Fontanel Mansion- Nashville, TN
I raced in Nashville today at the Fontanel Mansion off Whites Creek in North Nashville and had great time. The people were really nice, the weather warmed up quite well, and I only had to race for 45 minutes, what more could I ask for?
Got to the venue right at 10 and got registered, didn’t race until 11:45 but wanted to get a pre-ride in and the only time prior to before the race was from 10:30-10:45 so we busted ass to get up there early. The course was anything but smooth, an old crop field you could definitely notice the rows of ruts from whatever had been planted there at one time. The course was flat with no run-ups or sandpits and only one set of barriers set at about 250 yards from the finish. The majority of the course was nothing but hairpin switchbacks, followed with 30 yard sprints, over and over again. This made it really hard to pass anyone and made attacks that much more important in the two straight-aways where everyone was trying to attack.
I had a good start, the field was run with the women 1,2,3 so overall I think there were around 40 or so people with 26 in the men’s 3. The first lap people were riding waaaay to hard through all the switchbacks and overbraking so I rode cautiously, thinking there would be a pile up or someone was going to take out a lot of people so I sat back about 15th or so and just waited until people started fading. Got through the first lap okay without any problems and had picked off a couple people who couldn’t hold on to the field. By now the field had broke into two groups, first group of 5 and a chase group of about 10 with me sitting 8th or 9th wheel, there were a couple guys behind me. But these guys were slow through all the switchbacks and I knew if I could get out in front of them before the next lap I could put a gap and start to chase down the lead group, well that was the plan until after the barriers I went to re-mount and my bib caught the two pointy sections on the rear of my toupe saddle and it was like a sling-shot threw me back off the bike mid air, causing me to superman while chasing the bike and eventually face first plant into the ground. (Next time I’ll listen to Mitch and put duct tape around those points!) So I tucked and rolled and got up to get back on my bike, I didn’t look to see if there was any damage I just hopped back on and started hammering to catch back up. I lost a good 75+ yards to the group of 9 that was now literally leaving me in the dust.
I spent the next 3 laps riding in no man’s land chasing them back down and finally after 5 laps of an 7 lap race I caught back up. I managed to catch them right before all the switchback section after the start so I was able to sit in nicely for about 2 minutes catching my breath and letting my legs recovery from 15 minutes of all out attacking/ chasing. Towards the end of the lap I made a couple “aggressive” passes that definitely did not make me any friends, then had two guys from The Hub team start throwing blocks every turn and not wanting to let anyone by. Managed to work with another guy and we both went wide on a sweeping 180 turn and dropped down behind one of them and came down on the inside guy and hammered through them in the big ring. Definitely noticed a big advantage from riding in the big ring the majority of the day and through the tight technical sections because if I saw a brief window to take a wheel, I was able to get the spot with only three or four cranks.
We both got by those Hub guys and they were not happy, immediately got on our wheels and keep trying to come down on us or cut under us for about the next 3 minutes until we got to a straight away and I let it out and dropped all 3 guys by a good 50 yards. Kept a good pace for the remainder of the lap and then with two laps out I started my attacks again. I was setting a good 200 yards back from the next guy who was in no man’s land in between me and the lead group of 5 or 6. I chased him the whole lap and by the start of the last lap was only a couple seconds back. He was about 5 seconds ahead of me and through the roughly 20 or so consecutive switchbacks we kept passing each other and he knew I was coming and I knew he wasn’t slowing down any. I managed to catch him at about the half way point of the lap, after all the switchbacks, and going into the last 400 yards, there was a very technical down hill off camber turn that had was rutted out from a water run off, covered by gravel, that immediately made a 75 degree tight turn over a steep up and over of about 2 feet. Very good chance of tacoing a wheel here if you didn’t flow through it smoothly. Well being that my mountain bike skills were kicking in and I was flying through here earlier in the race, no braking, just working the bike and keeping the momentum up, I didn’t plan on slowing down to make the turn. I was sitting on this guys wheel and he started to brake, and braked hard, like at least 50% of his speed, so I came to the inside and showed him a wheel, which, I knew it was waaay to technical to pass there, even worse being the last lap, dumb to try, but I hoped it would scare him enough to let me by or give me the line. I showed him the wheel then immediately backed off to let him have the line and by this time he was cussing me, whatever, now he was really throwing blocks and it was coming down to the last 300 yards, through the barriers smoothly and took the inside of the 180 10 yards after the barriers and he came down on me, cutting my line, so I sprinted up next to him over the next 40 yards to the next 180, this one swooping and wide, and took the outside line and came down on him putting him to make an immediate hairpin steering 180 turn. I was in my big ring and I heard his rear tire slip and that was all I needed, stood up and hammered ten or twelve pedal strokes and dove hard on the next s turn about 45 yards away and 25 yards to the finish and that dude had sat up after he spun out.
Yeah I talked to him after the race and he was mad but cool with everything once I explained we were racing and I wanted his spot and he wasn’t going to let me by after I had shown him a wheel several times. He calmed down and we shook hands but I think he was just more pissed that he made a mistake and I didn’t and it cost him a spot.
Overall probably my best race yet. I definitely feel like each week I am getting stronger and better with my bike handling and getting my first top 10 is a good confidence boost as well. Next week going to be in racing Tuscaloosa and can’t wait for that course because I’ve heard there going to put some sweet single track in.
Results here: http://www.tbra.org/results/live/2011_1666_3999.pdf
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