Mutual of Enumclaw Stage Race

The reasons to race bikes are as varied as the people who race them.  Of course it’s easy to enjoy it when you get a high placing and your friends are telling you how well you did, but for me some of the most rewarding races are those where I’ve had nothing on paper to point to when all was said and done.  This past weekend at the Mutual of Enumclaw Stage Race was such an occasion.  The Enumclaw race is a stage race and unlike an omnium where points are awarded in each event based on finish places and totaled for the weekend, all that matters is the total elapsed time for the events for the rider.  Ride a great time trial and don’t lose any time in the criterium or road race and you’ll have a high finish.

My time trials are usually solid and this year was no different with my ride being good enough for a 12^th place finish in the Masters C/D field of 47 riders.  As for the weekend’s other events, my previous attempts at this race have left me wanting in the “don’t lose any time in the criterium or road race” department which has led to bottom half of the field finishes for the weekend.  Road racing is full of moments where you are challenged to push just a little harder, hurt a little more to stay in the race.  Ease up in those critical moments and the suffering goes away, but so does the pack and any chance of finishing well.  For me, criteriums are full of those moments.  The races are usually about 30 minutes long and the middle third is the hardest and where the most doubt creeps in.  In the beginning, you’re fresh and have enough energy to hang tough.  Somewhere in the middle though, the strength begins to fade, the finish is still a long way off, and it would just be easier to let off a little and let the pack drop you.  You have to battle through these moments, and there may be several each lap, and keep telling yourself it’s just a little bit more until the finish.  Make it through that middle third of the race and the finish is close enough, you can take a little more hurt and get the job done.  This year I successfully fought off the self doubt and lost just 11 seconds to the leaders when a crash caused a split in the field early in the last lap.

The road race at Enumclaw is another race that has given me fits in past attempts.  The race consists of three laps of a 14.5 mile circuit that features a long, steep climb up Mud Mountain Road.  In previous attempts, I haven’t managed to top out on that climb with the field even once.  I have managed to chase back on before being dropped for good, but all previous attempts have ended in big time losses.  The ride up the climb is a lot like that middle third of the criterium,  lots of suffering and struggle while trying to focus on hanging on a few meters at a time instead of worrying about the miles to come.  As the top of the first trip up the climb approached, I was fighting for all I was worth and although I was beginning to lose the battle, I crested the top within easy reach of the pack and caught back on within a quarter mile or so.  This was a significant step in the right direction.

The second lap saw me lose contact about two thirds of the way up the climb and then join five other riders in a full throttle chase for the rest of the lap in an attempt to regain contact.  We worked very well together and managed to rejoin the main field a mile or so before the final trip up the climb.  The chase had left me drained and as soon as the final climb started, I lost contact as the front riders pushed the pace in their bids to set up victory.  As the climb went on, the pack’s pace moderated and I actually began to close the gap a little.  I was never able to close the gap, however, and was left to trail in a little over four minutes behind at the finish.

The results sheet shows that I finished 23^rd for the weekend out of 47 starters in the Masters C/D field.  The real story though, is that this was my best effort at this race and probably my best racing weekend in a couple years.

2011 Wenatchee Omnium

This was my fourth time participating in the Wenatchee Omnium.  I’ve done pretty well at this race in the past even though the road course really doesn’t suit me.  The weather forecast for this year’s edition was pretty grim and for the most part, it lived up to the predictions.

The time trial in Wenatchee is usually a windy affair and this year was no exception.  In fact this year was the windiest that I have experienced.  As a bonus, it was cool and rainy too!  The 9.5 mile course is oriented in such a way that you blast out to the turnaround with a big tailwind and then battle the headwind all the way back to the finish.   With the wind at my back and my new Easton TT wheels (this was my maiden ride on them) I pushed past 40 mph a couple times on the small descents during the outbound leg.  The return leg as you might expect was slower, at times I was down below 15 mph.  My time was the slowest for me of my four times at this race but was good enough for 5^th in the Masters C category and got my weekend score off to a good start.

I headed back to the hotel for a nap dreading a wet criterium that afternoon.  After rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I was very happy to see the sun shining and dry pavement went I looked out the window after my nap.  I usually struggle with the speed of criteriums and this one was no different.  For the criterium and the road race the Masters C field would be combined with the Masters D field but be scored separately.  I survived about two-thirds of the race before being pulled out by the officials, but still managed an eighth place and a few more points towards my total.

Sunday morning brought the return of the rain.  It was going to be a soggy, challenging day on the bike.  The road course consisted primarily of a loop that featured a five plus mile long climb that is very steep in spots and would be completed twice.  Being a larger rider and not really a climber, this road race is always a case of riding my own pace up the climb trying to limit my losses and bombing the descent to the best of my ability to regain time.  I felt that I struggled a little more on the climbs than usual and maybe had a bad day, but still managed a seventh place in the weather induced small field.

Speaking of the weather, it’s not as fun to race in the rain, but on these miserable days, I always think of the volunteers and course marshals that make it possible for us to go racing.   As racers, we tell tales of battles in epic conditions, but the volunteers stand in the rain and cold for hours with no recognition or tales of glory.  I always make a point of thanking them as I pass by and I hope that the other racers appreciate them as well and let them know.

As for my final weekend placing, I ended up 6^th in the Masters C field.  A pretty good result, but I would have liked a faster time trial and to have felt better on the climbs.  Five days of recovery and I’ll do it all again at Enumclaw.