A long drive for the 3rd round (the 2nd for me) of the Welsh league in, er, England actually, just over the border.
After a good start to the 'cross season, I signed off my last write up by noting that there would be weeks where things didn't go perfectly, and courses that didn't suit me. Well, this was both!
Another new venue to me, of which I'd heard two things: first, it's as bumpy as anything, and second, stream crossings are a major feature. Practice laps showed that this was indeed the two things you most needed to know. A long tarmac drag uphill started the lap, and from then on it was twisty woodland stuff, with two dismounts for planks, two stream crossings (the second rideable if a bit tricky, the first most definitely a run, up and down a steep bank), and relentless bumps. Practice went OK, and while I enjoyed the course, I knew it didn't suit me as well as it would some other riders.
I was still making up for missing round 1 in terms of placement on the grid, and so was left to find the best start position I could in about 30th place. I moved up a few places on the long tarmac charge at the beginning of the lap, and then the first few corners were quintessential cyclocross: jostling for position - literally, with lots of body contact. Everyone rode hard but fair, and that close proximity fighting for position is one of the things I love about this sport.
Down to the second dismount and it all started to go wrong. I've a bad habit I'm trying to kick, which is unclipping and balancing on top of the pedal on fast dismounts, as a security against not being able to unclip at the last minute. Well today I learned why that is a bad habit, particularly on a bumpy course. My foot slipped off the pedal as I swung my body round and I crashed in front of the planks. I was straight back up as riders swarmed all round me, and I got going again and tried to compose myself. I then had a weird situation of trying to run a 'systems check' of damage to bike or body, whilst simultaneously trying to settle back into the race. It soon became apparent that all was not right - my saddle was loose; I'd broken either one of the rails or the seatpin, and it was hanging on by a thread as I bounced over the bumps. I got back to the pits as quick as I could on a bike on which I was unable to pedal seated, picked up the spare bike, and got ready for a race of damage limitation.
I came out into some serious traffic, and it took me the best part of the next lap to settle down, get used to riding a different bike (my budget does not stretch to two identical cyclocross race bikes - this was my older, not very racey cyclocross bike), and begin picking the riders in front of me off. I then moved up the field steadily but unspectacularly all race, but crossed the line in 44th.
Two rounds gone, and I suspect I have had my best and worst result of my season. Time will tell. Right, I'm off to practice dismounting and remounting on the bumpiest bit of ground I can find.
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