Battenkill Roubaix Race recap! getting dropped, catching up, drinking beer!

What a weekend.

That was the toughest road race I've done to date.

It was also one of the most satisfying one yet.

I was worried about this course- there were 3 or 4 significant climbs, and I hadn't yet raced a real climbing race. Let's face it, I've still got a few lbs to lose before I'm at my ideal cycling weight, and while where' I'm at right now isn't a hindrance on the flats and sprints, it brings the pain train into the station on the climbs. Ah well, something to work on.

Chad, Victoria and I drove 3 hours north on Saturday morning for the race. Props to Victoria's hot new blue Mini Cooper S- we've got the hottest (mini) team car around now! plus, it matches our team kits. bonus.

once we got up to the beautiful town of Salem, we realized that the weather predictions ha been blown Wayyyyy out of proportion. it was in the low 40's when the race started- perfect long sleeve jersey racing weather. Big ups to Greyhound juice for keeping my twin towers of doom hot and toasty under the leg warmers.

The minute we parked, we say familiar faces. Teammates and racing buddies. I missed the cameraderie one has with others at out of town races- i think that's why i liked cross so much; they were all out of town!

Cisco, our coach, was there, hanging out in the Adler RV. they got an RV- so pro!
we were told that the first climb at mile seven was the tipping point of the race- it was steep, and there was going to be some bobblehead attacking off the front. Stay in the pack, they said, and you'll be fine. duly noted.


Got to the starting line a few minutes early and made myself comfortable up front. Always get to the starting line early, I say. A few of my buddies missed their starts yesterday and ended up having to chase the whole time. not fun. btw, the guy next to me in the photo came in second. great job!

The race began with a neutral lap around the town. I was glad we had that, cause it let me legs get nice and warm before the fun started. after that lap, we were off.

Soon the climb came around, and I knew i was in for a suffer-fest. as predicted, some hot head attacked off the front, driving the pace up the hill.

I got dropped on the first hill. Good lord. I went from winning a race two weeks ago to getting dropped on the first hill of this one.

...

but all is not lost! i got over the climb as quickly as possible and started double timing it. I figured i wasn't the only one that was going to get dropped, and maybe I could pick some stragglers up and get a chase group going.

One by one, I caught up with stragglers. I looked at them and said "let's go." I picked up one of my teammates, Michael, on the way. Off we went. we were about 4 strong, although some people came and went- we picked up and lost a few people on the way. However, Michael, Ben (from Brooklyn Velo Force), and myself stuck together during the whole race. New yorker's gotta stick together!

We worked together, we suffered up the ugly, ugly, ugly (Rosie o'donnell ugly) unpaved climbs, and we seriously booked it on the flats- rotating, churning, burning. Little by little, we started picking people off and passing them.

The last ten miles of the race were glorious. it was generally flat/rolling (which was welcome after the brutal climbs), and I decided to put the pressure on. now was the time to catch them while they were tired. We kept the pace hard, and passed a good number of people. We even passed the guy who attacked on the first climb (retribution!)

We had a fun little sprint to the end, and we were done. My lungs wanted to combust, my legs were noodles, and I had a shit-eating-grin on my face.

How'd I do?

14th!

Given that I'm not much of a climber, and that I got dropped on the first climb, I'm really happy with how i did here. Ben, Mike, and I were able to work together, and through our collective suffering we were able to reel them in and finish respectably.

The reward? A big 'ole bottle of Ommegang! Belgian beer for a Belgian race!




The ultimate 8.5% alcohol recovery drink. (i really do recommend it, it's a fantastic beer).



big ups to all of the NYVelocity teammates- awesome job guys! we came out and did our best, and it was a fun and painful experience.


I'd like to give a big thank you to Dieter and the volunteers for putting together such a great race- it was really well organized and a ton of fun. A race is that much better when you've got people screaming and ringing bells when you go by.

as we were watching the other categories enter the finish, two of the kids from the Farm team junior squad (the race is a fundraiser for their team) came up to me and asked me for my autograph.



i didn't have the heart to tell them I was a cat 5 with a few lbs to lose. "Ride hard! -Christophe"

I must be pro, now, right? I mean, kids are asking me for my autograph!

ah well, sweet kids. I wish I had started riding that early. they're going to be fast little SOB's when they're older (especially training on the Battenkill roads!)


the ride back was a snoozefest. a special thank you to Chad's fiance for the pillow sponsorship.


ok, time for more fun with the Massage stick.