Minuteman Road Club

Before you read about my race,
Sharon Benedict got the Win in the women's 4/5 (Congratulations Sharon!)
Mark Miller was 4th in mens 1/2 race
Don Kirovac took 7th in the 50+ 4/5 (same race I did, 15th place)

Hopefully I didn't miss anyone else that attended.

Gorgeous day! And Pumpkin 'Cross is a beautiful venue, right on a lake surrounded by hills (mountains?) with fall colors. From down here in Metrowest (Hopkinton) the race is a bit of a chore to get to, as much of the drive is on 2-lane backroads with speed limits that bounce up and down. Not so much an issue driving up early in the morning, but busy roads coming home.

Note to self: *Always double check the GPS location for a new race!*
I put in the address they listed in bikereg.com in Waze and the GPS took me to a dead end dirt road, nearly 10 miles from the venue itself. This also happened to a friend of mine. Realizing that I was in the wrong place I clicked on the map in Bikereg.com and Google Maps informed me that I was 10 miles and 20 min away. I had driven 10 miles too far on Rt 12A, having missed the "CX race sign"...Frantic to get there before the 930am race, so that I could pre-ride, I screamed back down Rt 12A at 60 mph and managed to roll into the parking lot, park and get on my bike (in street clothes) to do a lap of the course.

The start went well, although (second note to self) the first lap had a section of road that was not part of the p re-ride because it was roped off. Since I hadn't ridden it it was a bit of a shock when the pavement turned to soft gravel at 25 mph. Rider next to me nearly went down. The combined field of master 40+4/5, masters 50+4/5 and junior 15-18 spread out pretty quickly and midway through the first lap the traffic jams had cleared.

So for this race I decided to really try and focus on execution, not making big mistakes (like overcooking a corner and going into the tape, washing out or muffing the barriers) that would cost me places. For the most part it worked. I was able to hold my position the first lap and then started picking up some places on subsequent laps. As more of a roadie I was able to pass people on the paved/gravel uphill and then on the straight sections. I tried to carry more speed into the barriers, which then naturally gives you a faster run on the dismount. I actually gained a couple spots at the barriers. For the two deep sections that were marginally rideable, I rode into the sand until my bike bogged and then ran like an animal to get through. For the tight corners I tried to follow the line of the riders in front of me, assuming they took a good line.

The course design was a bit sadistic, in that after the barriers, there was a sand mound which never packed down, and while it was possible to ride it, trying to ride that was rolling the dice, so I just committed to run it every lap. After the sand mount you rode about 100 feet and then a second deep sand section that required running. Not long after that remount, a trip into the woods, crossing over a 2+ foot diameter log, which you could not easily hurdle followed by a slight uphill run. So basically three dismounts and running in a < 2 min stretch meant that my HR was maxed out on that part of the course every lap.

It all was working well, my HR during the race was hovering between 95-98% max. On the final lap when I dismounted at the barrier I got a cramp in my right leg in the groin area... that made it tough to pedal/run through the next 2 dismounts. Unfortunately three guys took advantage there and passed, but there wasn't much I could do. I attribute the cramp to lack of stretching before the race and also too long a ride on Saturday. Lesson learned.

But in the end, it's not just your placing, I felt like I accomplished what I set out to do, I raced as hard as I could (as evidenced by my tachycardia). After the debacle at Mansfield hollow I almost threw in the towel for the season and hung up my CX bike in the basement.

Out of town next weekend, but after that it's "Really Rad" and Northampton.

doug

Great venue. Perfect weather. I agree on the placement of the sand obstacles, but i think they were limited in terms of where they could move sand relative to the water. I wish I pre-reg'ed (tm). Starting behind all the 40's and 50's made for quite a bit of waiting on the first lap. A few times people went down in the sand and ended up crashing me or slowing me. Looking at the lap times though, I was not catching 1, 2 or 3.

A week late on this but here it is...

