The 2010 cycling season is now in the books. Here is the final count:
10 cyclocross races
5 mountain bike short track races
22 road races (including 2 stage races)
And now I surrender. Time for some donuts and ice cream and no racing and lots and lots of skiing.
However, 2010? It was a good year for me. Thanks to my awesome coach, I managed to finally figure out that, yes, I can be a good bike racer and became so much faster than I could have imagined. Also, thanks to my amazing husband who has been more excited this season over my successes than me. His favorite saying? "It's hot that you're so fast." :)
At the beginning of the cross season, I thought for sure there was no way I would even be a mid-pack racer in the Bs. I guess I was proved wrong. I may or may not have my sights set on moving up to the As at some point next year, but I am not revealing anything any time soon.
At least not until my body recovers from hitting the deck at the OBRA CX Champs this afternoon. Off-camber mud and a nicely placed fence really make for some wicked whiplash. Ouch. More than that, my ego probably needs to recover. I was going to do well- I could feel it. I had the hole shot. I was competing with another girl for the lead. I was feeling good.
It's bruising to watch the entire field pass you by while you try and figure out if you have a head injury and then try and get your bike back in to working condition. It's tough not to cry as you get back on the course all by your lonesome, in a lot of pain, and think, "but I was up there".
Yeah, it's just a bike race. Yeah, I get to go skiing in 30 inches of fresh powder tomorrow. But you know what? I have never been really competitive in ANY sport, much less bike racing-this despite 5 years of experience in the sport. So, to be in a position where I WAS competitive? I am beating myself up a little.
Barkernews did tell me after the race that the only reason I fell was because I was totally going for it and that is something to be proud of. He's right. I was 110% going for it when I went down. I was f'ing determined to medal. I guess it just wasn't my day. In the positive column? I stayed on my bike for every part of the course, with the exception of 1 runup and 1 barrier. That not seem like a big deal, but if you saw how many people ran through the off-camber mud instead of riding it, you would understand. I also caught a few stragglers in my category. I refused to give up. I hammered as hard as I could, despite knowing there was no way in hell I could get back up there.
And with that, the 2010 racing season was over. Adios, road bike. Ciao, mountain bike. Auf Wiedersehen, beloved cyclocross bike. Enjoy your rest now, because we have big plans for
2011.
Really, really big plans.
