Of all the races I do in a year, this is one of my favorites. I love the course because of the amount of turns and the lovely little climb on the backside. The downhill with two quick lefts makes for a little excitement as well. The weather was overcast and a bit cool for the day, perfect race weather in my mind.
I got registered and ready and met Steph for a warm up. We rode some of the trails and roads around downtown Belleville. For a moment I thought it was cx season when I hit a patch of mud and started to slide out on the trail. I was a mess after that . . . you gotta love racing dirty.
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| Sailing through the first turn. *Photo credit: Don McKinney |
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| Not quite enough to grab the prime. *Photo credit: Don McKinney |
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| Taking fourth. *Photo credit: Don McKinney |
We had 14 ladies on the line for the race. The whistle blew and we were off. Our first lap was pretty calm as everyone wanted to get a look at the downhill left. After that, it was anything but slow. Emilie did a great job of throwing out attacks and making us work to keep her close. And Soli always takes a few flyers that make my heart rate race. Although we lost a few of our group, we stayed in close until the closing sprint. I've raced this course enough to know that the sprint will go as soon as you turn the corner, and this time was no exception. While I think I have a decent sprint, it's no match for Emilie. That girl is quick! I pulled out a fourth for the day . . . covered the cost of entry. I gotta be happy with that.
