I had been travelling all week, not riding since Monday and flying home on Friday night. I did poorly. Good start, but slid backwards in chunks. The sun popped out on lap 2, high humidity and temp around 80...contributed to my misery. Finished in the mid-teens out of 30+ racers in the 40+. Later in the day, a 42-year old guy died on course in the 4/5 race. I guess he had a heart attack. 
Sunday was a different story. Course was at a small park in Elgin that had lots of contour, a dry creek running through it, lots of live oak trees and mix of grass & weeds that quickly became dirt. 9AM start meant that there was a bit of dew, at least during pre-ride. The course was twisty and turny with lots of off-camber, and at least 4 drops through the creek bed. (I overheard some guy on the start line say that he did one lap on his CX bike, then grabbed his MTB. Bad move, IMO.) Most importantly, the longest straight was 30 seconds long, or less. So, it was punchy, with lots of accelerations needed and LOTS of driving required. My past performances only got me into the second row, which forced me to have a more modest start. I slotted into 10th fairly quickly and just concentrated on my turns and technique. I found myself at that back of a group of 5, that was racing for 5th. "The last spot is the first to get dropped" I said, so I moved up a few spots. Sure enough, a lap later, I was in a group of 3. Were it not for the fact that I was gasping for breath, I would have been smiling ear-to-ear.
The course fit my skillset well, and I was actually racing guys, instead of time trialing and suffering alone. I raced these 2 guys for a few laps, exchanging positions now and again, but with little effect. With 3 to go, some red jersey guy got stuck to my wheel like bubble gum. I towed him around the course, and was still clinging to the wheels in front of me. On the bell lap, we went through one fading rider and another surged through from behind that I hadn't seen all race. Going into the last section, 5th and 6th had gapped me on the only straight, but I turned the screws over the barriers and through the sand to ensure I didn't get pipped by Red Jersey Guy. I finished 7th and really enjoyed myself.Rockin' the MRC skin suit with Red Jersey Guy stuck on my wheel;
http://rcarawan.smugmug.com/Sports/Cycl ... /i-8vrrBtK
http://rcarawan.smugmug.com/Sports/Cycl ... /i-PM8NPxX
http://rcarawan.smugmug.com/Sports/Cycl ... /i-gtnDfNM
I still need to shed a few lbs and train a bit more, but with my new TX travel schedule...that's probably not going to happen.
