Posted in Bikes, race reports on December 14, 2010 |
Don’t worry, that will (probably) wash off.
Dah Weasel Report:
How does one blog about Dah Weasel? He is like a vampire, his image cannot be captured on film, and he must be experienced in person.
Suffice to say, it was an event, and a bike race broke out.
Posted in race reports on December 9, 2010 | 6 Comments »
This is going to be quick, cause I did not feel like blogging it, and now I have forgotten everything.
I drove down Saturday AM, leaving the house with Noah in tow at about 4:30. Eee gads, but work was sort of busy so no choice. Got there and it was cold but clear. Great weather. The course was tweaked to have a FREAKING long road start. I got in an OK warm up, having not ridden at all that week, except for 30 minutes on the trainer Thursday night. I expected to be blocked. I was.
Off we go and I drilled it, yet I got passed by lots of people. That never happens. Never. Not when I actually try to start fast. I got XTR 980 pedals installed on Friday and corrected my tire situation to 32 Fango front and 32 SSC rear (tractor tread, but FAST). Anyway, it was a power cock measuring contest and we all know how that ends for me (hey its cold in Vermont).
I got on Gary David cause he was cooking. I was shocked cause he should be way behind me at the start and pass me later. This was my first warning that I was not on a good day, and I panicked. No offense to Gary, who actually was on a really good day on a course that was made for him.
By the time we got through the first grass section, the 180 at the end, and past the hay bail on the fence and onto the gravel section, I was pinned and clinging for dear life. WOW we were going fast! So fast that the front of the race was on the end of the grass section, approaching the 180 as I was coming off the pavement! Wow, horsepower. Get some.
I felt like we were pretty far up, and as I checked back as we got through the first woods section and into the open as you approach the set up for the beach, we had a gap. I was clinging and swinging. Gary was hammering. I was on Buckley’s wheel. Actually he had been on my wheel, me on Gary. Gary was steady and FAHKING fast. Kevin came around me, working hard for it, coming off the grass. He opened a gap to Gary and I came around to fill it, working hard for it as well. We did that a couple times and pretty soon it popped me.
IIRC, one lap in I got popped off Gary and Kev, but there was NOTHING behind me. So much so that I rode around chasing the wheel 5 seconds up the road for two laps. I knew if I could just latch on I could recover and surf that shit. I never made it. I felt fresh but sort of blocked and could never really bury myself. After a few laps of doing that, on my own, on a road course, I did a status check. I could see a group of 5 coming up. Gewilli was in it. I figured if they had not hauled me in after a couple laps, on a course like this, I should be safe to drop back to them and lose them later.
So I soft pedalled a lap and recovered. They caught. I let two guys go past as they seemed eager to RACE, even though Gary’s group was not even in sight anymore. I think I sat up and let them close a 15 second gap to me. It was bad. But it was the right choice. Do it on my terms not theirs.
Those two guys were going at it, attacking and working hard. I sat in 3rd wheel and blocked, as I did not want to drop back. I got a full lap of sitting in to recover. Approaching the off camber right-left hander that runs to the beach, I stayed high, to the right of the trench, they crossed over to the low, left line. I pedalled all the way around the corner and passed them on the straight bit before you turn left and right and drop into the sand. I wanted to lead the run to slow it down.
As we hit the sand I heard a fracas and a “shit” and decided to drill it. I did a hard run and popped out around the tree with a really big gap. Someone must have bobbled that shit. Honestly I went around them so hard I think I gapped them before the sand even, and the panic probably caused the crash. The first two guys were banging pretty good the whole lap, so no surprise. And they were cooked from the effort, and they were in front of all the fresh legs. Perfect.
That was 2 to go, so I solo’d around for two laps working hard out in the wind and held it to the line, no thanks to Gewilli who was at the front on the FAST PARTS, drilling it and towing them around on the pavement. NOT how to block. I yelled at him to get off the front but he didn’t. He won the sprint though and finished right behind me so all is well that ends well. Gary was 31st, head of his group. I was 35th. Same result as if I had hung on him.
