Soaking Wet Copper Valley

Just like the European Spring Classics on TV, this year's edition of the Copper Valley Road Race was wet and cold. Thankfully there were not cobbles on this one but the rain and 42 degrees made it for a tough day of the bike.

Had to get out of bed earlier than usual 3:40 AM, pick Kurt Smith on the way then swing by Art's house. The plan was to drive my car, but once we had the stuff for Kurt and I, there was little room for Art. Plan B was to move all the stuff onto Art's truck.

Made it to Globe by 6:20 AM and the temp was just above 40 degrees and cloudy.

Procon was the organizer so we were in charge of set up and registration. While waiting for tables, the clouds lifted up to reveal snow on the top of the hills nearby.

Worked the registration table then it was time to get ready.

I put on two base layers including one long sleeve, jersey, arm and knee warmer, shoe covers and beanie. Just riding down the the start line made me shiver then Mr. Zagg, one of our team mates who was driving a wheel truck saw me and gave me his jacket. Thanks Ueli! I couldn't have finished without that. It was a little big for me I didn't care. A little wind resistance was better than being soaking wet.

Up until that point it was just cloudy and cold. As soon as we clipped onto our pedals the sky broke loose and we had constant rain for the 3-hour round trip to Lake Roosevelt hence the importance of the jacket.

I spent a lot of time at the front staying out of trouble and avoiding bike spray however less than 10 minutes into the race I was wet and cold.

Our grop of around 30 guys split on the first climb. 15 or so of us went off the front and keep the pace moderate. The long donwhill made everyone shiver. At one point we were doing 46 MPH into the rain. There were a few attacks before the turn around point but we were able to control them. Bicycle Haus and Procon pretty much controlled 90% of the race with either Bryce, Judah, myself of the other BH rider leading the pack. We made it to the base of the long 6 mile climb with a group of about 20. I drove the pace for the first couple of miles then Bryce attacked. I chased him down and 7 other guys came with me. Unfortunately Judah didn't make this cut, so without teammates I decided to attack. I tried 3 or 4 tame attacks up the hill but my legs were too cold to accelarate quickly so I got caught everytime. The 9 of us made it to the top as a group and it seemed we were all settling for a sprint finish. Focus had to guys in the group so they tried to get away a couple of times without sucess. About a mile before the finish a cheap attacked went on while most of us were taking off our vests and jackets so our numbers could be recorded. We quickly caught up to the group before the sprint. I got on Daniel DeMos wheel on the left side. He launch his sprint then I came around him, a little too soon as I ended up spinning out of the gear and getting pipped to the line by Daniel, Bryce and one other rider for fourth. It didn't help that there was no marked finish line. The rain made it impossible for the tape to stick to the road, so we had to sprint for an imaginary line. In fact, even after crossing the line we were wondering it we had sprinted a the wrong location. A photo reviewed was required to convince me I had finished 4th, however it's hard to tell because you can't see my wheel only my body crossing the line. Unfortunately I was seated while the rest of the guys were off the saddle so my body is further back. Oh well, at that point I was glad to get out of those clothes and get into Art's warm truck. Here's what my hands looked like. By the end I could barely operate the brakes or shifters.

My feet were even colder. I couldn't feel anything except for my heels.
I won't be racing next weekend, however I am planning to be at the Nova race at McDowell to support and watch the younger riders have fun. Then it's up to Prescott on the 25th for the Whiskey Off-Road.

I hope I can get rid of this cold soon. Coughing, sneezing and aching body is not the way I want to start my prep for the Whiskey.