Race #65: Every Rose Has Its Thorn

It was nice to go back to CapCity, it felt a little like home. So many good memories. The tough thing with this year is being the headliner. I'm warming up when my friends are racing and all my friends are drinking beer when I'm racing. But this race I tried to entertain once again.

Had a slightly better start than usual. And after about a lap or two I finally started warming up and felt like I was working my way up the field. I had the sensation that my rear tire was low but everyone said it was okay. I caught up to teammate Phil, homies J-izzah Karew and Jake. They guys already raced, cause they usually tear my legs off! So I got all Belgian and attacked the group immediately thinking Phil could sit in if the other guys respond to my attack. I was barely holding them off for a lap when I saw Sam "The Kid" ahead of me.

So I gassed it for a lap trying to catch the Kid. I got greedy and I was really hungry for places and working my way into the money, all the while trying to ignore the sensation that I was riding a low tire. So I caught the Kid and he was on my wheel, maybe I was a bit gassed but on a rooty quick uphill climb my rear wheel just slid out from under me! I accidently fell in front of Sam like a total loser.

So at the top of the hill I wasted a minute pulling my derailleur out of my spokes and getting my chain back on. I kind of wanted to cry! All that work for nothing and I was losing my spots!

I yelled "PIT BIKE!" when I passed Joe and Mitch. I wanted Bridget's 29er she had waiting in the pit, but I was handed Excaliber! Joe's Independant Fabrication custom steel CX bike with sick Zipp wheels. I had to quickly remember how to use SRAM shifters and I kept looking down because the Zipps sound crazy loud and badass when you are riding. I had to keep it pretty chill because I was more on top his bike and I was tentative in the corners, but perhaps thats the best way to ride a bike that costs more than the down payment on my house!

Thanks to Joe I got race my entire race, got some spots back and could go home feeling satisfied with my race. Still a bit ticked I soiled my race with a crash, but I think I was racing against time and by the end of the race my tire would have been completely flat. The next day I replaced the tube and found the culprit, a thorn went through my tire and punctured the tube.

Lap times
1 7:04
2 7:02
3 6:53
4 6:49
5 7:54 (Crash! Mechanical!)
6 7:30 (Pit Stop! Sweet IndieFab goodness handed to me)
7 7:09
8 7:55 (Drats! Lapped by Ryan the Super Pro, finish a lap down)