i like it when a plan comes together.....4th place!!!

sooo.....race day came and went. first race of the season and the adrenaline was flowing good before the race. i chose sen.3 to start this year and make the jump up to sen.1/2. our race was 74 kms long and a series of short punchy climbs acentuate the second half of the course in sucession. the course is 18.3kms around. i did everything that i was told to do as best i could in the race. stay near the front and keep out of the wind. our field was put together with the juniors and under 23's....where the field ballooned to over 100 racers. the start was fast and frantic. i was at the back and got up to the front about half a lap into the race. the yellow line rule was in effect and it was a little difficult to navigate up to the front. there was alot of jockeying for position going into the bottom of every hill, as u want to see what is happening. i could tell early on that i was feeling good in the legs, which i normally do, but this time it was different as i was able to watch the race from the front, so any energy lost at the back of the pack is not when u can see the flow and adjust for it accordingly. i took one bottle with me, a sports drink, which was enough to keep my thirst at bay. i was nervous because i wanted to getthe upgrade points that r offered to the top 5 men. lets take a look at how my body worked to get 4th place. AVG SPEED WAS 38.5 FOR THE RACE. AVG H.R. WAS 155. CALORIES (dont think this is right) 3419. MAX SPEED WAS 65KM/H. MAX H.R. WAS 195. RACE TIME WAS 1 HR 56 MINS. at the end it was a full on sprint, and with less than 100meters left i was leading the damn race, but i got pipped at the line by bryan king, a friend i train with who had an awesome last 75 meters, who took the race, 2nd and 3rd were just a half wheel in front. to say i am happy with this is the understatement of the year!!!!! its been 2 years since i finished an o-cup level race and to nearly win with some of the best juniors and under 23' s in the country is mind blowing considering i am the oldest guy in the race at 38. time and patience played a big part in the result. something i have lacked for a long time. but i had to believe that i could do it. and it payed off.

next up is either calaobogie 0-cup #2 or paris to ancaster......its a toss up as calabogie is 5 hrs away and p to a is 1/2 hr away. points on the line in calabogie though.......if i hear back from friends in kingston, i might go.

btw, thats me in the middle out of the saddle. we r going thru the start/finish at 45km/hr... finish was really fast..somewhere around 55 to sprint, wind was at our backs too. my legs were DONE!!!!!!