Book of Chad

Bowen is my favorite course in the Cross on the Rock series. For me, it’s a true cyclocross course that incorporates all aspects of a European race. The start features a long, slightly uphill road section that leads into a steeper single track with dirt and roots. At the top of the climb, there’s a grass area with a small staircase to navigate before dropping into a fast dirt single track, filled with roots and narrow paths between trees that you have to carefully avoid. The next corner is a 180-degree off-camber turn that’s usually best done on foot.

The first sand section appears as a right-hand turn before leading into the main part of the course, which consists of grass corners and climbs up and down the hill. The main staircase takes center stage, followed by an off-camber descent and the final long sand section leading to the finish line, before dropping down to the road to start another lap.

Rain fell overnight and in the morning, which I was looking forward to, hoping it would slow down the race pace. Unfortunately, the rain didn’t last; the sun came out, and the course started drying quickly. During the pre-ride, I noticed something felt wrong with my right pedal. I checked it out at the side of the course but didn’t see anything out of place, so I continued. After a couple of laps, I stopped by the timing tent to inspect my pedal more thoroughly, and Patrick came over to see what was up. He spotted the problem right away—my Shimano cranks had separated and cracked. I’d seen pictures and knew there was a recall on these, but I never thought it would happen to me.

I considered running with them anyway and even tried taping them up, but in the end, I decided it could be dangerous to others if they broke and caused a crash. I ran around looking for someone who had already raced, hoping to borrow their cranks so I could compete. Norm offered me his son’s cranks, and I quickly swapped out the cranks and pedals between two bikes. The only issue was that they were 170mm, and I usually run 175mm cranks. Regardless, I got them on and made it to the start line.

At the start, I missed my pedal and was immediately swallowed by the field. On the long road stretch, it was tough to move forward in a race driven by raw power. Once things settled, I started to feel good on the bike, leading a group of four around the course for most of the race. I felt comfortable and in control, but a mistake in the first sand section shuffled me to the back of the group. Another error in the second sand section sealed my fate, as I couldn’t catch back up during the final laps on the road section.

Race: COTR #4 Muc Off Cup
Time: 58:42 Laps: 7
Avg Heart Rate: 186
Max Heart Rate: 193
Place: 27th