summer rain post poned the second evening race at wakefield
having to head into work early the day of the race made it no issue getting out early to battle rush hour traffic to get from downtown dc to suburban virginia
managed to get out so early that I brought my camera along
had been wanting to take some pictures of some people at the races
wakefield was perfect as there as the early single speed class action to capture with the camera
I got there early enough to register and try and take some photos
was not sure where I wanted to be to get some shots so I just meandered about
at the end of lap one I witnessed the top four coming the line
it is always good competition in the single speed class
in addition to seeing the the riders blur by
there were also some people marching by
well, pedal shop’s nick daniels came strolling in with a front flat on his new and cool Kona single speed 29er
then evan came rolling along with one leg dragging as he spun by with one leg and a broken pedal
camps and cargo mike were top five
redlack looked top ten
I went into the woods for some of the tail end of lap two
it is a short lap and these guys were moving fast so it was not a long wait
the racers blurred by and showed me that I need to learn how to take action shots with my fancy camera
a few more failed photo attempts and it was time to focus on my race
focus on my race
I crack myself up
the bike was tunned
well, the bike was tunned and running well enough when I rode it several days prior
with no worries about having to touch anything up I jumped on my skid mark brown rigid surly karate monkey single speed and I warmed up for a few minutes
as I went up and down the powerliines I filled up on some energy drink that was being handed out at the start
then gathered with the clydesdales as scott scudamore gave some pre-race words over a megaphone that was not carrying as far back as the clydesdales line up
had considered asking to start before the sports
but… was not feeling like asking for special treatment
tried to accept the passing of the sport men as an exercise of the day
after all… this is not a time trial
the usual suspects stood at the line along with a few new faces
quiggley and junkins are out their racing themselves
and the others are unfamilar to me
tried not to focus on anything but myself
the scream of the megaphone starting things off with a surprise
on the gravel I anxiously pedalled, clicked in, and started up the loose climb
as I tried to find a hard packed like I was not feeling it
as I dropped in the singletrack towards the first stream crossing, I was not feeling it
over the man made stone path and then the boardwalk then into the singletrack
things were pretty fast and feeling dry
I started to get into it
thinking that so much energy is spent on trying to make a pass I thought about pace and tried to think about effiecient passing
just as I started enjoying the singletrack I was stuck in a line of racers
six or seven racers
I started to try to make polite and safe passes
some passes more polite
some passes more safe
some sections got frustrating
so passing just had to be done when it could be done
used the double track and the path along side the trail for passing when I could
lap two started with just as lap three ended
with transfer to transfer from one singletrack catepillar to single track catepillar
it is a tight course
passing is tight
never asking anyone to pull over and stop
but I am asking that they do not accelerate and close the gap as I am trying to make a move
lap two was going well enough
was frustrated with the passing
was having a good time with the course
was having a good time with the race
wakefield rocks
racing at wakefield rocks
early into the lap I was making a pass on the side of the double track that was a little less friendly
in a sloppy and strong way I blindly made my pass
trying to muscle my way past a number of riders before we entered the sandy singletrack along side of the creek
was able to pass another rider or two on the sandy single track
things got a little squishy in the sand
sort of sketched in the sand on the side of the creek and laughed at the excitement of it all
smiled and laughed as I accepted my front flat
like a fool I was riding bare back
no tools, no tube, and no pump
I ran a few steps frustrated that all the people I passed would get to pass me right back
there was no way I could run a lap and a half
so I pulled over and chatted with Mike Patissall
oddly I chatted with Mike in the same spot where we had chatted just a week and a half prior
it was that day that I was riding after dropping my dog off at the vet
I updated Mike on the death of my dog
then I gave Mike a line by line review of an article for SPOKES magazine that I had just written about Wakefield
after ten minutes of chatter I decided to accept Mike’s 26 inch tube for my 29 inch wheel and ride out the rest of the race
it was good to be back on the bike
it is always good to get on the bike
I should have put a little more air in the tube
it was a tad more squishy than I feel comfortable
but i was riding
and riding without a pump or a tube
flatting again was not an option
crashing was also not an option
as lap two finished and lap three started I felt good about the idea of not ending with a DNF
DNF is not an option
came to ride
with lap times I would have two of three laps to measure my efforts for the day
the last lap had its assortments of passes to make
caught a number of clydesdales… had fun passing quigley and junkins
enjoyed rolling with the fast and fluid leading sport women
accepted rolling at other’s racers’ paces
finished the lap
finished the race
felt confused with easy acceptance with quitting
felt good about overcoming my malaise
hope to get out to wakefield this wednesday
will try to get my head around the concept of the race
the notion that wakefield (or racing as a whole) should be fun can be a confusing way to approach things
testing one’s personal limits
personal best
trying to win
these things are fun
remember…
riding without pump, tube, and tools is like having sex without a condom
it may seem like it feels better
it may seem like more fun
but
you are really taking your chances