Re: cats hill
From: shelley olds
To: Nicola Cranmer
Date: Mon, 5 May 2008 2:53 pm
Cat's Hill Classic
Teammates: Kate and Megan
This year's Cat's Hill Classic was not as hotly contested as it has been in years passed. Noticeably absent from the women's 1/2 field was the Webcor duo of Karen Brems and Christine Thorburn, who have won this race more times than I can count on both hands. Also, there was no QOM competition this year, which was something I did not find out until after the race. That was a big disappointment because there should always be a King and Queen of the mountain competition in this race. There always has been, so I am not sure why it changed this year.
Megan and I rode the course the night before the race so that she could see the climb once before she raced it. The course is in really bad shape as far as the pavement goes. There are cracks in the road all over the course, especially on the descent and in the last corner. The only smooth part of the course was the 23% climb.
Moments before the race started, my teammates and I got together and talked about strategy. The plan was to make the race as hard as possible by being very aggressive with an early attack and several counter attacks throughout the race. The race was supposed to last an hour, but for some unknown reason, it was cut short by about 15 minutes, which changed the way the race played out as well. Kate and Megan started the race just as we planned with Kate going for the early move and Megan ready to counter. There was an early prime for $100 and I could not resist. I went for it and crossed the line first with ease.
For some strange reason, despite feeling less than stellar, I thought it would be fun to go for 2 more primes throughout the course of the race, as well as the non-existent QOM competition. Someone told me after the race that I would have won it if they had one. Sweet. Good job Shelley.
So, I scooped up $200 in primes and 4 canisters of my favorite recovery clif product and then all of a sudden it was 4 to go and I had just gone for a prime. So, I decided to chill out a bit, stay with the pack that had since dwindled down to about 10 riders, and rest up for the final lap. When the bell rang, it was a group of about 5 of us and I was sitting on the back of the group. I let the attacks happen in front of me and followed wheels until the downhill where I was thinking the whole time, "O.k. time to go." But for some ridiculous reason, I did not. Instead I waited until just before the corner and after Amanda Eaken had already made her move, to jump. When I did, I knew immediately that I had waited too long. I raced her to the line but it was too late.
It was a huge disappointment, as this is a hometown race for me and I believe I should have won the race. But, it was a mistake that I won't make again. I was a bit over-confident and should have trusted my instincts to go in the final lap. Lesson learned. This will just be fuel for the fire.
Thanks for reading - Shelley
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