The rest of the week we trained as a team ripping around Belgium, Holland and Germany as well as putting in some skills work on the slick European mud.
Saturday we all drove over to Valkenburg to pre-ride the course. After lots of video analysis we thought we knew what to expect but it turned out to be a very different course. With lots slick off camber sections and tricky downhills it was a lot like a mountain bike course. After a few easy laps and a hard lap we packed up and headed home for dinner.
The next morning we piled into the vans and headed over again. At 8am it was only 35 degrees F and huge clouds of fog rolled up the Cauberg and onto the course. Lane, Ben and I did one lap on the course to dial in our lines and tire pressure before hopping on the trainers to warm up.
Unfortunately my random draw for start position was not so good. Technically I should have been about 6th row out of 9+ rows, but in Europe there's not really such thing as rows like we have in the US. Instead everyone crowds forward as far as possible forming one giant disorganized blob, and I ended up at the very back of it. When the light turned green I sat there for a few seconds waiting for the blob to get moving and was about 8th from last into the first corner. I stayed on the outside down the first descent, avoiding the carnage and moving up as much as possible.
I stayed on the gas, pushing it as hard as I could on the technical sections and sprinting up the two long run ups as fast as I could. On the third lap I moved up ten spots and continued to test the limits of my traction in the slick mud.
On the fourth lap I caught a rider from Luxembourg after the twisty start descent and made a tight pass on the outside. Right before the corner into an off camber sections he tried to get me back and I put my elbows to good use forcing him to hit the brakes rather than stack it into the metal fencing. Speaking of stacking it, shortly after I slid out in the off camber sections but only lost a few seconds and gained a little dirt.
Going into the fifth and final lap I just emptied the tank. I moved up a few more spots and just barely missed catching a big group of 6-7 riders. I ended up finishing 37th out of 60 riders, not what I was hoping for but it was an amazing experience to race my first World Cup!
This trip to Europe was pretty incredible and has been something I've dreamed about for years. I learned so much, had so much fun and experienced so many new things. The racing was so different and fantastic. As Chris McGovern (coach for the trip) said, "It's not about flow, it's not about ripping one corner well, it's about hitting it f**kin' hard out of every single corner. We're racing a different sport than in the US."
I would like to thank everyone who has supported me and made this trip possible, I really couldn't do it with out you all! I would also like to Marc Gullickson, Andrew Hawkes and Chris McGovern from USA Cycling for facilitating everything from meals to race registration. Lastly thank you to my coach, Joseph Maloney, my family, and my team Trek Cyclocross Collective for all their support as well as Trek Bicycles, Bontrager, SRAM, Honey Stinger, Mike's Mix and Englewood Grass Farm!
No comments:
Post a Comment