Derby City Cup!

After a solid seven hour drive Friday we arrived at Eva Bandman Cyclocross Park on the banks of the Ohio River in Louisville around 4:30. I did my leg openers on the course and practiced some of the more difficult sections. After I cooled down we headed over to Nick Beirnes' house who we were staying with and then headed over to the big dinner gathering/Pro rider discussion panel at a local orthopedic surgeon's house. It was a fun gathering of the Ohio Valley/Louisville cyclocross crowd plus riders, mechanics, and parents from all over.

The next morning we relaxed because I raced at 4:00. Around noon I started to get a head ache and pretty soon I started to feel a little nauseous. I tried to lie down for awhile but was feeling worse and worse. While my dad and Nick loaded the car I felt like I was dying. When it was time to go, knowing that the movement of the car would certainly make me hurl, I jumped up and down a few times to speed up the process. A few moments later I proceeded to lose my breakfast and lunch and I immediately felt much better! By the time we got to the race and I sat round for a bit, I was feeling myself again. I talked to my coach, Joe Maloney and we decided that I should start and see how it would go. If I wasn't feeling it I could pull the plug. I had a a good start but because I had lost all my nutrition my legs were pretty empty and I pulled out after two laps to save it for Sunday. I spent the rest of the day watching the elite women and men races with my friends from around the country before grabbing a bite to eat and hitting the hay.

Sunday I raced at 2:00 so we headed over around 11:30, this time illness free! When I hopped on the course I immediately knew my legs were good. I did the rest of my warm up, got my call up (yay UCI point!) and ate my energy gels. When the gun went off I was quick off the line and was in a good position through the first corner. I moved up by taking a sharp inside line through the humps and again before the flyover, and I passed into 7th place going by the pit. Cameron Beard came by going past the pit for the second time and I settled into a group with me pulling Noah Barrow and George Schultz. I pulled them around for a lap until Cade Bickmore caught up and pulled through. George and Noah got between me and Cade, and as Cade pulled away I couldn't get around them and on his wheel. On the third lap I started to drop Noah and George and on the fourth lap I had a good gap as well as caught Evan Clouse because he broke his chain. Going into the second to last lap Spencer Petrov caught up to me after some mechanicals at the start of the race. He pulled George and Noah back up to me but when Spencer hit the gas after the flyover I was the only one who could hold his wheel. I sat on Spencer for the rest of the lap putting twenty seconds on the group behind us, setting my fastest lap of the race and almost making me bonk. He surged ahead through the start straight and caught up to Cade and Cameron who were fighting for fourth. I kept on the gas for one last lap and took home 7th place, one of my best finishes in the 17-18 UCI series! I was glad to show what I can do after missing the Saturday race! Now it is time for some local races this weekend and perhaps LACX in two weeks, along with some serious training! Big thanks to Trek Cyclocross Collective as well as my family and SRAM components for the awesome support this season. I cannot wait to see what else it has in store!