Kings CX Weekend: Midwest Masters and Juniors Mid-West Regionals Championships
- There could have been more mud, but not much more.......all the rain of the past week made the course very heavy, sloggy and slow. I ended up getting up pitting three of the four laps to get a clean bike. Many thanks to who ever power washed my ALAN so I could finish the final lap on a lighten, unmud clogged bike.
I had a rare front row start and prumptly shot out the back going in to the not very rideable first turn.....I knew the day was not going to be fun, plus the mud had stuck leaves into my cassette and the chain skipped in every gear I tried to used....not going to be fun day in the saddle.......The chain finally stuffed the leaves far enough into the cassette and I was able to use two gears. Now it was head down and see how many riders I could catch. In the few non-mud soaked areas I was able to start gaining then finally pass, one, two, then two at one time. I could not believe how heavy the bike was getting by the second lap so I pitted, dropped the ALAN, grabbed my pit bike (by the way Thank You to Blair, Katie, Tony and Johnathan for loaning me parts to piece together my old Cannodale frame. I even tried to sell the frame last year and nobody even....heck I couldn't even give it away.....glad I did not get sell it.) The clean bike was so light and I felt like it could move. I quickly got back past the rider who past me while I pitted. Up the hill, around the tight off clamber left handed, down into more mud. Over the next lap I cought several more riders. I found running some of the very muddy climbs were faster and less energy zapping then trying to ride through the mud that was clogging the tires and frame with mud. I was able to get by and catch serval more riders this way.
Finally into my final lap around, up and down through more and more mud I close into the pit area. I hear someone yelling at me with a beautiful, power washed ALAN Team Xtreme! YES, clean bike! I dismount, a lady catches my now mud filled Cannondale and I quickly mount the ALAN with a "MANY THANKS!" I'm back on course. To keep the bike light and mud free (as possible) I had started running any extremely mud section. Up the muddy stair run up one last time, down the stair stepped hill, back up the hill to the muddy run up, around the tree, down through the muddy decent. Right hander back up and through the sand, right, back up the stair step climb, back down into more.....did I say mud.......left hander up into the more mud, off the bike, run, run, run and across the finish line mud bog. Done.............now for a ton of cleaning before we load up and check the results before the drive back to Columbus.
Finishing results: Cat.3 Masters over all18th in the race and more importantly 10th in the Cat.3 Masters 45-49 Mid-West Championships. Concidering the conditions and my worst start ever.......I'll take it!
Many thanks to Blair for hauling me down in Cincy so we could play in the mud. By the way 2 for 1 mud pie sale! :D
