Wow. It’s the first Matrix Challenge for me and it has set the bar pretty high for other events to follow! First off all hats off to RBM and Matrix for a first class venue and event. Crits are quickly becoming my favorite race of choice and this race really has a lot to offer. I have just had my first professional bike fit by David Wenger with Durata Training and I went into this race weekend with no miles on my new setup..hmmmm. I was also fortunate enough to meet some of the people I follow on blog….Matt Kessing… on Sunday before the P12 race. It was a pleasure to meet him as i had I carefully watched the Saturday Cat2 race from the back stretch of the course. I quickly noticed a Wooly Mammoth kit pounding the race at the front and wondered if it was Matt, it was! . A dominating performance that probably….well click on his name and read his blog! My son Will and I were doing our second weekend of 2 classes of racing each for 2 days in a row.
I will start off in order and recap.
Day 1:
Will had the first race at 9:45 Saturday morning in Jr. 15-18. A fast pace was quickly established and after a few laps of the 40 minute race three riders go into a break and Will did not bridge the gap in time and rode hard for a 3rd place finish. It was clear he had good legs and just made a mistake and he was quickly calculating the fix for this.
The anxious Jr. start on saturday
The next race up was the 35+ for me. I was a little cautious of the course and rode a majority of the race in the 30-35 place position as watched for the crashes that I knew would be coming. After a few laps the new fit seemed good and no new muscle problems were arising. The only incident I saw was on the last corner coming to the finish. I was lucky enough to stay out of harms way and finish 15th.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EF_hi80QVE– This is a video of the 35+ race that ends just seconds before the last lap crash. I am #612. Thanks to Scott Giancola for the video!
Then Will saddles up for the cat4 men’s race. After last week’s 15th and 24th I know he can compete but hey….this is the Matrix Challenge right? After 50 minutes of smart and smooth riding towards the front of the field Will nets a 7th place finish of over 60 starters. Cool.
Then up comes the cat5 race for me. I have been delaying my upgrade to a cat4 for a couple of weeks…hoping i might “steal” a win. Whatever….the pesky kids are a shaky on holding their line but they are just fast for the most part. I had a couple of teammates for this race and just having them there was fun motivation. Chuck Lafferty was able to score a third place finish while I rode in 8th and Danny Whitaker came in 9th.
Danny, Chuck, Me
One day of racing down…no scratches and 4 decent finishes. I’ll take it.
Day 2:
We headed to the course early to watch a teammate race the Womens cat4 at 7 am. A 13th place finish for her was a decent ride for the first serious crit action. I’m just a kind of person that just loves to kill a whole day at the races. That’s what I call fun! Will had commented on his 3rd place finish that he was tired of finishing 3rd, so I promptly suggested he go out and just kill them today…….he did.
Will’s Jr. race started off and quickly got up to speed with a smooth start. he did his usual smart riding keeping the pace high and his work at the front minimal. He was able to counter all the attacks and stay at the front of the contending group. After 40 minutes he sprints to the line well ahead of 2nd place…BOOM..victory felt sweet!
Winner winner chicken dinner! 1st and 3rd in Jr. 7th and 15th in cat4. 2 trophies and $42 bucks cash. What a weekend!
Then there is another round of the 35+action up for me. very similar race to saturday but with a few more crashes. I managed to stay clear and ride clean. I did not have quite as much pop in the legs for Sunday’s races but I could compete. I witnessed three crashes first hand but the first was in the break that I missed. A rider going a lap down on the second lap was in the way on a blind corner as the 2 break riders came through. The leader (Robert Baatz) ended up in the barrier with some serious injuries. My prayers go out to him for a speedy and full recovery. He dishes out the pain and I look forward to his return. Just the usual suffering for 40 minutes netted a 17th place finish. Not great but ok for another 50-60 rider field.
Will was ready for yet another cat4 ride. 50 minutes of riding with tired legs nets a 15th place ride out of 60…stellar in my book. I am very proud of his weekend.
The final cat5 race of the weekend was also the last. 30 minutes later all I had in me was a 7th place. But hey, all in one piece. Onward boys. More training ahead. The next stop…..Cold Springs Road Race.
A couple of videos of the cat4 and cat5 action will be on my youtube page as soon as can get them edited.
My first fit.
billyhughescycling 