A Recap from my CRCA Race & 2009 Singlespeed-a-Polooza
The races were great this past weekend. I really enjoyed the time! I raced early on Saturday morning in Central Park for one of our CRCA club races (May 30th); there is nothing like attacking a group of 80 or so motivated riders at 5:45 am right from the gun.
The race was fast and good work was being done throughout. We averaged around 27 mph for 44 miles! I was rushing around a bit in the morning, which usually tends to happen when I make the trek from NJ to Central Park. I need to hydrate and fuel better but I ended up on the light side of that.
I attacked a few times off the front and put in some solid efforts throughout the race. In the end, with 1 lap to go, I was craving energy but I had dropped a few gel packs early on (I least I thought that I did) so I was a little concerned about running on empty. I got myself in pretty good position and as we sprinting for the line my legs lacked a response and seized up a bit. I still however crossed the line in a respectable place but that does not matter when its the top spots that gains the team points.
I felt that I had a good chance of winning this race if I had a little more fuel in the tank. The funny thing is, that when I got back to my truck, I pulled out an Octane Gu from my pocket, it would have been perfect...
The Singlespeed-a-Polooza Mountain Bike Race on Sunday the 31st of May was a blast! I believe we had about 250 riders or so show up with there singlespeeds in hand. The Pro / Expert field, had around 60+ riders in it alone. The course was fast, fun and in great condition. I felt great but chose to go with a lighter gear since I raced the day before.
There were many sections where I was limited to aerodynamics as my main source of speed. However, it felt great to be racing my singlespeed since I usually ride gears. The higher cadence, the smoothness that is required and with no thoughts but the race experience is a feeling that makes me wonder why I don't race singlespeeds more often. I managed a 9th place finish despite the light gearing choice.
Joe