So there it was, Canada Cup/Ontario Cup #3 at Hardwood Hills in Barrie. Hardwood Hills boasts some of the best trails in the province, with some of the hardest race courses. It has also been the "monkey on my back". In the past I have never had a good race there and this year I was determined to change that........
We (the whole family) left at 7:00 a.m. Friday to head up to Barrie for a family/race weekend trip. We arrived around noon at the Barrie KOA, where a cozy 'Kabin' awaited us. There was a bit of a drizzle (no surprise we are in Barrie) but temps were mild. We set up our temporary home (by the amount of stuff we jammed into our full size van, you would think we were there to stay!). As I prepared lunch the clouds moved out and to our surprise the sun beat down. I headed to Hardwood to pre-ride around 2:30 p.m.. I did 2 easy pace laps, and I was comfortable with the course. It seemed to have a bit more momentum and flow than in previous years. Happy with my ride, I went back to camp (approx. 10 min. away) where Jay and Paiten were waiting to go and pre-ride Paiten's course. The weather was nice all evening and the kids kept themselves busy. We topped the night off with a bonfire and the traditional s'mores.
Saturday morning we awoke to clear skies!! YIPPEE, Barrie was being kind to us this year. I had already decided that I was not going to ride the course again so I took the position of 'chillin' for the morning. Jay took Paiten out to ride the course again and to register. After lunch, we (Jay, Clayton, Nelson and myself) went back to the venue so I could sign in. (This is mandatory and must be done on the Sat., if not you will be fined $50 prior to being allowed to race! Ouch!!) I waited around and chatted with 'injured' Stu (NORCO, thanks for the pics.) as Jay took the boys on the trails. As the day went on we went from shorts and a tee to almost winter clothing. Around 7:00 p.m. the skies darkened, the wind picked up and a cold front moved in. It stormed for about an hour and as fast as it came it went. We made a small bonfire and called it a night around 10:30 p.m..
Sunday....Race day.... The watch alarm went off at 7:00 a.m.. We needed to get Paiten ready for her 8:30 a.m. race. Due to the fact that my race was at 11:30 a.m., I stayed back to get ready and Jay took our little racer. They came back with good news. Paiten had a good race and came in 5th. At 10:15 a.m. we were Hardwood Hills bound again!! This time with all the kids and their noise makers. It was windy and cold!! I sat on the trainer and warmed up for about 20 min. than hopped on the Scott (thanks to Len I still have it) and finished my warm up. I went to the staging area and waited for call ups. There were 30 pro women racing!! We had 4 laps (36 km's). After struggling to find my flow on the first lap I dropped back a bit. Once the legs kicked in on the second lap I worked my way back up and finished in 16th place. I was pleased with my race (knowing I still have more to give and to work on). I feel like I finally shook my 'Hardwood curse'.
So now I look back and think, darn I could have been faster, I should have pushed even harder, I should have let the bike flow more, I really should have 'laid off the brakes'!!
Cheers,
Sue
We (the whole family) left at 7:00 a.m. Friday to head up to Barrie for a family/race weekend trip. We arrived around noon at the Barrie KOA, where a cozy 'Kabin' awaited us. There was a bit of a drizzle (no surprise we are in Barrie) but temps were mild. We set up our temporary home (by the amount of stuff we jammed into our full size van, you would think we were there to stay!). As I prepared lunch the clouds moved out and to our surprise the sun beat down. I headed to Hardwood to pre-ride around 2:30 p.m.. I did 2 easy pace laps, and I was comfortable with the course. It seemed to have a bit more momentum and flow than in previous years. Happy with my ride, I went back to camp (approx. 10 min. away) where Jay and Paiten were waiting to go and pre-ride Paiten's course. The weather was nice all evening and the kids kept themselves busy. We topped the night off with a bonfire and the traditional s'mores.
Saturday morning we awoke to clear skies!! YIPPEE, Barrie was being kind to us this year. I had already decided that I was not going to ride the course again so I took the position of 'chillin' for the morning. Jay took Paiten out to ride the course again and to register. After lunch, we (Jay, Clayton, Nelson and myself) went back to the venue so I could sign in. (This is mandatory and must be done on the Sat., if not you will be fined $50 prior to being allowed to race! Ouch!!) I waited around and chatted with 'injured' Stu (NORCO, thanks for the pics.) as Jay took the boys on the trails. As the day went on we went from shorts and a tee to almost winter clothing. Around 7:00 p.m. the skies darkened, the wind picked up and a cold front moved in. It stormed for about an hour and as fast as it came it went. We made a small bonfire and called it a night around 10:30 p.m..
Sunday....Race day.... The watch alarm went off at 7:00 a.m.. We needed to get Paiten ready for her 8:30 a.m. race. Due to the fact that my race was at 11:30 a.m., I stayed back to get ready and Jay took our little racer. They came back with good news. Paiten had a good race and came in 5th. At 10:15 a.m. we were Hardwood Hills bound again!! This time with all the kids and their noise makers. It was windy and cold!! I sat on the trainer and warmed up for about 20 min. than hopped on the Scott (thanks to Len I still have it) and finished my warm up. I went to the staging area and waited for call ups. There were 30 pro women racing!! We had 4 laps (36 km's). After struggling to find my flow on the first lap I dropped back a bit. Once the legs kicked in on the second lap I worked my way back up and finished in 16th place. I was pleased with my race (knowing I still have more to give and to work on). I feel like I finally shook my 'Hardwood curse'.
So now I look back and think, darn I could have been faster, I should have pushed even harder, I should have let the bike flow more, I really should have 'laid off the brakes'!!
Cheers,
Sue
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