The Sprints of Darkness Night Race Report

First lap on the beach. *Photo cred: Mike D.

Ah, the Bubba costume race . . . anyone in costume, or in the top 10 overall standings, got a call up. I fit both so I was in good shape off the start. The course was very flat, not technical, and included the beach at the lake. There were 31 women at the line. That in and of itself is pretty amazing.

We got our start and went off in the dark. We hit the sand still bunched up. I'm assuming when I shouldered my bike, I hit my speed/cadence sensor because when I remounted, I heard and felt something on my back wheel. The barriers were next up, so I stopped to see what was going on. It took me a couple of minutes and some deductive reasoning before I figured it out. By that time, I was DFL. UGH! I hopped on and took off with the intention of seeing how many girls I could pass.



I did pretty well. I ended up 17th overall, probably still DFL for the A race. There were a couple of highlights for the evening for me. My running was great. Everytime we hit the sand, I was able to shoulder the bike and make up good ground--no walking whatsoever. It was my strong point in the evening. I was also a crowd favorite in the sand. I had filled out the front of my costume with Whoppers. Everytime I hit the sand, I tossed a handful to the crowd and yelled "trick or treat." By the third lap, they were asking for candy.



The best part for me though was the perfect, or at least felt perfect, remount on the last lap. I didn't rush myself, I ran with the bike until I was ready to throw my leg and did it without a hop! I was beaming the entire last lap...all as a French maid.

My photo for the day is a pre-race shot. I chose it because it shows how amazingly creative my friends are. As a kid, I made most of my costumes. As an adult, I've only dressed up the last two years. I have to give huge kudos to both Steph and Cindy (as well as many others) for their creativity and originality. I'm hoping that some of it wears off on me.

20/365: The bee getting her stripes from the trainer park debutante.