Back to School...

Fall used to mean to me a change in weather from oppressive summer heat to cool mornings and comfortable afternoons; the smell of cut grass and football season; and the first day of school. Today, I still enjoy the change of weather and the smell of cut grass, but now it's Cyclocross season, and the first race is like the first day back in school...

Sat, Oct. 16 We are racing at some abandoned golf course on the outskirts of Greenville, SC. The fairways are no longer fair, but overgrown with 3 foot high weeds through which a race course has been cut. Night lights which once illuminated the driving range still stand tall, but several of the lights have been shot out by semi-skilled target shooters honing their craft. There are 2 races today: a 30min "B" race for CX 4 and Junior racers, and a 60 min "A" race for basically everybody else, including Pro1,2,3, Master's 35+, and Women. A few of us wily vets understand that 60 min of 'cross is too much to ask of our bodies on the "first day of school", so we jump in the CX 4 race. 22 of us line up at the start, and I manage to grab a spot in the front line of the start grid. The whistle blows, and I get a great start out of the hole, with 5th position going into the first corner. There is a long, gradual downhill straight away section, with the smoothest line on the left, and I hold to the front group as we approach a series of uphill switchbacks before climbing a rutted hill and entering "the Maze". The Maze is just that; a series of narrow lanes bordered by yellow tape with slow, technical turns. I jump hard coming out of the Maze and accelerate down an off-camber curved section, almost overcooking it and narrowly missing a hay bale before dismounting for the double barriers. I remount and accelerate hard again through a series of off-camber straights before crossing the first sand trap, which I opt to run through. By this point, my heart rate monitor is screaming at me as it passes the 165 bpm red-line, so I settle into a slower rhythm...and immediately I'm passed by 4 crazed college guys, sporting Clemson kits and covered in tattoos. I remount and make it to the next sand trap before I'm absorbed by the second group. A short time later we dismount for the steep run up, shouldering our bikes as we plod up the hill (after spending much of the last 4 months on the Furman track, I can't honestly call this running). A sketchy downhill on asphalt golf cart roads follows before a short, steep, rideable hill and we cross the Start-Finish line for lap 1. And so it goes for another lap, 5 of us in the second group trading places as we accelerate on our favorite sections, then dropping back on our weaker ones. As we come through the Start/Finish and begin lap 3, I jump hard from 2 places back and open a small gap on the group. I push hard down the long straightaway and hold it going up to the maze. The group breaks up behind me as 2 guys push hard to catch me. I manage to hold them off for the next lap and a half and finish tired, but happy.

Sun, Oct 17 Day 2 at the Golfing Ghost Town, and the course is a bit wetter this morning. The same cast of characters shows up at the line, the whistle blows, and like Bill Murray in "Ground Hog Day", we are off once again...only this time things are different. It's no longer the First Day of School, and unlike yesterday, when we basically rode a time trial, today people are racing this thing aggressively. I get a weak start out of the hole, maybe 10th out of 20, and now I've got my work cut out for me. As we enter the first downhill straight, the group lines out to the left on the smooth line, and I charge down the right on the bumpy line. I manage to pick up 3 places with this strategy before I become "That Guy You Don't Want Riding Next To You in a Crit", and dive through the inside of the second turn. Despite my efforts, 4 guys get away, and I am stuck in a group of 10, and for the next 4 laps I enjoy the best racing I've had in many years. Attacks come out of every corner with do-or-die chases countering. We dismount at full speed and fly through the sand traps...and not everyone makes it. On the penultimate lap, I make another move, this time from the back of the group, through an impossibly narrow gap on the edge of the long straight. Elbow to elbow I use my momentum to fly past the group and shut the door on the right turn to the Maze. I manage to stay away on the last lap, but I drop my chain and lose a spot before I get back on and hold off the rest of the group.

As G said, like different layers, everyone has their ideas on how to enjoy the beautiful fall weather...I certainly enjoyed my weekend.

Results: Sat 7th/22; Sun 8th/20