Eagle Creek Circuit Race

Today was the Eagle Creek circuit race. I like to call this race home for many reasons. Not only did I watch this race one year as a kid, I grew up half a mile away and began training in the park when I was 13. I had high hopes for the 2/3 race and was planning on completing the 1,2,3 race after.

We lined up for the 2/3 race with about 27 starters. I knew I was in for a good race when I saw a team of 8 upland cyclists who had been competing with me in the 1,2 races the past couple of weeks. They sent attack after attack and I kept up with them each lap. Occasionally, I would let 1 or 2 go up the road but as soon as they got close to 15 seconds ahead, I would make sure to bridge. This played out for about 50 minutes as I took on a barrage of attacks. In the end, I failed to close the gap on an Upland rider who finished 3 seconds ahead. He had taken off with 4 laps to go. As another Upland rider took off with half a lap to go, I took initiative to take off after him and I caught him within 300 meters from the finish. I continued sprinting and unfortunately I dragged other riders with me as I chased down the final rider. Coming within 3 seconds of the 1^st place finisher, 2 riders sprinted around me right at the line and I was gassed. I rode with heart, and I raced to win. I ended up 4th place but I was happy because I felt like a dominant force in the peloton during that race. It was nice to have my body follow my mind and be able to be so responsive to all the factors of the race. I was bummed to not have won, but I felt the way I raced told a good story.

In the 1,2 race, I will keep it short. So short, that I can tell you all about my race in 1 word. Mechanical. On the second lap, my seat came loose and I was not able to sit down. I stopped at the start finish where I fixed it with an allen and I was informed I didn’t get a free lap. I told the race director it was most likely the rough course from the 2/3 race, but instead it was labeled a failure on my part.. So 5 minutes into the 1,2,3 race I was done for the day. Biking is symbolic of life and it’s not always fair. On the bright side, races like today make me want to work that much harder..

On June 16/17 I will be doing back-to-back races in South Bend. I expect a different story to be told in 2 weeks!

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