In just one week I leave for Sun Valley, Idaho for USA
Cycling Nationals. In these last few weeks to prepare, it’s been busy with
training and making sure all systems are a go for Idaho. Getting the race bike
dialed and solid, setting a specific plan for race nutrition, and so on. My
last race before Nationals was the Sawtooth Ridge Challenge in Truckee,
California on Sunday. Truckee is at over 7000 feet above sea level, so I was
happy to get some intensity at elevation before we head to Idaho.
For June, it was freezing that morning when I took off to
preride the 9 mile course. It was a mostly flat, twisty singletrack course with
a lot of rocks. My category (open junior women) only had to do one lap, so it
would be an all-out sprint. My competition was two girls who both race for
Whole Athlete-Specialized, so I had my work cut out for me.
To add on to that, I made a big mistake on the start line. I
was in a bad gear for the fire road start, and without noticing, I’d picked a
soft gravel spot. I spun out on the start, and left the line with the others
already two bike lengths ahead of me. They were working together and by the
time we got to the singletrack they were out of sight. I thought I was screwed.
In a race so short, there’s no room for error and I’d messed up in a crucial
part of the race. But there was also no room to count myself out. I still had
time. Not much time, but enough.
I was actually shocked to see one of the other girls, Sarah
Ogden, as I came down the shale rock descent, not far ahead of me. I made up
the last few seconds quickly and by the bottom I was on her wheel. But getting
there was one thing; now I had to get around her and get away. Easier said than
done. The course was tight singletrack surrounded by thick brush, so there
wasn’t much room to pass. I had to get around her before the next descent. Then
I might be able to get ahead of her and add a gap.
I made the pass on a slight uphill. It wasn’t the smartest
choice but it was the only one I had. I was running out of time. She stayed on
my wheel during the climb, but that didn’t bother me. I knew I could get away
on the downhill, but the downhill wasn’t coming fast enough. I needed a
descent; I was out of time. The descent finally came, and I put a few seconds
on Sarah. I knew I was almost to the finish…all I had to do was hold her off.
The uphill fire road finish couldn’t have come sooner, and
at this point I had busted out a 30 second gap. It was a solid 2nd
for me, which I’m pretty happy with. My Grammo Toa was in flawless working
condition and my fresh tires hooked up perfectly.
Next stop, Sun Valley!
Keep chasing…
