Whirlybird and Cooper River Recaps
Tis' the season...for colds. I somehow always manage to get sick this same time every year. This year was no different.
Friday morning I woke up full-on congested and I was starting to worry how my cold would impact my double-race weekend. I came home from school, went right to the couch, loaded up on decongestion meds, tea, and sleep.
Saturday I woke up feeling blah. I figured that I could assess how I felt during the pre-ride/warm-up. I felt ok, my nose cleared up enough to breathe and my legs felt ok. I got ready for the call-ups and anxious to go.
I had first call-up...and my pick of where I wanted to start. The prologue was similar to last year - short road then grass with few turns into the course. I wanted to nail the start...and I did. I had the whole shot!
I had a great two laps, going back and forth in 4th and 5th place with the usual suspects.
Going into the last lap, I started to fade. Not the usual "CX pain" but just losing energy. Two girls were right on my wheel while I was in 5th place. I lost a spot at the barriers....and then in the last stretch. I had nothing in me to fight. I ended up with 7th. I was disappointed with my finish because I knew I could have done better...but I guess the cold won this race. Sunday was another day.
Sunday was my first A-race, which meant I was lining up with 1-2-3s. There were 34 girls registered for the race, many of which I recognized from the elite MAC races. This was the real deal.
I was feeling ok - cold-wise and legs - in the morning. Got in a lap to inspect the course, warmed up and watched the race before mine. Then it was time...time to line up with the really fast ladies.
I had a 2nd row start. I would have been fine with a last row start in this race, but so-be-it. I had a good start until we turned from pavement onto the course. I watched the group ride around and I was towards the back. As the race started to spread out, I managed to gain a few spots and grab onto a Peanut Butter & Co. girl's wheel. We went back and forth throughout the race, trying to "get that spot".
Going into this race I told myself "no expectations = no disappointments". I ended up finishing 18th out of 31 ladies. I was more than excited about my finish - especially since I was out there with some of the best ladies in the area.
Up next...BubbleCX
Friday morning I woke up full-on congested and I was starting to worry how my cold would impact my double-race weekend. I came home from school, went right to the couch, loaded up on decongestion meds, tea, and sleep.
Saturday I woke up feeling blah. I figured that I could assess how I felt during the pre-ride/warm-up. I felt ok, my nose cleared up enough to breathe and my legs felt ok. I got ready for the call-ups and anxious to go.
I had first call-up...and my pick of where I wanted to start. The prologue was similar to last year - short road then grass with few turns into the course. I wanted to nail the start...and I did. I had the whole shot!
photos by Mandi Pearl
I had a great two laps, going back and forth in 4th and 5th place with the usual suspects.
Going into the last lap, I started to fade. Not the usual "CX pain" but just losing energy. Two girls were right on my wheel while I was in 5th place. I lost a spot at the barriers....and then in the last stretch. I had nothing in me to fight. I ended up with 7th. I was disappointed with my finish because I knew I could have done better...but I guess the cold won this race. Sunday was another day.
Sunday was my first A-race, which meant I was lining up with 1-2-3s. There were 34 girls registered for the race, many of which I recognized from the elite MAC races. This was the real deal.
I was feeling ok - cold-wise and legs - in the morning. Got in a lap to inspect the course, warmed up and watched the race before mine. Then it was time...time to line up with the really fast ladies.
I had a 2nd row start. I would have been fine with a last row start in this race, but so-be-it. I had a good start until we turned from pavement onto the course. I watched the group ride around and I was towards the back. As the race started to spread out, I managed to gain a few spots and grab onto a Peanut Butter & Co. girl's wheel. We went back and forth throughout the race, trying to "get that spot".
Going into this race I told myself "no expectations = no disappointments". I ended up finishing 18th out of 31 ladies. I was more than excited about my finish - especially since I was out there with some of the best ladies in the area.
Up next...BubbleCX
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