Pumpkincross was going to be a comeback of sorts. October was woeful, there’s not other way to put it, nor should there be. Following Midnight Ride and my epic comeback I was looking to club seals all of October starting at Night Weasels. An ill timed flat when I was in third place ended my night and I was left crestfallen. Hoping to rebound at MRC I was foiled by a slight calf tear that landed me at the urgent care in Keene and off the bike for five days. The real pisser was that I missed out on the birthday cake that the team had for me a the beer tent but that’s another story for another day.

Somehow throughout this dark time work got exceedingly difficult. Two of my staff members had been out all week without substitute coverage so I was essentially doing the work of three people in a storm of Autism. I was stressed, exhausted, and massively unsure of my form heading into the race. At the same time I couldn’t think of a better way to try and leave it all behind then a cross race!

The unseasonably warm fall continued at Pumpkincross and the race time temperature hovered around eighty which was mildly alarming. The course was all new and featured a thirty second uphill road sprint that I was chomping at the bit to take advantage of. There were also three sections on the beach, a set of barriers that always seem higher than every other race, and to top it off an uphill log jump that would force yet another dismount. Given my uncertainty about whether or not my calf was fully healed three times off the bike per lap had me more than a little nervous.

Despite being a small field it was a totally legit and absurdly stacked field. Young Marcus the crusher was the obvious favorite but Andrew Borden would also be a threat along with a whole host of college races that all looked younger than some of the scars on my legs.

At the horn I charged. Not sure why but I just assume that when you’re unsure of your form that you should go as hard as hell from the start. That’s what I did and I took the holeshot on the long drag race of the start. I slowed the pace through the sweepers and started making good power on the flats. It appeared that it was going to be pretty easy to separate from the majority of the field if the early pace was honest. Half way through the first lap coming out of one of the turns I totally lost focus for a split second and dumped the bike. I fell awkwardly and sort of lost my bearings for a couple of seconds. In that maybe five second a huge gap opened and I was back around tenth place. In a panic fueled adrenaline rush I went full gas trying to catch up.

I quickly dispatched some of the riders that I was with and was hovering around seventh heading into the beach sections. My rush coupled with my lack of form had me in redline city through the sand. I was making stupid mistakes under duress that were costing me further time. Coming off the last section I overcooked a turn and was forced into an unusual dismount. I jumped the log and immediately remounted. Unfortunately I was in the wrong gear and could barely turn the pedals over. All of my work from the surge was gone and I was reeled back in by the chase group that had swelled in size.

At that point I took a deep breath and just tried to lock in. One lap in and I was completely gassed. Lap by painful lap I brought back one or two riders at a time, dispatched them and set my sights on the next rider up the grass. The effort was taking a toll and along with the heat I literally felt like I was going to explode. With three to go I had third place within ten seconds but I was taking on water fast. The early effort and subsequent surges were sapping my power with every pedal stroke. I glanced at my heart rate within the last two laps and I was hovering on the line of 169-170 beats per minute where I always end up after I’ve cracked. Not sure if it is my body's protection mechanism but whatever the case I was totally blown. I kept the pace high hopeful that I could still nab third but it was not to be this year.

Across the line I was instantly in full dry heave mode. I was drenched in sweat from head to toe and somehow every inch of my body burned under the searing strain and fury of the lactic acid tsunami that had rocked my existence.

Marcus was a cut above everyone and is really a freak of nature. Somebody is going to be paying him to ride his bike in the near future. Apparently, and I have photo evidence to prove this, he was riding over the knee high log on the course and didn’t get off his bike the whole race. I do think that it was reasonable to think that I could have raced Andrew for second had I not had such a woeful beginning of the race. Clearly I was rusty as hell and needed an hour in the hurt locker to get some of the cobwebs out heading into the back half of the season. The biggest take away was that my leg managed to hold up and following a full gas effort I was only a little sore in the aftermath. Close call!

Mark