The Official Start of the Season

Photos courtesy of Frank Navone
A few shots of my 2nd race of the day - trying to close a gap in the men's 3/4 race.


Sunday marked the first race(s) of 2010 for me! The Bethel Spring Series, run by friend and super-fast racer, Aki, are just awesome. The races are affordable, well-run and just great training for the season ahead!

I had pipe-dreams of doing 3 races on Sunday, but after a 5-6 hour training day on Saturday, I opted to not crush myself in the first outing of high-intensity work.

Saturday night, we had a final farewell dinner with Erik and got to bed fairly early. Thank goodness our jet-lag is still hanging on (or has this early-wake-up become habit again?!), because I woke up nice and early, took the dog out and had a leisurely breakfast with my boy.

Checking in at Bethel this year was excellent, well, it's always excellent, but this year, the gracious and talented, Frank Navone, lent his new studio space for registration.

I got in a nice, long warm-up on the rollers - an act that always invites spectators - and a bathroom break before lining up for the women's race. The girls were excited to be out and we had a large field. Anne Marie Miller (multiple-time National Champion) was out with her teammates and I knew we'd be in for some pain. There were many familiar faces and a few new ones. Fellow Iron-athlete (super mom and my Kona racing buddy), Meghan, was out and looking FIT!

The race was fairly safe and despite a few attacks, stayed pretty together. After a prime, Anne Marie got off the front and none of us could organize to catch her, so she just dangled in front of the field. I had ok position going into the final sprint, but had been out in the wind too long and was just inched out and took 4th. I was the only idiot "sprinting" on my hoods, instead of in my drop bars. Oops! Alliances were made shortly-after with other teams for the upcoming weeks. My new teammate, Joanne (a super-fasty Cat 2 racer), and I agreed on some new tactics and that we'll be ready with a few attacks, counter-attacks and tricky moves of our own in the weeks to come. YES!

With 90 minutes in between my races, I opted to get warm, stay loose and take in some calories. Something I love about bike racing (especially on a nice day), is the social aspect. To chat with everyone during and post-race makes you just love the sport even more. The women this year seem especially well-behaved and welcoming - a nice change from some of the shrill whining and catty fights of year's past.

The men's 3/4 race started off quick, but was an accordion race. We'd be chasing a break and things would string out, then everyone would bunch-up REALFAST! OOf, I just tried to stay on the outside line and on "safe wheels". Most of the men were great, but a few were just plain rude - pushing me - LITERALLY - off wheels. Next week, I'm getting more aggressive and not losing my wheels to guys that then can't stay on them.

I had originally planned to go for the final sprint to try and win some cash and points, but opted to avoid potential crashes and slipped out of the field near the end. I changed my clothes, grabbed the dog and we were off for a nice transition run.

The final race of the day, the Pro 1,2,3 was LOADED with my teammates - at least 10 Cannondale riders were out, including the newest Cannondale Employee, Bobby, who absolutely DOMINATED the field of spectacularly fit riders. Making note of their speed, I was super happy I'd opted out of that 3rd race. My lack of high-intensity fitness was evident enough in the previous two.

Towards the end of the race, Lu and I were going crazy cheering. On the last lap, I was looking for Sam and a few other guys and didn't see them. Before I could even hear the word, "crash" - Lu and I were off in a full sprint to see if everyone was alright. It felt like Triage - I checked in with Sam first, who was beaten up a bit, his brand new bike was looking rough, but he was smiling like someone in shock. There were at least 8 guys that were in rough shape - road rash, cracked helmets and more. It happens, accidents are just that, accidents. I was glad to see everyone pretty much behaving themselves. Help came and race officials took numbers for insurance purposes.

Despite a minor heart attack, everything is ok - we had the crew over for Mexican food post-race and then it was early to bed. Sam has some lovely road rash and a nice 6 inch gash up the side of his right quad, but he's managing (self medicating with margaritas).

Today was (mercifully) a recovery day - yoga, swimming and horseback riding. Tomorrow it's back to the grind... a long run to start things off. Woohoo! The racing season is finally here!