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Bedford Springs Cyclocross
I hope that Voodoo Sally and trigirlpink will chime into this thread with their race experiences from the Beginner Women's race - they looked awesome, and I'm pretty sure they had a good time ;)
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Back-to-back races this weekend! Fun, fun, fun, but a little on the warm side for 'cross racing...
This race was literally in our backyard, so the commute was pretty easy. So nice not to have to get up at the crack of dawn to get to a race. Quad Cycles hosted this new event, and did a great job. Lots of parking, great access to registration and a very spectator-friendly venue. The course was good as well - less technical than Saturday's race, but still a challenge with lots of bumpy grass, tight 180 degree turns, a set of barriers and a BRUTAL run-up with a technical descent.
Again, we arrived early so that we could see some of our teammates and friends in the Beginner races. The NEBC women's team ended up taking 1st, 2nd, 5th, 6th and 8th, with two more teammates in the field as well! It was so much fun cheering them all on, and seeing the smiles when they were finished.
After DH's race (where he finished 7th in the A Masters!), I headed back to the car to get ready for my own. Warmed up on the trainer and did a bit of socializing, but never had the opportunity to pre-ride the course. That is something that I need to make sure happens moving forward, so I know what to expect and when.
Our start was delayed due a course change. With the dry, soft, fresh cut course, the conditions had deteriorated badly in some sections - particularly right before the run-up. The officials and promoters decided after a couple of very badly rolled ankles in the men's race, to remove the barrier at the bottom of the run-up. As the start official said, it didn't really serve any purpose anyway - it wasn't like anyone was going to be able to ride up that slope!
I had another not great start that got worse as we entered the first turn, and I got caught behind the chaos of the field trying to all get around a 180 degree turn at once. I managed to hang on for the next section of the course, where we again piled up headed up the run-up. Think of 20 women with bikes on their shoulders, running up a steep slope covered in black silty soil, about 4 inches deep. It was a slog-fest, and anything but pretty. At the top, there was literally no remount room, before treacherously heading back DOWN the steep slope, now with exposed rock and about two steps in it.
I could see the leaders coming out of the barriers as I was headed in, and coming out of there, I managed to pick up a spot or two. Throughout the first couple of laps, I picked off about three riders. Unfortunately, after that the gas ran out. I wasn't able to hold my position, and started going backwards. Two of the women I had worked to get around passed me back, and now I was on my own, getting lapped by Lyne Bessette (that seems to be a common theme for me this year!). I ended up lapped by a few more of the leaders, and finished at the back of the pack.
The course was good, but I just didn't have the snap. This was the first of our double-header weekends - hopefully I am just getting used to the back-to-back racing.
Here are a couple of pics:
