Since moving to the Midwest, I couldn’t stop hearing about the #crossiscoming craze. I’d heard about it from afar in So Cal, but all that meant to me was people freaking out about nothing. In San Diego around this time, the road season is wrapped up and people are rolling into offseason training. Which equals planning long, epic, elevation filled rides. For {fast} triathletes, the Kona buzz is building. Cross is basically non existent.
Everyone here immediately started asking when I was going to get a cross bike. Gravel rides were popping up. And that ever present threat of winter {even in the ridiculous heat and humidity of summer} left me wondering how I was going to ride once the elements strike. My road bike, tri bike, and track bikes will have a much longer forced off season than they’ve been used to.
Enter Mosaic Bespoke Bicycles. More on this addition when it and my new bike legs show up on Friday.
So I ordered a cross bike…so hopefully I’d like cross?!
Well it’s been confirmed! I love it!
Got my feet wet last week with relay cross but this Sunday was my first solo race, and the season opener for the Chicago Cross Cup race series. Super thanks to Bobby for letting me borrow his cross bike!
You are called up to the start line based upon your crossresults.com ranking. Well I don’t have any cross results. So back row of the 49 field women’s cat 4 race for me! And it was so fun. All the newbies raised our hands when we were asked if there were any first timers out there. We exchanged a bit of nervous and excited chatter, and before we knew it, the race was off!
I spent the first of the four laps passing as many girls as I could! Working each corner and powering out in the straight sections, not really being conservative, charging hard.
Laps 2&3 were about finding my best line and not taking out any juniors. The 9-14 year old kids started 2 minutes after us on the course. There were almost 70 kids out there. So once we started lapping them, it gets a bit crazy. I tried my best to be considerate, call out the side I was passing on, and giving encouragement as I was passing. It’s so cool to see those kids out there killing it. But it’s also hard to manage the course and race when you are also trying not to take anyone out.
{thanks to Snowy Mountain Photography for this ridiculous shot!}
Moved my way though my field and the juniors and had Kyle cheering for me the entire race, giving me updates as I’d pass. Moved into 4th place and had 3rd in sight as a carrot. Worked the corners and eventually caught her. Made my move after the straights and into another turn section. And then put my head down and rode hard. And after the tree section on a dirt corner before the barriers…
I crashed. Panic, disbelief, the realization that I hit my head, trying desperately to unclip and get up, I watched her pass me back.
I got up. My bars had turned and I pressed on, trying to keep the wheel straight. Worked as hard as I could on dead legs and adrenaline on those final straights but it wasn’t enough. I crashed myself off the podium by 5 seconds. But 4th in my first race after starting on the back row?! I couldn’t be more excited. And at the next race, it’ll be the front row!
Dove into the pits and apologized to Bobby for crashing his bike! Luckily, it was just superficial. I have a bruised hip and shoulder, scrapes on my arm, and a cracked helmet. But I left with a smile on face and an excitement about a new sport!
{now, when does my new bike get here?!}
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