Book of Chad

If my first race of the year could be a learning experience I would normally be pretty happy about that, however, this was probably not the kind of learning I would have expected. I have been gearing up for a big XC year and am focusing on a marathon XC stage race near the beginning of summer. For now, I am using the Island Cup to hone my skills and to get my body and mind to the fitness level I will need to be competitive this year. Training has been good together Lindsay and I have been working with Coach Adam Walker on our plan and things have been progressing well. The focus on the MTB this year has been great for my confidence, the increase in my speed and efficiency on the descents is noticeable. I pulled up to this year’s race with no clear race goals other than just getting back into the grove of racing my bike. The warm-up lap went well and I was excited to get going. I had lost some air in my rear tire as it leaked out a couple of spoke holes but it pumped back up and I left a pump at the lap tent just in case.

We lined up for the start and since it was self-seeded I looked around and found my place. I had my starting gel and talked to friends when all of a sudden my rim tape on my rear tire failed completely and sealant came shooting out of almost all my spoke holes. I’m pretty sure everyone around me got some on them and or their bikes, sorry. I walked out of the starting area thinking maybe that was the end for me for the day. I remembered the pump and that Nicolas Parlee left me a tube, just in case with it. I rode my flat tire to the lap tent and pulled off the tire covering myself in sealant as I went. I pulled out the cushcore insert and fitted Nicolas’ tube. I frantically pumped it up and fitted my wheel racing now to the start line and pushing my way through the beginner and intermediate fields to get to the expert’s start. Just as I got there standing beside my bike at the side of the trail the start went. I am not sure I was last in the group but I was pretty close to last. I mounted my bike and went as hard as I could.

The first climb was tough to get through the crowd it took a lot more energy to get around people at that point than I would normally have to have put out to hold my position further up in the field. A lot of riders in the back part of the expert field are quite strong and with the crowding on the climb, a lot of people get knocked offline and have to dismount. It got even worse when we got to the single-track section where passing lanes are few and far between. By the time things were strung out for me I was halfway through the lap. With clear space, I could focus on the next rider ahead and slowly pull them back while trying to get out of the red zone. By the end of the first lap, I was 33rd out of 55 and settled down a bit into a more reasonable pace.

The gaps had opened up and I couldn’t see anyone ahead or behind for some time. Then I would catch and pass a rider followed by more open space. I passed only one rider on the second lap and another on the third lap to finish 31st. I had burned a lot of matches on the first lap and I had to settle down for the following laps. I kept the pace up but had trouble finding motivation not being able to see anyone and having no idea what my placement was throughout the race. Looking back at it I don’t think that I lost out that badly I may have gained a few positions with a better start but nothing was going to be earth-shattering. I am stoked to get on the bike and race instead of just quitting before I even started. I am really happy with my skills during the race having ridden all the sections cleanly in the second and third laps. I have also learned how to be more efficient during the descents which will help me recover so that I can do more on the climbs. I am looking forward to the rest of the season at this point as there is lots of room for improvement and I am on track with the plan.

Time: 1:16:40
Distance: 18.7 km
Avg Heart Rate: 185 bpm
Max Heart Rate: 194 bpm
Normalized Power: 240 W
Place: 31st