Grant's Tomb B report

note: This report was generated using a template, which may not be the best idea but it sure made the tone snarky.

Yesterday I drove with Molly, Charlie, and Mark, to Columbia to race the Grant's Tomb Criterium. Based on the way my rides have gone this week, and where I am in my training cycle, I was not expecting much. Looking at the list of registered competitors, I saw that UVM and MIT, both of them very fast and big teams, were signed up, but I tried not to worry about it.

I got on the trainer and warmed up. My legs felt surprisingly snappy. Before I knew it, it was time to line up at the start.

The official gave the command, and we were off. It goes without saying that it was a crazy start. Why can't people clip in without swerving?

Colgate warmed up with a riser made of library books.
I think that's awesome.

Needless to say, somebody tried to attack right away. I sat patiently in the pack because I knew the break would be caught, and I just wanted to wake the legs up.

The other racers were so sketchy. How hard is it to hold a line through a corner? Anyway, it was that other dude's fault that he almost crashed. Not mine. I did nothing wrong.

This isn't a photo of the race. Instead, it is a photo of Matt and Eric, and of their sweet facial hair. Isn't that even better?

It was finally time to sprint. Some guy from some other team totally changed lines through the last corner, so I couldn't unleash my massive wattage. I was pretty disappointed to finish mid-pack, because I know I could've done better if not for that guy.

I drank too much last night, and I couldn't get to sleep afterwards. Also, I didn't get enough warmup, and then I had to spend too much energy closing gaps that other people were opening. Other people almost crashed me a lot, which was frustrating. Finally, I have been training too hard, so I'm burned out, but also I didn't train enough this week, so the legs weren't open.

When all is said and done, I can look back on this race and honestly say I gave it everything I had, but also I had more to give. The result I got is satisfactory, but I still want more. On the other hand, it's just bike racing, and there are so many more important things in life! Even though I'll be reliving every moment of that race obsessively for weeks to come, I assure you: I'm not letting bike racing stress me out.

I can definitely say that my mediocre finish was in spite of the totally sweet bike I ride. It's a stiff and light Speicalized frame, with superlight Ritchey components. The guys at the Efinger Sporting Goods shop did a great job wrenching it, and of course all the fuel in my belly was provided by Gu energy supplements, which are as delicious as they are viscous.

As always, it was a ton of fun to race with my teammates, Captain Chaz and DKizzle, who are as awesome as they are strong.