Well that race didn't go as well as expected. It's frustrating to not perform as well as hoped, but instead of sulking I need to take some of my own
advice and learn something from the race :)
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Alijah, Sandy, Lauren, Myself, Darian, and Karen before the race. Photo by Mark BeattyAdd caption |
First and foremost, I really need to work on my shifting - Aaron tells me I'm a hamfist. And it's true, I'm really bad about trying to shift while the chain is under pressure. Sure enough, on the first lap, before even getting to the Snake, I tried shifting to the little ring and my chain jammed for a second. I instantly stopped pedaling and thankfully I didn't pull the chain off! But with a fast crit start, it's never good to lose your momentum like that.
Where I really lost time was on the downhill section though. A few more practice laps would have done me a lot a good! For the first 2-3 laps I hesitated going all out, and that is really where I should have done well as a mountain biker (so I am told). It was a really fast and fun descent once I got the hang of it.
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Grinding up that climb! Photo by Natalie Rekemeyer |
And of course, I need to work on my climbing. I see some hill repeats in my future! I had to stand to climb most of the snake, but I would have liked to have been able to climb seated for at least the first half of the climb.
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Just some napping and hanging out with babies on the hill. 6:00am is too early to wake up on the weekend! |
I have a lot to work on, but I don't want to make it sound like it was a bad time. I would rather have a not so good race, than not race at all! And I really enjoyed hanging out with teammates on the hill- napping, getting baby snuggles, and comparing Costco shopping lists, while cheering on teammates in other races. Way to go ICCC guys and gals!
All in all it was a superb weekend. I spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with my baby niece, nephews, mom, and my sister's extended family from Brazil. It was so good to spend time with them, they are so nice and friendly and even though they are my sister's in-laws, they feel like family! I'm kicking myself for not taking photos, but I was too "busy" holding my niece :) I think it's time to start planning another trip to Brazil!
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My little snuggle bug! |