Sunday I was READY. I felt good. I launched off the line and got waaaay up there, top 20. As we charged to the sand someone went down and Marcoux ran him over. I was on Marcoux and did a full lock up, rear tire slid around and came up next to me, totally crossed up, and riding the front wheel. I stuck it and shot off to the sand. It was HAWT! It did detach us from the train though.
I chased like MAD thru the sand, FLYING, around the course leading my group, I let a guy come around for the downhill pavement to the second sand on lap 2, finally. That felt great. By the last 180 off the pavement we were close to Brant Hornberger who was tailgunning a big group. Still top 20. I jumped the guy headed to the sand and ran hard and closed the gap to Brant and opened a gap to the group I had been towing. Perfect.
We rolled down the hill and across the pavement to the barriers and I checked back and we were free, the next guy was just dropping down the hill as we hit the grass for the barrier! WOO! I was on the train to glory, rested, on a wheel, and feeling it.
I remounted on the pavement as I run pretty far past the barriers. As I did I landed heavy and rim rode the tire. I knew it was flat. Sure enough, it went down. I hit the pit yelling for a wheel but the guy was chatting up at the other end of the pit.
A very slow wheel change ensued. I was DFL. I chased HARD for a lap, too hard. That blew me. I latched onto a group, the last group, Gewilli was up the road. I popped. I rode with a guy for a couple laps, we were tail end of lead lap.
I attacked the shit out of him several times but I sat up on pavement to make him come around and we almost track standed (it was John Buser turns out) so there was plenty of resting too. I could not shake him so I took beer feeds from Colin.
Last lap in the sand pit he yelled “you are going to let this guy beat you, aren’t you” and I realized, yes, I was. Fuck it. I sat up and he rode off and I rolled in at like 41st.
I was on my way to a legit Verge point. Brant was 21st. Gary and Stephan came up and thru (wow Gary!) and made it into the points, so even if I got popped off Brant I could have rested and hitched a ride back to 25th.
I was pissed. And pissy. I got in the truck and drove home as fast as I could and was home for dinner for the first time this season.
I decided on the way home that I did not want to go to Nats, and I could not go as I was loaded at work. I cancelled on Monday. It was the right thing to do. Season is over.
Posted in Bikes, race reports on November 23, 2010 | 2 Comments »
I guess I am supposed to blog. Right.
Saturday I was not going to race, but then I did. Never done Velocross so thought I should check it out. Plus my little foray into the Cat 3′s has been refreshing, and its back to Verge Masters from here on out, soooo.
I got the race with just time for a preride lap. Not ideal but whatever. They called us up by reg order, which was bad for me, but I slid up to 2nd row, though on the outside of the track which was not ideal. Off we go and my usual sprint into the top 7 did not work, as EVERYONE was slaying it. Odd. 3/4 around the track and then onto the infield intestinal tract. I could tell the front was about to CHECK OUT, and Nate Morse was there, and he is fast. And, um, 16. But whatever, he looks very manly.
So I decided to get aggressive and I dove on the inside of every corner and just pedaled my way out of them and move people. It worked pretty well, people seemed inclined to give me room, or whatever, but it worked and I did not have to really move anyone. I even got encouragement from behind, with someone yelling “Way to stick it in there”. Was pretty fun.
I popped out of the chicane and hit the barriers and of course struggled with the clip in up the track, and slotted in somewhere in the top 10. I think I made up 5-10 spots on those corners.
Into the woods and I made a few more passes. Course was fun, velodrome, woods, BMX track, it had it all in a very very short lap. I think we may have done 8 laps! I never looked.
