Here is the start of the last lap in the Pro 1/2 race. You can see me right on the front. It was super demanding to work into that position, and it was non stop fighting and elbow banging just to get up to the front of the 80 rider Pro 1/2 field for the last laps. Have a close look at that photo and you can see riders to my right actually shoving and pushing each other for position. That is how it goes down, the strongest riders pushing and shoving for position. I worked very hard to set myself up after 68 miles of fast paced action, but I had no power left for the final 75 yards of the sprint....
It was a very greuling weekend on the bike and now I am super sore after constant surges and constant sprints over two days of racing....
It was solid race action this past weekend. Saturday I was feeling quite good in the Ft Ord Road race, until a flat ended my day on lap 3 of 6.
Sunday was the Tampani Crit. in San Jose. In the Master 1/2/3 race I had a team mate in a early break and was forced to shut down any chasing. I felt really good for this finish and it was difficult to not race for the win, but with a team mate up the road I had no chances. I was forced to not chase and take one for the team. I did feel quite good in the race, and this showed as I was 2nd in the field sprint against the rest of the group.
In the Pro 1/2 race the action was very hectic. There were over 80 Pro 1/2 riders and the riding was all done elbow to elbow. Many times there was contact between riders and the gaps were very close in the turns. The pace was super fast as it came down to a sprint for the win. I worked my way into the front position of the group with 2 to go, then came into the final turn in 6th place. This effort to get right on the front was super demanding and I did not have any sprint left for the line. I basically sat up with 75 yards to go and still finished high. In retrospect I should have kept sprinting and I would have finished even higher as 7 riders at least sprinted past me at the end after I sat up. It was some very fast riding and a great workout for pack racing, sprinting and tactics. On this day I did 70 miles in about 3 hours. Now my legs are very sore.
