Friday afternoon we headed toward Alto Pass, IL for this years Dirty South Roubaix. There were a few people camping so we got a cabin at the same park. The weather was not going to be good enough that I really felt like camping and we were not like the rest of the group who are living the van life. We were able to check in early and then we headed out for a ride. It was great to stretch out the legs and take in some of the views.It is also good to see new areas.
The area was very nice to ride around. It was a little different area then I have ever rode, but it was still pretty nice. I had really slacked off the training the last month and a half after doing really good up to then. I didn't feel too bad for most of the ride, but the steeper sections hurt more than they should have. We then went in to get our registration packet and eat some dinner. St. Nicholas Brewery was a pretty nice place, but very busy. It took a little bit to get a table, but not too long.
After that, we took the longer than preferred drive back to the cabin. We had a cabin at Giant City state park. The cabin was really nice and I can definitely. see myself going back. It was a really nice area and had a lot of options for things to do. We finished getting our stuff ready for the next day before hitting the sack.
The night didn't go too bad, but it was time to get up earlier than I would have preferred. Got up and moving and headed to the start a little early. We got ready and I tried to warm up before the start. Last minute I put my vest on because I was colder than I expected. Actually, it was warmer than what it looked like it was going to be earlier in the week, but the forecast improved and it was supposed to be better, but still not what I would call great. The temps felt a little colder than it said it was, but I figured it would warm up pretty quick. But, it turns out that it never did warm up enough to take my vest off. I was sure glad I put it on.
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| 📸: Laura Fritz |
Before long it was time to get lined up and ready to go. It was still colder than what I thought and hoped it would be, but it didn't feel too bad. I figured that I just didn't do a good job of getting warmed up. There was a few announcements, but I could not hear them all. Then I heard the count down and we were all off and rolling. The start was fast as usual, but seemed a little faster than last year. I was hanging in toward the front, but it was not easy. My heart rate was higher than I have seen in a long while. It sure hurt, but I was still hanging in there.
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| 📸: Laura Fritz |
I had a couple times where a gap was formed and had to do what I could to bridge the gap. Some were not too hard to handle, but there was one that really put me in the hurt zone. I knew if I could get up there, it would be easier ride. Eventually I made the jump, but it still hurt a lot. I was rolling along pretty good with this group. We held on to the front group for a while, but eventually had a gap that was not covered. This new group held together for the next several miles. I got in my head a little bit here. I backed off because I knew there was a big climb coming up. The problem was that I was not remembering correctly on how soon the hill was. I feel like I backed off a little too much/too soon. But, then again, it might have been just what I needed.
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| 📸: Marcus Janzow |
I was pretty happy with how I was riding for most of the sections. The steeper climbs are the sections that I was not doing as well on. There was a good sized group that I was hanging with. Lovins was in this group, a couple other riders I know and some other people that seemed to be part of a group that was riding together. They had a couple spots where they waited on each other, but it was a free for all when it came to any of the outsiders. I can under stand some, but we were not just there sucking wheels.
I had several spots where I was stuck out front pulling the group. I was fine with this since it seemed that when I was hurting, there was someone else to come to the front and help out. I did have a section of time that it seemed like I ended up at front more than my share, but I am sure it didn't seem like that to everyone. When I tried to hang out at the back when I was hurting, there were some grumbles in the pack. I think I pulled my weight and deserved to be there. Oh well, I was only worried about myself that this point. I did hear later that one of the group riders made a comment about not pulling us all to the finish. I sure wish I heard that after all the pulls they let me take.
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| 📸: Laura Fritz |
The top of the hike a bike climb after the levee, I made a quick stop to relieve some pain. It took a little longer than I thought it would and was having trouble getting back on to the group. I came up on E2 who had stopped to get some stuff out of his pockets and we both went on together. On the next road section we were really working to get back to the other group, but it just wasn't working. We would make up some room and then they would pull away some again. It was about 100 yards, but it was just too much. Eventually we were both wore out enough to give up and just go our own pace.
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| 📸: Antonio Martinez |
From here it was mostly just us till the end. We would have a rider or two join us for a short time, but never really stick around. After we passed the levee section again, I knew we were getting pretty close to home. The next road section lasted way longer than I thought it would, but I was just riding in survival mode at this point. The new private land section was not easy. I rode the first field section, but after we turned the corner, I could see there was a section that I didn't have in me anymore. I rode what I could, but had to walk part of it. Finally we were on the bike path and I knew we were almost there. I did reel in a couple riders and pass them, but it was too little too late.
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| 📸: Antonio Martinez |
I finished in 4:09 and that put me in 30th place in the open. I'm not really that happy with my placing, but I was happy with how I rode for most of the day. It felt like I was riding hard all day. There were a lot of moments where I thought I was going to get dropped and a lot of moments where I was putting in good pulls. I couldn't ask for much more. It was a lot of fun riding with Eric all day. I think we were both hurting each other at times. We were a good match for each other. Our strengths seemed to be in different places at times and it was what the other one needed.
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| 📸: Laura Fritz |
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| 📸: Antonio Martinez |
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