Few laps in I had separated myself and was solo in I think 5th or so. Held that for a lap or two, then a group was dangling behind me with 3 to go. As I went up the steep ride up, I hit 55 lappers and one stalled out and fell ON TOP OF ME pinning me under him while the group of 4 caught and went through me. Argh.
I chased back onto them, got thru three of them, then next lap SAME THING! Had to run again. I chased back up to 3rd in the group, and last time up the hill I had to run yet again. I was fast after the hill but having to run it ruined my speed there and I never closed the gap down. I held of the 4th fellow and got 8th.
Off to Shedd Park for Lowell, one of my favorite races. Lining up by CXresults points was nice too, though they put all the juniors in the front row so I ended third row. Same sort of start, on the track, and me outside line (by choice though, the inside line at Shedd can get messy). I gave it some gas after everyone settled down, and moved up into maybe top 15. We got to the stupid tree turn that is so wide and so easy and of course, even that far up, everyone acts like a cat 3 and pushes someone over followed by every one running into them from behind, rather than attempt to use their brakes and stay on their bikes.
I go tight to tree, cause that is my line, and people fall INTO the corner, right? I had to unclip but I tripod’ed around the tree and launched out and then it was pretty well strung out up the hill and the rabble was still riding headlong into the pile at the tree without braking, hence creating a larger pile up (check the threshold vid’s from the back of the pack – total shit show). I really don’t understand why the 3′s are so eager to get off their bicycles in a bike race, and why they can’t see a pile up and modulate their speed, rather than just RAMMING SPEED right into the fray. Sigh.
Up the bumpy hill and people are already fading. I am on 34 Fangos at 22# and went around the bumpy bogged down crowd smoothly. I rolled up on a nice group into the barriers and felt pretty fresh. I was talking to someone about something, so I know I wasn’t out of breath.
I pretty much stayed on wheels for a couple laps cause it was windy and lots of power sections out there. I felt faster down the hill and around the tennis courts, and up to the sidewalk. The track was tough, I don’t like the loose corner you take to drop onto the track, I don’t know why, so I was not able to half wheel the guy in front of me to mitigate their sprint up to speed, and had to dig pretty hard to get on the wheels and enjoy some draft. I certainly lack the wattage of the front pack of 3′s, no different than Masters, only the 3′s seem to hit it much harder getting up to speed.
I think we caught up to the main chase group for a lap, and the next time thru I lost the wheel up the first ride up. I was feeling that. I feel like my fitness/cardio is up but my wattage is down from a long season of racing only, no rides on the road. I struggled up that, as I did for EIGHT LAPS at Velocross. Boo. So I spent a lap chasing that group, that was 2 to go. Normally I like to rest and race the group I am with on 2 to go, so I can beat them on the last lap. Since I was soooo close and the group behind was 10 seconds or so, I kept digging, thinking if I could close on them in the woods, I would get towed around on the track and then GAME ON. Alas, I did not make it, so when I hit the track I dialed it back so I would have some legs for the climb. I felt I could make more of a difference on the climb than on the track, plus I saw Adam Whitney had come thru the group and gapped them and was chasing solo. I would not consider him a power rider, so thought I could take the track easier and not lose time to him.
He had some gas in the tank and I was dieing a bit on the ride ups and he caught me in the trench of Lowellenburg, and onto the sidewalk. Luckily, he came right around me off the side walk so I didn’t have to make a move to get him to lead. Sweet. I guess having just closed down on me made him think I was dieing. Excellent. I sat right the hell on thru the woods and onto the track, resting. I was pretty excited to have it go down to a sprint, and with a skinny little mountain biker no less! Of anyone in that field, Adam is probably the guy I would pick to sprint with (he is faster than me in M35s, but doesn’t look like a sprinter).
Unfortunately, the track at Lowell is all corner, no straight. I wanted to dive inside him but he shut that down, then I went wide but he slid “up” the track wide as well, his tires and the soft surface pushing both of us wide. I had dropped gears and was waiting to launch, after leading out the last couple sprints and getting owned. So I got up the speed and came around the outside but man we were getting really wide, and it was wet and soft and I was on low pressure and we were in the corner the whole damn time!
