Crossin’ 4 Canines Cyclocross Race – Rocky Hill, CT 

After fifteen years of racing Cyclocross, I finally won a race. In contrast, my first win on the road came just a couple of years after I started racing in 1992.

 The new race in Rocky Hill sorta fit the name of the town. Rocky. The start finish was on a pavement road that quickly changed into dirt  that in some sections was,  well, rocky. Nothing big, but they were those 2 inch trap stones that can be sharp. I cut a tubular on rocks like this last season. The rocks played a roll in my victory, with the two leaders, Sean Groom and Keith Gauvin both falling victim to the sharp stones.  The course was undulating and fairly demanding fitness wise with the balance of the course being grass fields and some sections of wood chips.  The course was dry.

I had a good start and was sitting 5^th or 6^th wheel. As we came to the first tricky part, a short sharp up-hill that was loose dirt. (It was ride-able but it only had one good line)  Groom got off the line and tipped over just in front of me. Luckily he fell to the left and not to the right, which was my line.

Keith got a gap at this point and I set off to get him. Sean came back to me and passed me before I could make contact with Keith. Darn! He is strong. He and Keith worked well together as I chased with Jeff Gelt .  At the beginning of lap two, just after the uphill portion of the dirt/rock road, I saw Sean running.  There was only one pit and it was right after the finish line, so Sean would be running an entire lap.  Jeff and I chased Keith for the rest of the race. Jeff seemed better than me in many of the corners but it was apparent I was better over the barriers and on the hills.  With 2 laps to go, I was checking on the gap to Keith when I heard something and saw him looking down at his wheel. Could he have flatted? It didn’t seem that we were closing much but he did appear to be going slower. Going into the bell, someone yelled “the leader is right there!!” Keith was coming out of the pit. Both Jeff and I punched it and we caught Keith as the road transitioned to the grass section. I knew my first attacked would come at the barriers and the hill that followed them. I nailed it and got a small gap but they both came back to me. The next section I was good on was a horseshoe downhill turn that transitioned to an uphill as you came out of it. I punched it and gapped them again. They closed it down.  Another sweeping turn into an uphill was my next shot. After the uphill on the road, this section was the longest sustained climb on the course. I had been good in the turn all race. I shot through the turn and punched it. Gauvin crashed in the corner. I kept the pressure on through the next 5 or 6 turns and one more uphill and held it to the finish with time to throw the arms up for a victory salute.  

Bad luck and flats are part of cross racing. I had good luck Sunday. After the race, I noticed a cut on the sidewall of my front tire, a Tufo Flexus 32. (great tire by the way). I was fractions of a millimeter from flatting myself. Two knobs we almost completely ripped off and the cut continued down to the sidewall, where the tube layer of the tire was exposed and bulging.

Nathaniel and Kieran are becoming quite the cheering section.  Nathaniel’s “Go Daddy!” can go right through your head like only the screech of a three year old can.  And Kieran smiles, points and says  ” EhhheehDadahaaa..” A photographer from the local paper was there and got shots and Nathaniel! and me. He left after our race so there is a good chance we’ll make the paper. We’ll keep an eye out.