Saturday, May 17th 2008
Scott's race
Saturday’s race was held in the parking lot across the street from the Lakeland Civic Center. When I first looked at the course on Friday night I thought “alright! this is going to be flat, no problem I can handle this..” well let me tell you this 6/10th of a mile 8 corner course was anything but easy. It seemed all you did was: pedal..corner, pedal..corner, sprint..corner and then you got to coast for about 10 seconds along the back stretch just before you slammed into a tight left hand turn that was about as wide as a sheet of plywood.
The first 7 or 8 laps were the worst then you finally got the rhythm of the course and then only thing you had to worry was when your heart was going to burst out of your chest. The pace of the Masters 35+ race claimed its fair share of victims, I was almost one. For some reason I stopped paying attention and drifted way too far back, you know like 20th place, the place where you watch breaks go away and there is nothing you can do about it. I was back there thinking about crocheting or needle point or something important when the next thing I knew there were giant gaps all around. It took about 4 laps to recover from that fiasco and get back on with the lead group, yeah I know it serves me right but when you only have 3 matches to burn in a race everyone is precious (yes I only have 3, I’m old remember). I held on to the bitter end and finished in the spot they hold for me in every race, 14th.
Justin's race
Justin’s race was for some reason very nerve racking, his mom and I talked about it after the race and we couldn’t quite put our finger on why we were both so nervous about this weekend. Maybe it was the word “Championship” attached to the weekend or maybe it was because it has been almost a month since his last race. What ever the reason we both had butterflies for Justin.
Justin started his race by attacking immediately and was able to get a gap of about 20 yards. We had talked before the race about doing this and seeing if he could get one of the older kids to go with him. If not he would hold it for one lap and then ease back into the group. Well he held for 1 lap and none of the older kids would bite so that was that. As he eased back into the group one of the older kids from Colavita attacked and stretched the group out in a straight line for about a half lap fortunately Justin was paying attention and was able to fold right into the group and stay with the leaders. Team Calovita had two riders in the 13-14 age group riding in support of their 10-12 year old points leader. It was allot of fun to watch the kids experimenting with team tactics at this age, it makes the race feel like a scaled down pro event. The points leader would attack while his teammates would block and Justin would have to cover with no help from the other team. It made me happy to see him pay attention to the race and understand the tactics that were being employed. He never let the break get too far before he would reel it back. This happened about 4 or 5 times before they gave up and decided to let it come down to a sprint.
The bad thing about our position on the course was that you could not see the last two corners before the final sprint. You could see the course up to 3rd to the last corner but that was it. Justin was 4th wheel going into that corner so I felt pretty good with his position in the group. But I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him come around the final corner with about a 10 yard gap on the field. He was standing and sprinting out of the saddle like we had talked about so many times before but he never really seemed to know when to do it. This time he had it timed to perfection and was going for all he had. He just got nipped at the line by a 14 year old to get second in the overall group and first in his division. The kids in his division never made any ground up on Justin once he started his sprint. The best part of the win was the new handle bars Justin won for me, well okay, he’s not really going to give them to me but I can dream.
Sunday, May 18th 2008 “Championship Day”
Justin’s race was at 7:45 am and needless to say the butterflies started at 5:00, Jan and I both felt exactly as we had the day before. We have always felt a little nervous before Justin’s races I think that’s normal for parents but I’m beginning to think that because Justin is becoming more competitive in his racing we’re becoming more anxious for him.
Justin’s race started with an attack by the boy who leads the 13-14 age group points series and was the boy who nipped Justin at the line on Saturday. Justin went with him for awhile but came back to the group. When we talked after the race he said he was afraid he would blow up and not be able to sprint in the end. The group worked fairly well together with a few attacks on the hill leading up to the finish line. Justin was able to react well to all of them and was well placed going into the final laps. This race was not nearly as exciting as the day before as I think the older kids, while still riding in support of their points leader, were obviously thinking of their own podium position on that day.
The boy who broke away at the start was never really threatened by the group and won the overall race easily. The part that I did not expect was how the rest of the race would unfold. This course has a long incline leading up to the finish line, it’s not really steep but after going over it time after time after time it really hurts, I speak from experience on this one. The other feature of the incline is that you can’t see the corner or the lead up to the top of the hill from the finish line so it’s always a surprise as to who is going to be leading at the crest of the hill. Well to my surprise who comes blowing over the top first but Justin and he has about a 20 yard gap on the field. This time though there is nobody in the field to challenge him to the line and he wins riding away. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited as a pig in a mud bath! I was excited for the win but I was also excited because I think Justin maybe starting to realize how to finish a race, that’s something I still haven’t learned how to do!My race started the way they all do, I look up and down the start line and say, "what am I doing here?" It seemed every pro that was 30+ years old had decided to have a go at winning the “State Championship” jersey. I know what you guys are thinking “that’s no way to start a race”! Well I still haven’t gotten over this feeling and I have been racing with these guys for 2 years now so I doubt it’s leaving anytime soon. I think it may stem back to this same race last year when I pre-rode the course in my car the night before and thought humph that hills not so bad! Well 10 minutes into last years race and 8 times over that D#$% hill and I was, how does James say it, “Attacking off the back”.
So we are sitting on the line and the official is going over all of the pre-race stuff and the guy next to me, who I have been racing with for awhile, leans over and says “what are we doing here with these guys”? Well immediately I feel this great weight lifted off my shoulders, I think at least I’m not the only one. About that time the whistle blows and the pain begins. The first fifteen minutes of a race are always the hardest for me, it seems like I always struggle to find that just right position in the field. The one where you only do the amount of work that is expected and not one bit more, remember I only have 3 matches.
The pace was hard this year but I was able to hold my position throughout the race and while I’m not going to make any teams stand up and take notice, except maybe the ones in my dreams, I finished the race without getting dropped. Yes I know, I finished in one of those reserved spots for Scott J. Pfaff, 16th.
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