Interlocken BR #3

A little late on the report...

Raced on Saturday last weekend. The weather was almost perfect, upper 60s and partly sunny. The race should have been dry and fast, but someone ran the sprinklers the night and morning before...so we had a muddy race without any rain!

It was a fun course, with some interesting features. The moisture turn the thick grass pretty boggy in sections and this probably defined the course and the race outcome.

I have now established my front row status in the 45+ field, thanks to some good results. So, I got off the line in decent position allowed myself to just ease into the race. I bobbled the corner right before the barriers in the picture above, which put me back to about 7th or 8th. I didn't panic and just watched to make sure the group was staying connected to the front runners. Tim Godby ended up setting pace for 2 laps and no one would come by him.

Our race was to be 6 laps. I had moved up a few spots over the first 2 laps and after the start/finish I put in an acceleration. I planned to gas it through the section in the photo above and through the backside bog before taking stock of how the group responded. Apparently, no one tried to chase me because I was on my own. I settled into a hard rhythm and tried to time my passes around the lapped riders. I wasn't getting any clear time gaps, so I wasn't sure how close everyone was and how vigorous the chase was. As it turns out, I was extending my lead about 10-15 seconds per lap. Ultimately, I was able to cruise in for the win after 6 laps. It was a hard effort, as any Cx race is, but it always seems relatively easy when no one is nipping at your heels.

This keeps me in the lead of the Boulder Racing Series with 2 races to go. I'm starting to look ahead to Nationals and Worlds and I need to take my fitness up a couple notches. To that end, I will race this coming weekend in the 35+ races (Colorado Cross Cup and Boulder Cup). After that, I'll probably try my luck in the Open races.

Apparently EVERYONE is getting outed for doping!