The New Year began with the subtle burn of cold air transitioning to the subtle kiss of the SoCal sunshine. I traveled south to San Diego during the first week of January to increase my time on the bike and less time on the skate skis. I did have a great opening ski season as the conditions were the best I’ve experienced in a while. Fresh snow groomed consistently with an array of trails to choose from at Meissner Sno Park. There’s nothing better than starting a morning off with a picturesque sunrise, a light wind whispering in your ears, and the gentle vibration of your skis gliding over virgin corduroy making each stride seem effortless.
Looking back at the off-season, I made some great connections and progress with training. Thanks to Dan Byrne and the support of the Jet City Velo club I have been able to begin my race campaign a bit more stress free. I have been wearing the jersey proud and have been pleasantly surprised with people recognizing the kit down here. Dan and the crew have made a great name and I hope to continue that tradition this year as I try to pursue my goal of earning a professional contract.
After getting my tires acquainted with the pavement again, the past two to three weeks, I started the race season at the Boulevard Road Race. I don’t have great memories of this race as the last time I participated in the event (2008) I had to DNF due to an inadequate apparel selection. Let’s just say I learned my lesson the hard way. This year, I packed the bags to their capacity to ensure I was well prepared for any conditions. The weather this time around was a complete 180 from the previous years. Mid 50’s and sunshine! A light embrocation and short sleeves were on the menu for the day.
The start of the race was a bit ancy as riders were making the usual early attacks and still getting used to bumping elbows and being in close quarters. A few brake squeals, bike wobbles, and yells later things were rolling a bit smoother. The beginning miles consisted of a slight false flat before hitting the first long downhill. At about mile 10 and the bottom of the downhill a rider broke from the peloton. I quickly made my way to front of the pack, around the left side of the group, as the pace slowed considerably. I was sitting about third wheel until I found myself breaking the wind. I tried peeling left and noticed the pack slowed up even more leaving me on my own. I decided right then to bolt and bridge to the solo rider out front. Looking under my arm, I noticed the pack letting me go. Not too long after about 7 others joined us and the break was formed. It took a few miles to get the rotations rolling smoothly but once we did we began gaining time on the peloton. I was a bit nervous being in such an early break as we still had another 80 miles to the finish. But my break companions were vocal in assuring each person to maintain a steady pace. After 2.5 of the 4 laps we were finally given a time split of just over three minutes to a chase group of four and a few more minutes to the main group. Coming around to the end of the third lap I came unglued and began to lose contact with the break. Watching them slowly roll away I continued to ride as hard as my legs would allow. I rode on for the 4th and final lap solo trying to keep contact but eventually found myself alone. Caught between the break and the chase I was determined to push through the fatigue. Unfortunately, with approximately 3 km to go two chasers had passed me taking 7th and 8th place. I rolled through in 9th happy with a top 10 for my debut race of 2011.
After letting the fitness sink in a bit I should come back slightly stronger and ready for the next race weekend. I will continue to ride in SoCal for the next few weeks and now have Merco, San Dimas, and Redlands on the radar.
