Una piove, vento, e freddo corsa...

Ok so if you don't know Italian, the title says 'a wet, windy, and cold race.


The start and finish...looks like a beautiful day, doesn't it...

I just got back from my race in Pistoia today and boy was it fun and miserable at the same time and WOW did it hurt. My team put me in the Mediofondo, the same as a granfondo, but not as long. My race was 85km (around 55miles), while the Granfondo was 145km (about 90 miles). It was probably a good thing that my team put me in the shorter one...just to feel out the race. The whole race was crazy though...there were motorcycles with the guy on back with the tv camera, team cars (I had my own team car!!!), people lined the streets, and we got to use the whole road to race on (they even shut down part of the highway for us!!!! It was amazing....I kinda felt like I was a P-R-O or something.


The winner of the Granfondo...he only beat 2nd place by 5 minutes...and then every one came soloing in in 5 minute intervals after that.

Well, it was raining on the way to the race, at the start of the race, during the race and at the finish! WOW thats always an awesome time. But it wasn't too bad...it was at least a warm rain. So a field of about 350 started (Granfondo and Mediofondo together). We started out fast again, but this time it was only about 28 mph. The field started breaking up like crazy. I had to get up there for a good position. There was a huge group up the road and then another group of about 40. I was able to solo it up to the group of 40 and stick with them. That was a feat though getting up to that group. I had a couple guys with me for awhile and then they couldn't do too much so I just went for it. I had a head wind of about 10-15mph and I was just cranking. I've definitely found that my LT and VO2max is higher. I was able to keep a higher pace for a while and catch up with them...it only took about 10km of suffering, but I was there. I held with them just fine.


The sprint for about 12th I believe in the Granfondo...

About 30km in there was a climb. I didn't even know what to expect of it, but I put it in my 39-19 and started hammering. It was a 6km long 6% climb....nothing bad. People were lining the climb cheering us on. By the end of the 6km climb there were 3 of us!! Out of a use to be group of 40!!! Hottness. And we were catching and passing people left and right. My climbing skills have improved a crapload. At the last part of the climb (the steepest part, about 8%) it was like a shot of the ToF. There were so many people lining the road, watching the race that there was only one little part right in the middle of the road to go. Like a little tunnel. Just think about those famous climbs in the tour where you think the rider is going to hit someone cuz they're so close. It was Hott!


What the hell is this course marshall doing?

On the downhill of the first climb things were very slippery. I'm not gonna lie I think I almost died...thank god for pulling MTB skills out of my ass at the last moment. The roads were so slick and wet. I was going around a tight turn a little to fast and my rear wheel started slipping, I saved it, it slipped again, I somehow saved that one, and then it slipped again. The last one I don't know how the hell I saved it. I should have gone right over the edge. It was close. But slipping 3 times in one corner? Thank you MTB skills. At the bottom I caught some guys that were way ahead of me during the climb. And it there were some rollers here and there...pretty much flat though.

At about 50km in there was another climb. This one was about 11km long at 4-5%. WOW it was a hard pace up it. I was able to keep it in my 53-21 for much of the climb. With about 6km left to go in the climb it was getting very hard to see. We were in a fricken cloud. Tells you how high we climb. So for half of the climb you really could not see anything in front of you. I was dropped because of the amazingly high pace. And went solo downhill (about 8km) and then about 7km. I noticed on every single climb that I was probably the best in the groups I was in (other than the last climb). I would just start hammering up the climbs look back and I would have a 50-75meter gap and it would increase. I think I just have to work on the endurance part just a little bit more...I felt fine at the end of the race...

I was working very very hard all by myself, cuz I could see the group in front of me in my grasp. Then....CRAMP. My right calf muscle decided to start hating me alot. I could feel it coming on and then boom...pain...and then it got a little worse. I rubbed it for a while and rode it off. I look back and a group is catching me...damn it...oh well it was only 8 guys anyways...I'll take it in the sprint. And they only caught me with about 7km to go. So we come into the final stretch and I'm certain that I'm going to outsprint all of them. And I did, by about 1 bike length. Good feeling. I still need to get a little faster with my sprints though.

I ended up taking 109th overall out of about 225 riders in the Mediofondo and 17th in my Category (A, 19-30 yrs old). I was happy with my finish...and my climbing. My average speed was 31km/hr and my time was 2hrs46min. Wisconsin is going to be so easy when I get back...HA you call that a hill!

Oh yeah and I got some Swag. In my bag was some cologne, some degreaser and a visor...yes I don't understand the cologne either, but I'll take it. And my team paid for transportation and my entry fee. SWEET!!!

Now I'm tired and want to take a very long nap. I hope my team is doing well in Ohio, happy training....

Ciao