Race day really didn't start out very well, but I recovered. I lost my timing chip not once, but twice before I started the race. I did, however, find it both times. They changed around the original race start times after we got there, so we just had to listen for the announcement that our class was going to go. I was distracted and almost missed my start. I looked up and noticed there were women lined up and went to ask one of the workers which group that was. He said it was all beginner women and I was supposed to be in that group so I tried to get at the end of the line and the guy working said "do you have a helmet?" Oh yeah, I left it back at our team tent along with my gloves.
My mom ran back and got them for me and luckily I was able to leave with my group. The race was exhausting, but was actually a lot of fun. I got passed by several people right at the beginning and then didn't see anyone for a long time. The amazing thing was that I didn't even crash for the whole entire race. I did get rear ended by a tandem going up a hill but no harm was done.
I had to walk a lot of the uphills, but amazingly didn't walk any downhills, which I think means I am making tremendous progress in becoming less scared and cautious while mountain biking. The last three miles were super fast (for me) and fun and I was pumped when I finished the race.
Even though I said I just wanted to finish and not hurt myself, I really thought I was going to finish with a time over two hours. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I finished in 1:47:20. It's not a great time for that course, and I finished last in my age group, but I really feel good about it.
Bring on Fort Custer!
1 comment:
Awesome job Andrea. I think that going out and doing races is awesome training. You learn a ton and push yourself harder then any ride. Plus, nothing is better then seeing the finish line :-)
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