TT= Tired Toots

We got to Fruita a little too late last night for me to pre-ride the TT course which turned out to be a very poor choice. I’m staying with the Tough Girls this weekend (my old team!) and everyone was going out for Mexican. I didn’t want to be a pain and make people drive me around everywhere so I could eat my rice pasta, so I reluctantly went with them. I had a Super Burrito which turned out to be a super gut bomb which had me feeling nauseated all morning. No, it’s not morning sickness. ha ha. I figured while I was doing everything wrong for race prep, I might as well have a beer too. It wasn’t worth it…Dos Equis Amber is not awesome. I am ultra spoiled by the Colorado microbrews. I had my nose in the air.

So today, race day. The Cannondale trailer had a HUGE presence at the race, and Eric was there to make me feel like a real pro. I got lots of comments today from all my Colorado buddies saying, “You changed colors!” I was incognito with my orange jersey and short hair. I have to say, I do miss my long braid resting on my shoulder for races. Boys, you wouldn’t understand.

I went to pre-ride part of the XC course…again, not my strength…. flat double track for a long time. The rocky singletrack will be good though!! My legs felt like rotten meat sticks which made me not even want to start the TT. I drank an energy drink and listened to some sweeeet techno to pep up and felt a little more excited. The big guns showed up to this race including Georgia Gould, Katie Compton, and Kelli Emmett. It’s cool that the paid pros come to mountain states cup races. I kept hearing about how technical the TT was and without my preride, I was very nervous about it. Turns out the riding was very similar to ABQ foothills riding (well, once you hit the singletrack) and I barely noticed the “crazy technical parts.” My legs felt like jello and I was not the happiest camper for the flat part of the race. However, I was able to shut up Negatron (that voice in my head that says mean things to me). I still rode around after the race with a big grin because I love mountain biking. I am still SO IMPRESSED with my Cannondale Scalpel. It’s the best bike I have ever had and it has really made me a more confident rider. I have noticed from the past two weekends that I am riding the technical sections like a pro. Pun intended. 😉 So I got 13th, was 3 sec out of 12th, 7 sec out of 11th and I think like 15 or 20 sec out of top 10. If I had pre-rode the course, I feel confident I would have gotten top 10. It’s fun that it’s so tight and competitive. This is my 4th or 5th year racing (I thought I had been racing 5 years, but for some reason, it might be 4) and I am still learning the hard way. Eh well.

It’s still blatantly obvious that I don’t have that top end, but it’ll come. I think the XC tomorrow will go better, and my legs are warmed up now. I’m starting my race season ice bath ritual tonight too. Niiiice. Plastic Super 8 Motel bathtub. Sounds like heaven.

Oh yes, and negative comments will not be tolerated and will be deleted so don’t waste your breath. This website is for fun, not a forum. Keep your Negatrons in check. haha 😉