Hang with me here, this is a long one…So, here we are, 6 riders and Steve (our always smiling, happy go lucky mechanic who apparently is having a not so happy go lucky day – ahem), chugging along in the van with trailer in tow to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where we will start racing Joe Martin tomorrow. Only 6 hours more on the road, hence the long blog entry. Luckily with 4 iPhones and 2 Blackberries we are able to stay in touch with our nearest and dearest friends (those being email, twitter, and facebook) who keep us up to date with all that is happening in the “real” world. What would we do without the latest and greatest technology?
The last few days we have spent our lackadaisical time recovering and relaxing in Nashville, TN, where Kat’s family lives and owns a badass, high-end bike shop called Gran Fondo. On Monday we pretty much did absolutely nothing, zip, zilch. We were totally smoked from the week of racing and it was pouring outside so there was little motivation to do anything besides sleep and eat. I finally gathered up the courage to take a shower to clean out my war wounds and that act alone wore me out. On Tuesday we ventured out on our bikes with Kat’s mom, Vida, leading the way (and promptly kicking out butts) around her favorite roads. DAMN the houses, roads, smells and scenery around Nashville are amazing, almost overstimulating the senses. Horse farms sprawl for miles and miles across the rolling, lush green hills – classic wooden fences or limestone walls outline the contour of each family’s pasture, graceful race horses and polo ponies graze the grass with not a care in the world, and Tuscan-style mansions sit grand and resplendent at the end of the long, tree-lined driveways. “Holy shit, look at THAT house” was repeated more times than was possible to count during our 2.5 hour ride. Although we were all still pretty exhausted from a hard week of racing, we thoroughly enjoyed our beautiful ride on the smooth, rolling roads that took us through such a stunning landscape of flora and fauna. I would travel back to Nashville in a heartbeat for more training and R&R. And to top off an already great day, a huge box of juicy, plump strawberries had arrived from Cal Giant so we indulged ourselves in tasty strawberry shortcake after dinner.
And, of course, we had to do a little Honky Tonking at the bars on Broadway. It wasn’t especially a big night out on the town since it was Monday night and we were all still in a daze (and pain in my case) from racing, but we gave it a go and did a little toe tapping and singing with some down home country boys (I mean the bands) in Tootsies and Legends. Jo was in her element that night and might still be there had we not dragged her away.
The Sandy Springs crit in GA on Sunday marked the culmination of the long, hard, but fun week of Speedweek. It was the last of 6 races that were part of the Southweast Crit Series. We had skipped the Beaufort crit but we still managed to be sitting 2nd for teams after winning 3 out of 4 crits that we had done. It was noticeable that everyone was tired out there on Sunday but we raced hard, gunning for one more win. Things didn’t quite work out as planned, we missed the win (Tina pulled off another well deserved win), but we can’t really complain about 3 wins, a 2nd and a 3rd – 5 races, 5 podiums. Although we were happy with our results for the week, I was not happy with how the last race ended. Just after I pulled off the front coming out of the last corner, a mere 100m from the finish, and was watching the sprint unfold in front of me all of a sudden someone hit me square on from behind. I am guessing that she was sprinting with her head down when she ran smack into the back of me, literally pushing my bike straight out from underneath me. I now have a tire burn up my left hamstring, a knot on my right lower back from where her shifter hit me, a huge strawberry on my hip, and various road rash spots on my legs and arm. We hadn’t had a mishap all week and then 100m from the last crit of the week I was taken down hard….not too happy about that. But, to make the story somewhat humorous, I now have maxi pads stuck to my body. See, Kat had crashed in Europe and in lieu of Tegaderm had read that maxi pads work just as well. Yep, I can now vouche for maxi pads as a safe and effective road rash bandage. They’re brilliant – cheap and non-stick. Why didn’t anyone tell me this before?! And when you cut off the ends, no one would ever know they are maxi pads but just your standard bandage. I’m still using some Tegaderm (it’s still the best stuff invented for road rash) but with a maxi pad or 2 stuck on first the Tegaderm will last a bit longer (it’s gross but it’s part of a cyclist’s life I guess). A buck or two for a box of maxi pads, a few more dollars for Tegaderm, and you’re sweet as.
On Saturday we raced the Sunny King crit in Anniston, AL. This race wasn’t part of the SE Crit Series, but because it was NRC, had a larger prize purse, and the Dilworth crit wasn’t part of the crit series for women anyway (that’s kind of a sore subject), we chose to drive the extra miles to AL (my old stomping grounds) to take part in a great race. When we pulled into town early that afternoon, rain was dumping from the sky in buckets, flooding the streets and yards, which caused a little concern whether the race would be held in such conditions. Eventually the storm rolled out of town, the streets dried up, and the race was ON! We rode a great race, took control on the last lap, and let Brooke open it up in the sprint. After a photo finish, it was determined that Brooke just beat Tina by a tire width! You can watch the video on my last blog post. Pretty cool, eh?! Before leaving town, one of our host families cooked us a typical Southern breakfast that was oh so yummy – garlic cheese grits, scrambled eggs, biscuits, bacon and melon. Mmmm mmmm.
Friday’s race was held in the “booming metropolis” of Spartanburg, SC. Boy bands, festivals, and bike racing – this town had it all. Once again after several unsuccessful breakaway attempts were brought back, we delivered Brooke to the last corner for a sprinter’s duel with Tina and LVG. Brooke took the sprint, her 3rd win of the week.
Thursday may have been a rest day for the SE Crits but not a rest day for us. We were still based at Crusty’s (otherwise known as Jeff) house in Columbia, SC, so we rode through Fort Jackson Army Base, a great place to ride as long as you don’t mind the rifle shots echoing from the ubiquitous firing ranges, and then out on the smoother roads for more motorpacing behind the scooter. For me this was a great opportunity because it’s not something I get to do much of at home. It was a tiring workout but perfect to work on leg speed and leadouts.
Walterboro, population of 7000, on Wednesday was the 4th stop of the series. Last year the start of this race was delayed because of a bomb threat at City Hall, but this year the residents of Walterboro were on their best behavior so we started on time. Our game plan played out to a T, Brooke took the win and Jo rounded out the podium, even after pulling off a stellar leadout. And a couple of the locals had food catered in for the womens’ teams to enjoy after our race. It was their way of generating some enthusiasm in this itsy bitsy town, a nice gesture that was much appreciated.
Tuesday…what was Tuesday? Oh yeah, it was the Beaufort crit that we skipped. Because of all the travel we had coming up for the week plus the drive to AR, we decided that eliminating the longest drive of the week would be a good choice. Of course we were eager to race but in the end I think we made the right decision. Instead we rolled around Jeff’s hood for some motorpacing in the morning and then showed up for the local training crit that evening. Supposedly it was one of the fastest races they’ve ever had…wonder why that is? Not wanting to get girled? Just wanting to show off?? Funny thing testosterone is.
Monday – eat, recovery ride, nap, eat.
