Time for the next race in the Ottawa series, this time in Almonte, a small town west of the big O, round 3 of the series!
My first time to Almonte, and subsequently first time racing there... not too sure what to expect, but I should know better at this point. Almonte was resembling most other (eastern) Ontario towns, nice. The venue wasn't too bad, a small park next to the local rink, next to a big church, so needless to say a small buzz about the town.
Racing went on with two starts, as the numbers have been huge! this was good, as it made a bit more room on the course, and no doubt way easier to keep track of what was going on. Weather was great, overcast, it had rained all week, so dry conditions were a bit of a relief, temps hovered around 7-10ish, so cool, but not cold (I did however get heckled on the line for not having arm or leg warmers). The race started on a dirt 'track' one and three-quarter laps, then exiting onto the course. This was a good one, tough, and for the amount of rain we've had over the past week, I wasn't expecting the grass to be so rough. Lots of turns, ups and downs, any rest points were into the headwind, therfore, no rest...
I got a decent start, and worked my way into the top 5, with 3 of us chasing the lead two. Nearing the end of the second (of seven) laps, we were down to 2 chasers, I was about to overtake, move into third position, when both my tires came off the rims! Tubulars*!! bike came to a halt, and I was lucky to be able to pop them back on, as they'd just jumped in one spot each... I was now down around in eighth position, so a 'careful' chase ensued. Careful, as I was not 100% sure about the tires staying on my wheels.. I would eventually work my way back up to third place, and two of us would push on.
Knowing full well third place was at stake, and I was working more than my compainion, I would have to make him work harder on the final lap, I never did manage to get a big gap, but he was definitely working hard to stay with.. on the final climb, I put in a push, maybe too much, when 75m from the line, my front tire decided to jump again, and I was immediately overtaken, and would run across the line for 4th.
Not terribly unhappy though, I was third in my category, I pushed really hard, and impressed myself to be able to come from behind to regain position!!
Kelly was also there, and had a great race, I think the (rough) grass got to her, but she did manage to finish second in the women's A race! stellar for sure!
All-in-all, it was a really good day!! Looking forward to some rides this week, and to see if I can keep the momentum rolling into the next month!!
*note on tubulars, in case you didn't know... these are tires that are literally glued to the rim, not your standard tire and tube... the key is on the road, they're really high pressure, 100-140psi, so glue is for 'insurance', however with 'cross racing, pressures are much lower 25-35psi, so the glue is key, and does most of the work holding the tire to the rim. Needless to say, I will be spending the next few days, prepping and gluing tires...
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