i did it

[han-grrl]

Well, i did it. My goal was to finish five races as a Master Expert 30+ and today, i achieved the goal

And a silver medal too! (ok there were only two of us!)

The race course was verrrry muddy. it was like riding through lumpy mashed potatoes. the best way to manoeuver through the single track was don't break, hang on the handlebars and maybe guide the bike at some spots.

I found two things hard one me

1) delayed start, we were delayed by 30 minutes because the previous race was slower than people had thought and they were still out on course when we were scheduled to start. I tried to stay warm, but there were more delays with announcing, and i ended up cooling down.

2) passing - it was so muddy that no one really had good control of their bike enough to pass safely or effectively. so i would say go left, and they might try, or even start with that in mind but because it was slick , bikes would often collide. this meant lots of dismount/remount. Although the men passing always told me to get back on my bike and to keep going. Elite women did too. It was really nice actually, because the mud had my emotions ALL OVER the place. I would be in grrr power woman mode in one section, then go through the "this is the worst dumbest race course ever" mode in another. But in the back of my head there was this soft voice saying to me to stay one my horse. Keep moving forward. So in my dark, there was always a little light this race.

I found myself thinking a lot - i need more power - this race. the pushing through mud, i just kept thinking, feeling power, and i used a lot of power that i had. but i felt i needed/wanted more. I wanted to be faster, but really, i did the best that I could physically. I wanted to do 40 minute laps, but was way off, the course got worse with the heavy rains over night, and the previous racers. it looked nothing like it did on friday during my pre-ride...it was already pretty muddy and we had more heavy rain so it all just got worse! So i put a new goal - FINISH THE RACE. Screw the time, just keep the bike moving forward. Finish race number Five. that is what i told myself.

My husband cheered me on, and fed me bottles, it was really nice having him there.

So no mechanicals, no cramping, i just biked as hard as i could. I used the Big Sur for this race. I liked having the lighter hard tail.

So tonight i celebrate!

Smile
Han

[cosc]

You did amazingly wonderful through bad conditions. You have to be one stubborn bike chick. Congrats on all 5 races.

[KnottedYet]

Congratulations! That sounds like quite the course! whew!

[Bad JuJu]

So i put a new goal - FINISH THE RACE. Screw the time, just keep the bike moving forward....................
So tonight i celebrate!

As well you should! Sometimes, just to "keep the bike moving forward" IS a victory in itself. HIGH-FIVE to you!

[Starfish]

And we celebrate with you!! Tough!!

[LBTC]

Wahoo, han! you rock!!!

Those were some terrible conditions, but you handled them well, and you never gave up! YAY!!

Hugs and butterflies,
~T~

[SheFly]

From the descripton of all the mud, it sounds to me like you are ready for 'cross season . Congrats on finishing what sounds like a very difficult race, and achieving your goal.

SheFly

[han-grrl]

SheFly - i had commented to people that after this race, i will SOOO be ready for cx!!

Thanks for all the nice comments - I had heard that some people quit after their first lap, and despite the mud and the difficulty and my trash talk to myself, quitting actually hadn't even crossed my mind! Which for me, is coming a long way, because two years ago, i am pretty sure i would have walked away.

I'm already thinking about racing next year, and what i need to do to be faster...