Chain Smoker Race Report
I’m finally feeling like I’m getting back into bike shape. This was the first race of the year that I’ve really felt good in and by the second and third lap I was having a blast. It started raining in the middle of my race (cat 2, age 15-18) and it made the course muddy and super slick. The short, hard climbs on the course gave me a chance to finally break out the climbing legs and, thanks to Salomon’s training plans, I felt pretty good, punching up the climbs fairly quickly.
My start was really strong and I was able to pass quite a few of the racers who started in the group ahead of me before I even got to the trail. I think I spent most of my first lap trying to back myself off while also riding through the bushes on the side to get by people who started in the earlier categories. By the second lap I was able to open up on the downhills and try to blast through the few technical sections. On my third lap I was pretty much just trying to stay on my bike through the slippery turns while also pedaling hard to catch the one remaining rider ahead of me. Unfortunately I was not able to catch him but my time was still fast enough to take first overall.
I ended up also taking first in my age group and I’m pretty satisfied with first overall for the cat 2s. I was really happy to finally get out and win a race this year but I was a little disappointed I couldn’t race cat 1 (I had to get back to Pateros for a baseball game). I’m definitely feeling a lot better than I did in the beginning of the season but I can still improve on my leg strength, strategy, and technique.
My start was really strong and I was able to pass quite a few of the racers who started in the group ahead of me before I even got to the trail. I think I spent most of my first lap trying to back myself off while also riding through the bushes on the side to get by people who started in the earlier categories. By the second lap I was able to open up on the downhills and try to blast through the few technical sections. On my third lap I was pretty much just trying to stay on my bike through the slippery turns while also pedaling hard to catch the one remaining rider ahead of me. Unfortunately I was not able to catch him but my time was still fast enough to take first overall.
I ended up also taking first in my age group and I’m pretty satisfied with first overall for the cat 2s. I was really happy to finally get out and win a race this year but I was a little disappointed I couldn’t race cat 1 (I had to get back to Pateros for a baseball game). I’m definitely feeling a lot better than I did in the beginning of the season but I can still improve on my leg strength, strategy, and technique.
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