Bookmark This Page
Code 3 Racing's Journal
Lesley at CCCX #1
posted by MOM DUDE at 02:57 PM on March 21, 2008
My race report for CCCX Race #1 is really really late, but if you all picked up last week's copy of the Weekly World News, you would have read my personal account of having been abducted by aliens and lived! But I know y'all just read the WWN while waiting in the checkout line and what with the cover story of the 85 year old woman giving birth to a 300 pound baby, who wants to read about your garden-variety alien abduction?
But here I am and lucky to be alive to tell my story. Who knew that all they wanted was to have a close encounter with Code 3? Having convinced the aliens that we were not superior beings but simply racer chicks with really nice legs, I gave them my D4W jersey as a souvenir, and they dropped me off at a Starbuck's in Redwood City, waving a fond farewell with promises to get together some time soon. (Sorry, I didn't have my camera phone with me, but I can describe them for you if you want.)
Well, here's my race story which is mostly true in all its details except for some: Waaay back on Sunday February 3rd, I lined up for the first Central Coast MTB race in the series at Fort Ord, and I won. I had a strategy for this, the first race of my mountain bike season: Don't lose! God, whatever you do, DO NOT LOSE! This is a more primal variation of my usual strategy, which is something like "Fetch Girl! Go Fetch!" The Laborador Retriever is my totem animal, after all.
I won this first race last year, much to my surprise. I had never won a race of any kind, hadn't even won pin-the-tail on the donkey at a birthday party. So now I had to defend my pride. I did not want to be labeled a has-been, a one-hit wonder, a LOSER. I had a reputation to live up to, gol darnit. With the colder temperature, the field at Fort Ord was much smaller than last year--only about eight women. There were more junior girls than women in the race, which was great to see.
I popped off the front at the whistle to get to the single track first, a move that worked well for me last year, when out the the corner of my eye should appear...no! it couldn't be! What is SHE doing here? Another racer trying to do the same thing! I beat her to the single track, but she passed me at the end of the first lap. I went into two-wheel overdrive but she (Let's call her Ms. EMC2) was gone, gone, gone. Or so I thought. I caught her at one of the hills on the second lap. I couldn't tell you if it was the first hill, or the second hill, or the third hill--or if there where three hills--because I generally don't know where I am or where I am going. At this point I was riding like a scared rabbit (if rabbits could ride) just knowing I would be caught at any moment by EMC2, or my friend Janet LaFleur, who is a heckuva mountain biker. A bright idea formed in my little laborador brain: Pass a bunch of guys and stamina-deficient junior boys to put as many obstacles as possible between me and anybody else. (Thanks guys! Ruff Ruff!)
However, I ended up riding all by my lonesome for the next lap and a half on the swoopy single track and rutty ride-ups. Now I had another problem: I was pretty sure I was lost; I had missed a turn-off somewhere. I hadn't seen anyone for a while and I had ridden so hard I wasn't paying attention to anything but my loud gasping for air. Fortunately I found the finish line before I had a panic attack or before they sent out the Marines, er troops, or Army Rangers or whatever. Ms. EMC came in a minute thirty seconds behind me. Her name is really Sheri Reynolds a former EMC2 Cat 3 roadie. She told me after the race that she came up behind me when I jammed off the front because she was 'curious to see what I was doing.' I thought that was pretty funny. A small group of Velo Bellas came for the fun, and we had our picture taken together. I got a pretty medal, and a couple of the VB's got some bling too because awards were five deep in the "experienced racers" division.
My new strategy is: I WANT TO WIN. This strategy is no more anxiety provoking than "DON'T LOSE! After all, a dog never wonders if she'll catch the squirrel or not. Fetch Girl, FETCH!
categories: Mountain Bike Racing
Already a Member? Sign in Now to Add A Comment »
Comments (0)