First race of the Season -- Boulevard Feb. 2, 2008

Well, racing season is here once again. My usual first race of the season is Boulevard Road Race, a 67 mile course that is done in 3 laps and has a total of 6,488 feet of climbing. This means every lap we climb 2,163 feet. Fun! The previous years I have done this race the temperature has been relatively warm in the low 70s. This year is quite different with the high of the day hitting 44 degrees. Add in wind chill and often the temperature is in the low 30s. This always leads to a clothing dilemma because you are freezing on the downhill sections and flats and burning up on the climbs.

Morgan (my teammate) drove down in the morning and picked me up at the motor home which was awesome. We could not believe how cold it was and prepping to race was pretty miserable due to the temperature. It was great though to be back in the swing of things and hanging out together. It makes racing so much fun when your teammates are such great people and we can have so much fun together.

We started the race without a follow car so if you experienced a flat your day was pretty much done. Bummer! It was great to see friends on other teams at the race start and quickly catch up as we rolled out to start the day. The race started off pretty normal and the first lap had no incidents. Liz Hatch (Vanderkitten) took off the first time on the big climb and gained a lead of 1:30mins from the pack. Below is a video of the pack (I am sitting second rider) chasing her. She was eventually caught on the second lap. It is hard to stay away on a course like this with such heavy winds and with such a long way to go.




Meanwhile on the second time up the climb (Las Postas) leading to the final climb of the lap I was experiencing my own problems and having an asthma attack. My lungs can handle the 50s but I think the 40s were pushing the limit with too much cold air for me to handle. I promptly was off the back and struggling. I maintained my tempo pushing hard and eventually caught the pack half way through the 3^rd lap. Ugh, not a good day for me at all. My lungs were on fire and I sounded like the string section in an orchestra. I was only able to rest for a little bit and it was back on Las Postas road and with the huge effort the asthma worsened and off the back I went. I was struggling and thanks to Anna (Leader Bikes/Big City) who was really strong and did a lot of work we got back onto the group just before the final climb on the last lap (the race finishes on this climb). I dropped from the group but was able to maintain my tempo wheezing all the way. At the end I caught Anna and felt horrible but passed her before the line. I am a finisher and when I see the finish line I just go! After the race I apologized to her and we thanked each other for the good ride. After being the come back kid all day long I finished a disappointing 9^th! Weather plays such a big part in road racing. It can make or break you since last year I finished 4^th. Morgan was a rock star and finished 6^th. She stayed with the pack all day and had a great ride. Way to go sista!!!

Tomorrow is a criterium race in Mira Mesa. I am looking forward to it except for the rain that is in the forecast.