20th Route Adélie - 1.1
Vitré, France, March 31, 2006
Coming into yesterdays race I was super focused and really had a chip on my shoulder ready to prove something. Well…I did prove something but I didn’t execute that chip 100%.
We started the race 30min late because of the student protestors who are rallying about a law that was passed in France about being fired from a job without having done any wrong doing. (Check out the French news it’s a huge deal, they have blocked railways, bus lines and even the interstates).
Anyways, I always make it a point to start in the very front. Today it paid off, from the gun the went flying up the hill and I was there sitting 3rd wheel for about 4-5k. After going over the first hill, my legs blew up. It felt as if someone pumped air into them and they also had a num tingling feeling. My legs are saying, “You suck” and my brain is saying, “you will be okay”. Mind over matter for sure. My brain was right. In the team meeting Johnny wanted myself and Taylor to go for the early break, well Taylor made the early break and they immediately gained 5min on the field. The whole day I had great position on the hills, cross wind sections, dead sections and I pretty much stayed in the top 30 the whole race. Trust me that’s not easy. At times Acqua & Sapone and Ag2R would light it up in the cross wind and bring the break back to seconds and then they would stop. So after a few of those and my legs felt great, I just new I was going to finish this race strong.
With about 1hr to go, I had bad positioning through the crosswind section and I ran into the muddy ditch. I looked back and I didn’t see anyone and thought I was the last rider. I was wrong, there were still 20-30 guys behind me and by the time I got back up to speed, I was just bout last guy until a Japanese rider closed the door on me and put me right back in the ditch. I chased and at the top of the hill, I caught back on and thought I would be fine through the downhill and back up hill through the finish.
At the top of the feed zone hill, I’m on the verge of popping and I suffer to the top because there is a downhill. However this time, we were going so fast you had to peddle your bike down the hill, so no rest for me. Now we are back on another hill and I see the top and I slowly start to through the pack like a rocket. (Backwards that is). When I crest the hill, the field was about 100meters in front of me and I had 4 guys who got dropped with me. We chased for 1 lap (short loop now) and stayed close but once we hit another big hill. Game over!
Even thought I didn’t finish and I had no doubt that I would because I felt fantastic, it was a huge confidence booster. I mean within 3 laps the field was down to about 70 guys and I was still in there riding well.
One more thing. I don’t want to pull the “race card” but I get some strange things happening to me during the race. Brad Huff saw one guy just hit me in my leg for NO REASON! Then a Francaise Des Jeux rider came on the side of me gave me the thumbs up then turned it down and rolled away. I caught him and did the same thing but I used the middle finger and turned it up!! (Mike Creed saw that) then a Jean Floc rider tried pushing me off the road. That’s just an example of the big things that happen during the race. There is other small thing that happens all the time. I mean all the time.
Also my whole team dropped out the race. No t good news for the team.
Sunday will be great for us. We have a great chance to win.
