Ken Woods

Sometimes things go your way.

In January when I planned my races for the year, I had it all worked out. I was going to try to peak for Tour of 10,000 Lakes, rest for June and be ready for the Masters Track championships at the end of July. Of course, peaking is kind of a subjective term when you're only into your second year of racing, but still, I had a nice plan, a nice structure that I could live with. I was excited for the year. I made a few other goals to achieve during the season, but they were all just part of the structure.

Then they canceled 10,000 Lakes.

Ok, fine, I can just race some other races. But there aren't really any after Avon until June. And it's just not the same. But I stuck to my schedule and started building anyway.

Then I got sick. Ok. Fine. 6 days off the bike, 12 days of sub threshold work to get back, just take it easy, I can do this..... I got to go to Western Maryland and ride 5+ mile hills the week after I got better. This was cool! This was good! My climbing was feeling really good. My threshold work was feeling great.

Then I got sick again. Ok. Fine. Take a few days off, it's just a cough, no real stuff nose, I don't feel too bad. But that easy 1 hour ride I did after 3 days off the bike left me coughing up a lung for twice as long as I rode. 4 more days off the bike, and 12 days of sub-threshold riding. My schedule is now irreconcilably screwed. I've still got the Masters Track Championships to look forward to. If I can find a bike on the budget I need to stick to. I can't even ride Opus, and that was going to be my chance to really build my sprinting back up.

Well, I guess I'm feeling better. Maybe I'll take a ride with the guys on Tuesday before Ken Woods, just to have someone to ride my sub-threshold miles with. Junior (Tim Franz) and Don “The Eagle” Hunley agreed to put up with my pace. About half way through the ride, I lost all self control. I felt GOOD. I felt STRONG. I felt FAST. And so I hammered. Often. And by the end of the ride, I didn't want to admit what Don kept saying to me. “You gotta go for the win at Ken Woods!”.

By now, everyone knows the weather was completely horrible for Ken Woods. I contemplated not going, but I wanted to race way more than I wanted to stay dry and warm. It's a sickness. There was also a good 15 MPH wind in your face on the climb and just as you left the roll out. I thought in the back of my head that someone might decide to go early. But the Nature Valley/Penn Cycle Masters 4/5 group was pretty well represented. We had 5 riders, and the Eagle and Junior started out up front to cover any early breaks. On rider for Gopher Wheelmen headed out with Don on his tail, but it didn't last long. I managed to control myself for the first lap and just kept out of the wind.

As we came around the corner to the first climb, I had decided I wasn't going to set the pace (thanks, Dano!). I waited until a rider from Peace Coffee came by and grabbed his wheel. For a big guy, he was moving pretty fast up the hill. By the time we crossed the start finish line, we had 7 people away. And we hammered. And we hammered and we hammered some more. We hammered into the cross wind (have you ever seen a group of 7 Cat 4/5 riders try to set up a rotation in a cross wind? I'm sure it was quite comical). By the middle of that stretch we had shelled out 3 riders. I thought I was going to be next. There were 2 guys from Birchwood and the same Peace Coffee rider that had set the pace on the climb and they were hammering away. I was having trouble pulling through. I realized later that they probably couldn't have dropped me. I was struggling to take my pull, but I wasn't going to fall off the back. I figured I was either going to finish with these guys and go for the win or get spit out the back of the peleton. No middle ground.

We took a little break on the tailwind section. Grabbed a drink and a gel (thanks Doug) and I started thinking about how I might go about winning this thing. I figured there was a good chance the Birchwood guys would set up a leadout, by the rider from Peace was pulling like a train. I figured he'd up the pace at the end and I should be able to sprint around him.

Meanwhile, The Eagle and Junior were blocking like crazy. The peleton came pretty close on the back stretch, but once we turned into the cross wind, break time for the break was over. I let one of the other riders lead of the short climb and one of the Birchwood guys started pushing us to keep the pace up. I kept looking back and couldn't see the peleton at that point, so I took my pulls, but made them short and tried to back it down a bit. I figured if we did get caught, I still had it in me stay with the pack on the climb and finish well in the sprint.

We turned the corner up the big climb. Still wasn't going to push it, but no one else would come around me. I was riding a 42x21 at like 60 RPMs and none of them came around me. I think they all thought I was working hard since I was in the front and taking the wind. I started shifting up as we crested the climb, waiting for the attack. It never came. They came up around me and Peace Coffee Guy started pushing into the wind way too early. I set up behind him, but he eased off. It was still too early. I don't know what anyone else was waiting for, but at about 250 meters, I buried it. I never even looked over my shoulder. I just rode as hard as I possibly could until I was across the line (thanks, Sickboy!).

I thought for sure someone was going to come around me. But it didn't happen. First place for the Green Team Masters! It was awesome. My first road win on the one year anniversary beginning bike racing. I had totally awesome team support, both from the guys in my group and the A team guys who have not only taught me a ton about strategy (thanks Sickboy and Dano), but have shown me what REAL power looks like (thank Doug, Dano, Mean Dawg, Matty, Sickboy).

So, I re-did my training schedule. Turns out that now it falls even better than it did before. And one of those “other goals” from the beginning of the year is already under my belt. Win one Road Race.

Thanks for the awesome support from an awesome team. Should be a great year for the Masters.