Bringing it to Bend: Cross National Championships

I think I am still in shock from the excitement in Bend. I've never had that many spectators surrounding me, screaming, ringing cowbells, heckling and just being darn-right-stoked to be at a bicycle race. It was AWESOME. Although it feels great to be done, I am a bit saddened by the end of cross season. This fall was so different from last year and it has been really nice to finish the season feeling fresh, fast, motivated and still wanting to ride my bikes.

At this time last year I had had a sinus infection for almost a month, had to pull the plug on Nationals and honestly really didn't care. This year I couldn't wait to ride and race every weekend and I managed to come on strongest at Nationals. I'd say that's a well managed training plan!

(All these photos in this post were taken by Dave McElwaine at Trailwatch.net except for a few by Tim Gasperack and one by Jill Rosell. Thanks to these guys I have a ton of photos to share of the weekend.)

I arrived in Bend after a wonderful 3 day visit to Seattle to see our great friends Deb and Murph. We did the city thing up, shopped in Pikes Market, had some wonderful dinners out and just enjoyed time with friends we miss dearly. Murph was my original cycling partner back when I was just getting into riding in Jackson Hole and is the one responsible for getting me into bike racing. My long days in the saddle with Murph taught me early on in my career that riding is about the ride, about the friends you ride with and the experiences you have together. Murph taught me to love the ride, to love the sport, regardless of your results. I've taken that lesson with me throughout my entire career. Hanging with Murph and Deb sent me off to Nationals in a great headspace, loving my bikes more than ever.

I rallied for my Master's time trial on Thursday morning, viewing it more as an opener rather than a race. It was icy, rutted, a little scary but fun, too. I won the TT riding cautiously but fast. I only won by one second, so I knew Friday was going to be a battle. And a battle it was, ending with me coming in a close 2nd place.

Master's 30-34 Race

Geeze, I think about how close that race was and how many stupid mistakes I made and I get a case of the "could-a-should-a-would-as" as I came incredibly close to getting myself a Master's National Championship. I came in 2nd to Devon Haskell, who rode a great race, but I cannot help but know that I beat myself in that race.

Crashing badly up and over a steep uphill corner when I was in the lead, getting thrown into the course tape a few times and not fighting back stronger when questionable roadie tactics were unleashed upon me...the list could go on. In retrospect, I know exactly what happened that day. I put a ton of mental energy into Sunday and not so much into Friday. Perhaps I conserved a bit too much? Who knows, but most importantly, I viewed my Master's race as my warm up and course preview for the Elite race, which had been my main goal all along. And judging from my Elite result, well, it was exactly what I wanted to happen! Here's my post Master's race interview:

Here's the footage of the Master's race. Colt does such an awesome job with race footage:

Friday's race provided me with invaluable information about how to race on Sunday. That info and experience not only helped my legs (I'm an ultra racer. More racing=Faster Amanda) it helped me put together a much better race plan for Sunday. I had a good rest day on Saturday opting for a ride on the trainer rather than a ride in the rain, watched some master's races and hung out with my roomies at the condo, a great group of New England gals who are fun AND fast.

Elite Start

I woke up Sunday feeling a little tired, but so ready to race. I did 2 laps on the course and knew that the conditions were perfect for me. It had stopped raining the night before so the mud got thicker and slower. The course required an incredible amount of power just to keep the bike upright as there were numerous grass-mudbog sections that made you feel like you were riding on velcro.

Photo by Jill Rosell

Lining up (I had a 4th row callup) with 105 other women in front of crowds that numbered in the thousands was inspiring. Seriously, to see this sport come so far in the US had me grinning ear to ear on the start line. I remember feeling an incredible sense of calm in the last minutes before the race. I was just so elated to be there, so ready to race.

I had an okay start, not great. I managed to not loose any spots, but not gain any either. You can see me below in the bottom left corner,# 26:

First corner. As you can see, I had a lot of passes to make!

I made some great early passes into the mudbog section and before I knew it I was riding up in the top 10. 2 laps in I had broken free and was slightly ahead of a group and was riding in 7th. I felt good, strong and like my head was really in the race. I had just passed the pit...I think it was maybe the 3rd lap?...and felt my rear tire hitting the rim. Nooooooo!

The Bend course was really rocky and I must have hit one a little too hard, leading to a rear flat. DOH! I had to ride 1/2 a lap pretty conservatively to make it into the pit again. Thankfully it only went down to about 15 psi (thank you, Stan) so I could still ride it, but it forced me to slow and made railing corners no longer an option. I pitted and that's when Laura and Barb caught up to me. The 3 of us rode in a group for the rest of the race and they were able to pull away from me for good on the 2nd to last lap when I got popped out of my pedals on both the steep ride up after the barriers and again on the flyover (my B-bike pedals are jacked.)

I ended the race in 9th, 6 seconds off Laura Van Gilder (7th) and 1 sec. behind Barb Howe (8th). I was proud that I put together a strong and smart race and that I made the top 10 that I had been gunning for all season long. I felt great, I loved the battle and I was actually able to pull my head out of my heinously suffering body to actually look up and appreciate the magnitude of what was going on around me. It was my greatest racing experience to date.

Elite Race

The fight of the weekend: The Luchador vs. Gumby

The details of the afterparty shall go unmentioned. Our entire house went out and let's just say I think I made up for 10 months of being a weenie bike racer in one evening alone. Looks like most of America's best crossers did the same, as I saw more than a few podium finishers hitting it hard on the dancefloor of the afterparty.

One of the less muddy parts of the course