Since it was my b-day and it was Cinco de Mayo (Fifth of May, for yo'all!) I celebrated by competing on a 50 mile race in Payson, AZ.
Norma helped start preparing from the night before by getting me a really rich brownie with chocolate frosting and whip cream...yum, I only had a little bit since I had big plans for the race next day.
As usual for my birthdays, I end up with a helmet on or sitting on a wet chair. This time it was the BMX helmet I got at the last race in Santa Barbara. After searching throughout the apartment for my present according to the clues Norma was providing me, I finally found a really cool CycleOps fluid trainer hiding in the closet. Can you tell I was excited to open it....
The next morning we drove to Payson where Tinker Juarez and Nat Ross came to crash my "party." They were actually there for the "real party" the Second National 24 Hour race in the Calendar, but it was followed by my "party" of 50 miles in the same course.
In this picture Nat (who races for Subaru/Gary Fisher) is leading the group while Tinker is in fourth on the LeMans start of the 24 hour race.
Last year I did the 24 hour race here, but this year the objectives are a little different, so the 24 hour thingy didn't fit in it.
We were supposed to go at 12:30, half an hour after the 24 hour people, so I had a little time to warm up on my new toy, just enough to get the legs going.
After 10 minutos on the trainer it was time to run to the bikes. Even though I wasn't doing the 24 hours, the 50 mile race also had a LeMans start.Here I am using my secret running technique to get to the front of the pack in the running part...at least the guy behind me thought it was funny!
Once on the bike, I took the things a little more serious. I caugh up to the early leader before the top of the first climb and held on to the lead until the end. At the end of the first lap, the second place guy was less than 30 seconds behind me. Tinker and Nat passed me at the begginning of my second lap, and I didn't let the opportunity to ride with a legend like Tinker, so I stuck to their wheel for the rest of the race. It was quite an experience to ride with those guys. I was pushing it hard, knowing that I only had 5 laps to do. Those guys were riding at that pace with 20 hours remaining on their race. It was cool that at one point, someone from Tinker's pit crew came by and confirmed that I was only doing the 50. It appears they were a little worried about the skinny guy on their wheel, especially when I would get really close to them on the hard climbs.
After 5 laps and 3 hours and 31 minutes, I crossed the line in FIRST place, something that hadn't happened in a while, so it felt really good. I had several 2nd place finishes in the last few months, so it's good to change the routine every now and them. The guy behind me came in about 8 minutes after and the third place was almost 20 minutes off my pace.
The next morning, while the 24 hour racers were still on course, Norma and I drove to one of the toughest climbs of the race and cheered people on their last few laps. The picture doesn't do the justice, but this climb where Norma is standing starts about a mile back and it gets pretty steep.
After the climb comes a long downhill followed by a rolling section back to the start. Here I am driving the Matrix through one of the low areas. This the most extreme terrain my 4WD Matrix has been exposed to...I gotta go detail it now!
After Payson, we drove to Prescott to pre-ride the course of next weekend's state final race, then made it home late that night, tired and one year older but very happy and relaxed.
Thanks to all of you who called me on my birthday or left messages. Cell phone signal is poor in the mountains so I barely got a chance to talk to a few of you. Thanks for thinking of me and keep coming back to check on us. Viva Cinco de Mayo!
Pura Vida!
Jeff
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