Here's me at the start in the center of the photo (#201) silver helmet and black jersey. Not exactly a hole-shot!
Here's me at the finish line. I was gassed!It's over but it ain't done. I have seen what's on the other side of the wall and I liked what I saw. Interesting view and I want more. What was it? Let me say this, it's everything about why I push myself to ride long-distances and something to feed my sense of accomplishment and competition all rolled into one. That's right, a big ol' blender full of pain, suffering, and mental focus swirled at a high rate of speed with your body tossed right into the mix.
The call to the line, the sound of the starter's horn followed by the sounds of riders' shoes clicking into the pedals, the rush of adrenaline, the whirlwind of bodies, the racing of your heart, and the keen focus on the trail reached out ahead of you. Add to that the never-ending changes in your riding experience. Rocks, roots, ruts. Water, sand, mud, dirt. Hills, valleys, dips. Twists and turns. Banked, off-camber, up, down. Singletrack, doubletrack, fireroad.
I'm hooked. Why? I'm not sure? I'm going to ponder this for few days, talk with a few people to determine what I'm getting myself into.
At the end of the day, I finished 7th in the Beginners 35+ class out of 16 riders. I was in 6th spot with an eye on 5th until I decided to head off course during a fast hairpin decent. I'm lucky I didn't have a bad wreck at that spot, but it did gap me from 5th place. It also allowed the then 7th place rider to close the gap into me and later pass me on the next climb. I ended up missing a shift on a hill climb (rookie mistake) and dropped my chain on a key part of a climb a little later. Overall, a much better result than I expected.
And I liked it a great deal. I think one key reason is that my family got to experience it with me. My wife and two children cheered me on today. They never see me ride the brevets and the brevets take me away from them for a long time and that's not something I like. Let's see if I can stay on the other side.
The call to the line, the sound of the starter's horn followed by the sounds of riders' shoes clicking into the pedals, the rush of adrenaline, the whirlwind of bodies, the racing of your heart, and the keen focus on the trail reached out ahead of you. Add to that the never-ending changes in your riding experience. Rocks, roots, ruts. Water, sand, mud, dirt. Hills, valleys, dips. Twists and turns. Banked, off-camber, up, down. Singletrack, doubletrack, fireroad.
I'm hooked. Why? I'm not sure? I'm going to ponder this for few days, talk with a few people to determine what I'm getting myself into.
At the end of the day, I finished 7th in the Beginners 35+ class out of 16 riders. I was in 6th spot with an eye on 5th until I decided to head off course during a fast hairpin decent. I'm lucky I didn't have a bad wreck at that spot, but it did gap me from 5th place. It also allowed the then 7th place rider to close the gap into me and later pass me on the next climb. I ended up missing a shift on a hill climb (rookie mistake) and dropped my chain on a key part of a climb a little later. Overall, a much better result than I expected.
And I liked it a great deal. I think one key reason is that my family got to experience it with me. My wife and two children cheered me on today. They never see me ride the brevets and the brevets take me away from them for a long time and that's not something I like. Let's see if I can stay on the other side.
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