IF you've never raced in Roanoke... You absolutely have to put this race on your calendar. It is always on the 4th July weekend and the venue's are awesome.
I went into this weekend's race with some simple goals.. PR Mill Mountain and then race the race I need to race in the two crits.
I managed to PR Mill Mountain by about 30 seconds from last year; but I still feel like I have an alien about to burst out of my chest when I get to the top. I started coughing almost immediately, the sort of cough you get during a cold winter ride.. I coughed ALL night and even woke up the Sunday with a very sore raw throat.
Sunday the women's combined race started at 1:00 and the temps had started climbing and though there was a slight breeze, the number 90 was soon seen on the old temperature gage. It has been said in many other forums, but a women's combined field that includes CAT 1's through CAT 4's are in my opinion the toughest races to races. IF you're not careful you can blow yourself up real quick trying to hang on to a CAT 1's wheel and then you're race is done. My goal for both crits was to finish in the field and make sure I at least beat the other women competing in VCA 40+ category. To shed some perspective on how fast this race was, we were strung out in single file for the first few laps and according to my good friend who officiated the race; the women started faster than the Men's Master's race and those are usually the fastest races in VCA...
I hung on.. tail gunned and marked the ladies I wanted to beat. I ended up doing more work through the corners from the rear of the field but I didn't want to blow up hanging out in the front either... The final lap saw a little cat and mouse antics by the leaders on the back side of the course but then it really opened up the through the last corner... grabbing a wheel I wanted and waiting until the last 100 meters to go around the gal I marked.. It worked.. I was 12th overall and first 40+
Monday's course was a little different than last year's.. by about one block... but that one block was uphill.. Starting fast again from the whistle, I hung on for a good number of laps.. seeing ladies dropping left and right. It was definitely hotter than yesterday and the pace and heat was eating up the field. A massive attack from the eventual race winner broke the last of the field up, leaving small little groups of two and three spread around the course. The two other gals I was with agreed to work together until one to go.. hoping not to get lapped and pulled. Well we got lapped with about 5 to go and pulled shortly there after. I hate getting pulled in a race, but also understand for safety we probably would have been lapped by the main chase group too close to the finish. The good news is.. I hung on long enough for another 12th place finish and finished ahead of the other 40+ gals...
SO I managed to accomplish what I set out to do.. Now to set more goals....and race more races
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