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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Mon Apr 2nd, 2007 07:24 pm |
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I decided to hit one of the Central Coast MTB races this weekend. I've been wanting to do one for a while now, but it seems all these pesky road races keep getting in the way.
I finally got the chance this Saturday. Unfortunately, Michael and I spent Friday night letting off some steam and I had a whopper of a hangover going into this race.
The course was in Toro Park and I was stoked to hear that we would be going down Rail Trail as I love that descent. It swoopy, smooth and fast. Yummy fun! The only kicker was that we had to climb UP to rail trail, 5 times.
Experts did 5 laps and at 900 feet of climbing per lap, that was ...uhh...well I couldn't do the math with my hangover, but I knew it was more than a lot.
I did a warm up lap on the course, and just felt awful. But I was too excited to finally be at a mountain bike race, so I told myself to just get over it. Plus, this was a rare opportunity to race with Jen in SB who had made the trip, and Kathleen B., who looked happy to be racing again too.
Michael told me to do some sprints before the start and I love him to pieces and always always listen to him for advice....but sprinting before my 2+ hour 5,000+ feet of climbing while I was hung over and didn;t really care about results just wanted to finish mountain bike race, seemed silly. I did a couple fo half hearted sprints in my middle ring, and rolled to the line for the pre-race chit chat...my second favorite part of mountain bike racing.
All of the Pro and expert women were mushed together for one category and I think there was 8 of us on the line. We chitty chatted about this and that and it was nice to see that, save for one competitor, mountain bikers are still the friendliest of the racing bunch.
It was also good to see Julie Barrott out racing again. Not only is she making a great comeback after being hit by a car last year, but she upgraded to expert and I just have ooodles and oodles of respect for that.
The whistle blew and we were off, straight to a nasty paved climb. I didn't even try to match the furious pace of the rest of the bunch and settled into 7th place. After the pavement, we all marched up the gentler but long dirt climb. I watched as the top girls disappeared into the distance. Bye bye.
Finally the descent!! I can't believe I wrote that. When I first started racing, I loved the climbs and worried about the descents. For now, its the opposite. I think I'd like to get back into racing shape so I can enjoy some balance!
I railed the descent as much as I could what with the tipsiness that was still left in me. I came up on Jen in SB and gave her a woop woop. She was kind enough to let me by when we had a chance and I wooped wooped some more and came up on Kathleen B near the bottom.
Kathleen and I rode the second lap together. Well, sort of, I tried to claw up to her so we could work together, but I just could not get up to her. So I rode like some silly 20 feet behind her for most of the lap. I wish I could have bridged, but I just didn't have it in me.
On the 3rd lap, I vowed to catch up to her, and just as I was thinking about it, Kathleen put on the after burners and took off. I mean OFF. She just found four extra gears and went sailing up the hill. I guess it was time to go! Very impressive.
At that time I realized my race wasn't even halfway over. I began to feel the dizzying nauseau of that reality and my hangover. The 3rd lap was my crumble lap. For most people, there is a point in a mountain bike race where they want to quit. The entire climb of the 3rd lap was that place for me.
But I carried on to the 4th lap and started to feel a little better. On the fifth lap I knew I was going to make it and so I found new energy and kicked it up a few gears for the last haul up the climb. You'd think that by the 6th time down the descent I would be bored of it, but I wasn't. I was thrilled and went so fast that I almost crashed myself silly.
I finished somehow in 5th place. But I mostly just cared that I was done and in one piece!
I found out that Kathleen worked her way all the way up to 2nd, but lost one place and finished 3rd. Jen finished right behind me.
Miss Mary and Daphne also raced in the earlier races that day. Miss Mary looked good and tired, and happy with her results.
And I wanted to hang around a little longer and do some post race socializing, but we had to hop into the car to go to Ojai, so we sped out of there. Michael has some pics that hopefully we will post later.
It felt good to mtb race again.
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bunny
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| Joined: | Mon Jan 1st, 2007 |
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Posted: Mon Apr 2nd, 2007 10:26 pm |
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| how nice to have a good group of bellas wooping it up in the dirt together!
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marscat
VB Team Member
| Joined: | Fri Dec 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Berkeley, California USA |
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Posted: Mon Apr 2nd, 2007 10:45 pm |
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5 laps and at 900 feet of climbing per lap....with a hangover??
you're just crazy silly
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Mon Apr 2nd, 2007 10:51 pm |
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6 laps, actually, if you count my warm up lap (and I very much do)
I think the hangover actually helped. It sort of numbed me to the suffering. I mean, I was sort of suffering anyway, it didn't matter much that I was on a bike climbing the same damn hill over and over again.
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suenago
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| Joined: | Fri Dec 29th, 2006 |
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Posted: Mon Apr 2nd, 2007 11:06 pm |
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great job bellas. That is a tough course!
Hey marscat...if you read this thread e-mail me off line at suenago@comcast.net I have a question for you, girlfriend.
-suenago
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Tue Apr 3rd, 2007 05:19 am |
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I posted a few pics of the race here
http://velobellababble.blogspot.com/2007/04/some-pics-i-stole.html
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Tue Apr 3rd, 2007 05:21 am |
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me and miss mary looking confused
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Tue Apr 3rd, 2007 05:22 am |
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Kathleen hammering
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Tue Apr 3rd, 2007 05:23 am |
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Jen in SB not in SB
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jeninsb
Administrator
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Posted: Tue Apr 3rd, 2007 06:07 pm |
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I got called at the last minute to teach a course this quarter. And a big monster survey course at that. So, I'm slammed.
But...
The bike race was fun 
More later.
ps, Anyone know anything about the French Revolution? Thanks in advance.
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jeninsb
Administrator
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Posted: Wed Apr 4th, 2007 05:45 am |
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This was my week to be lanterne rouge at the bikey race. It's an important job being the laterne rouge, requiring panache and flair. I did my best. Toot-Toot. I had a good time there in the Pain Cave: Someone's moved in a nice new couch, which was very comfy, and I got the disco ball up and running. Pretty stylin' place that Pain Cave. I recommend it.
I met three more Bellas: Daphne, Mary, and Kathleen.
VB let out the happiest yahooiest Yahoooo on the descent I've heard in so many ages. Bellisima.
Blue wildflowers are pretty.
Single-speeders are badass.
Five is a lot of laps.
Hills are hard.
Wildlife spotted: a turkey, several cows, and the bee that flew in my helmet (removed without incident, the bee, that is, not the helmet.)
K is for ....
And some pics from the drive home...
See you all at the Otter
Last edited on Wed Apr 4th, 2007 05:47 am by jeninsb
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velobella
Administrator
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Posted: Wed Apr 4th, 2007 07:52 pm |
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5 is a lot of laps
and I glad you made the trip down 1. Good stuff.
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