and man, the cross winds just killed our speed. I tried to slow down and get  back in the pack behind someone, but like I said no one would come around me!

Coming around on the second lap after we passed the finish area, some guys attacked once we took the first right and started heading west again. I said to myself, might as well go with them, so here I am pushing upwards up 30 mph trying to get away, but nothing sticks and we get into Lamont together as a group and take a right and start heading up the same hill I attacked on the first lap. This time though, I was just trying to survive until the finish, hoping the group would stay together and there would be a sprint finish. I used all of my energy to stay on the wheel in front up me as we were going up this climb, heading north until we took a right to start heading east again to the finish. I never felt like I was going to be dropped, I just burned a lot of my matches trying to stay with the wheel in front. I did though and we took the right and the cross winds slowed the group right down.

This is where another racer told me, "It looks like you know what you're doing", I was sitting about 4th wheel, the wind was howling from our right sides, and I was sat just on the left of the bike in front of me, the perfect place to be shielded from the cross-winds but also the bike in front of me was helping to lessen the blow of the head-wind. I was sitting here for a while, thinking about how great life is and looking forward to the sprint. Then someone attacked, or pretended to attack about 5k out, and of course I followed, which of course led me to be out front again, the last place in the world I wanted to be as we were coming into the fairgrounds and the finish. As we took the right into the fairgrounds, some guys came around me and I stayed on their wheels but I was never able to make a move, it was a pretty sketchy and narrow finish. I held out for 4th place, and considering this was my first road race of the year, I'm very pleased with this.

4/14 Eagle Creek Crit, Indianapolis, IN 12th Cat 4/5 (29)
4/22 Notre Dame Crit, South Bend, IN 12th Cat 4/5 (29)
4/29 Ann Arbor Spring Training Series Ann Arbor, MI 22nd Cat 4/5 (40)
5/6 Kalamazoo Half Marathon Kalamazoo, MI 13th (27) AG (M 19-24) / 249th (1392) Overall
5/7 131 Racing Series, Martin, MI 1st 'B race' (9)
5/12 Tiger Lane Crit, Memphis, TN DNF Cat 3/4
5/20 Ann Arbor Spring Training Series Ann Arbor, MI 6th Cat 4/5 (25)
5/28 Waterford Hills Circuit Race, Clarkston, MI 13th Cat 4/5 (38)
6/3 Cobb Park Crit, Kankakee, IL 18th Cat 4/5 (36)
6/4 131 Racing Series, Matin, MI 2nd 'B race' (6)
6/9 BTR Crit, Kalamazoo, MI 8th Cat 4 (16) 20th Cat 3/4 (32) $30
6/10 Race for Wishes, Lawton, MI DNS
6/15 Zeeland Crit, Zeeland, MI 26th Cat 3/4 (43)
6/18 131 Racing Series, Martin, MI 1st 'B race' (9)
6/24 131 Racing Series, Martin, MI 1st 'B race' (10)
7/1 Great Lakes State Classic, Marne, MI 4th Cat 4/5 (11)
7/14 Detroit Cycling Championship, Detroit, MI
7/15 Corktown Crit, Detroit, MI
7/21 Whiskey City Twilight Challenge, Lawrenceburg, IN
7/22 Tour of Port Sheldon, West Olive, MI
7/29 Muncie Grand Prix, Muncie, IN
8/19 Gaslight Crit, Grand Rapids, MI
8/26 54th Annual Debaets-Devos Pro-Am, Detroit, MI

Also raced at 131 last Monday and that went very well as usual. Made my move in the same spot I had been and it worked wonderfully, I won by a good gap, it was awesome! There were also a few primes during the race for boxes of doughnuts from Sweetwaters, and if there was one thing that made me go faster and work harder on a bike, its probably doughnuts. I was either 1st of 2nd in all 3 of the prime laps, the two I didn't win they were photo-finishes, my sprint was in top form thanks to Mike!

I know I've said this a lot before, maybe not on here, but I'm going to work really hard to cut sugar out of my diet, train hard all week, and work on my core! I'm racing next week down in Ohio, I still haven't fully committed to the 4 hour drive but I think I will. I believe tomorrow there is no racing at Martin, so I'll go work on some sprints! I hope to be able to stay motivated throughout the week and see where that leaves me next weekend!

I am forever hopeful with some big races still coming up the rest of the year! Exciting things are happening in my 'professional life', soccer will start up here pretty soon, and it is so hot outside, which is nice and hopefully it can stay like this for a while!

Cheers! CE