Headed up for the Maryland State Championships yesterday. Held in the Greenbriar State Park in North Western Maryland. I was a bit worried about this race as I have only ridden in the actual mountains once in my life let alone raced in them.
The race promoters had provided an elevation profile and I had devised the following game plan. Go out slow so I don't blow up my legs on the first lap and so I don't send myself off of a ledge.
Plan was working like a charm so I thought until the end of the
second lap when Steve Shwartz came barreling by me. He won the Baker's Dozen just a week earlier. I asked him if he was the leader and he told me he was until he got lost in the woods and was now in 20th or so. That put me in 21st.
Kept my pace and was feeling
strong. Just kept the pedals turning and the riders ahead of me kept falling back. The line in Days of Thunder came to mind. "I'm going faster. They are going slower!" Oh so true as my lap times were consistent.
Lap 5 c
ame around I had just passed another rider and began to climb once again. And then I heard the POP! Ping! Ping! and I was spinning my legs freely. Chain broke! I jumped off the bike trying to get the chain free from the bike but to no avail. It had wedged itself between the crank and bb spindle more than once. It appeared more damage to the bike would occur if I tried to jerk it out than I was willing to do so I began what turned out to run the bike out. 4.5k later I finished the lap and turned in my number. DNF!
I take away a few positives h
owever. As the rider I had just passed came by me while I was running, I took note of his bib number so I would have an idea of where I might have been able to finish had I not broken the chain. He finished 6th so that leads me to believe I would have had a decent finish in the works. Oh what could have been. The other positive is that I raced in a mountainous setting and didn't kill myself. I must say it is far from the somewhat smooth singletrack that I am used to racing around on here in the 804.
The race promoters had provided an elevation profile and I had devised the following game plan. Go out slow so I don't blow up my legs on the first lap and so I don't send myself off of a ledge.
Plan was working like a charm so I thought until the end of the
second lap when Steve Shwartz came barreling by me. He won the Baker's Dozen just a week earlier. I asked him if he was the leader and he told me he was until he got lost in the woods and was now in 20th or so. That put me in 21st.Kept my pace and was feeling
strong. Just kept the pedals turning and the riders ahead of me kept falling back. The line in Days of Thunder came to mind. "I'm going faster. They are going slower!" Oh so true as my lap times were consistent.Lap 5 c
ame around I had just passed another rider and began to climb once again. And then I heard the POP! Ping! Ping! and I was spinning my legs freely. Chain broke! I jumped off the bike trying to get the chain free from the bike but to no avail. It had wedged itself between the crank and bb spindle more than once. It appeared more damage to the bike would occur if I tried to jerk it out than I was willing to do so I began what turned out to run the bike out. 4.5k later I finished the lap and turned in my number. DNF!I take away a few positives h
owever. As the rider I had just passed came by me while I was running, I took note of his bib number so I would have an idea of where I might have been able to finish had I not broken the chain. He finished 6th so that leads me to believe I would have had a decent finish in the works. Oh what could have been. The other positive is that I raced in a mountainous setting and didn't kill myself. I must say it is far from the somewhat smooth singletrack that I am used to racing around on here in the 804.