The track straightens a touch to the line so I got it back up straight and kept on it and hit him with a strong bike throw, and was pretty sure I had him by a few inches in the throw. But not totally sure. I was on the officials side, heck I was almost in their lap, we went so wide, and that usually favors you (being an official myself). But I had it. Sure enough, results had me in 8th in the 3′s, 9th overall as Nate Morse was 5th, fastest junior. I guess only 1 kid beat me, I’ll take it!
So ends our journey down to the 3′s. Good times. Fun racing at the front that is for sure. Now back to carrying the lunch in the M35s for Sterling and NBX. Then a full week at Nationals, 3 races and 3 TTs (STUPID). Then I will do the double at NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS! They even have single speed! Then I will pack on 10 pounds again and do nothing till April.
Posted in race reports on November 15, 2010 | 3 Comments »
After my lesson at Paradise Cross (which left me hardly sweating and with fresh legs, WTF?) I went down to Putney for the 20th running of the West Hill Shop race. A classic for sure. I forget when I first went, long long time ago, didn’t even race just went to cheer Page or something. Fast forward to last year – around this time we get a few low key races and I have been able to notch some top 10s in the Cat 3s. Its a great break from VERGE DEATH races where I spend 45-50 minutes RUNNING FOR MY LIFE. I get to start fast, slot in, and watch people make mistakes while I ride like a smooth old man with a proper tire selection and functioning bicycle. Sure, a couple youngsters always scamper off the front with their “talent” and “energy” and “race legs” and all that. But that is fine. I am ready for it. I don’t even try to worry about the front 3 guys. I slot in around 6th-7th and see how things play out. Its nice having enough oxygen going to your brain to be riding hard but not at the point where you are about to pop and lose the wheel the whole time.
Last year I think was 6th after spending the day in a small group of 4-7th or so. It was a high point of the year for me. I was swinging the hole time, the run killed me, and I was at my limit. This year I do feel faster in that while my results seem to have been about the same, they have come after a race where I was able to ride in control and think a bit and go hard when I had to, not just suck the wheel until two to go and pop off and ride in alone feathering the gap. Progress, no?
This year, I once again forgot my trainer and so just did a couple hot laps. Same set up as Saturday, 34 Fangos at 22 PSI. Hey, its all I got this year, basically. But it was probably perfect. I was hanging out at the usual start, chatting with the 35 plus dudes who just finished, waiting for the line to form so I could front row it. Next thing I know, I see a large mass of cyclists 100 yds further up the road. What? Oh, all these guys are masters and all the guys RACING RIGHT NOW just rolled up 100 yds and are doing a secret start? WTF!
I zip up there and slot in 4th row. FOURTH ROW! BOOO! And right in the middle. I went middle cause the edges were stacked up tight. I sort of half wheeled my way up into 3rd row by “accidentally” bumping the rear wheel of the guy in front of me. Repeatedly. While inching forward. Trying to fake him out into thinking he was crowding me a bit so he would shuffle over, essentially opening up a spot in the third row (verses looking back at me like why is this DOUCHE in the 4th row all up in my ass? I better move away from him). Either way, it can be effective, and it half worked. I scoped out who was skinny and appeared to have a half decent looking functional bike. Putney is famous for a bunch of Vermont college kids with crap ass bikes showing up to race and having yard sales in the start. Every year. Damned mountain bikers. And skiers. Tighten that shit up!
So I scoped out who was going to fall off in front of me, or next to me, opening a lane, and who was going to clip in clean, and open up a lane. I more or less nailed that part and when we got the whistle I zipped up the center, slid right and got unboxed, and then had a clear lane finally as we hit the top half of the hill, where I unleashed my deadly sprint and made it up to 7th wheel by stuffing myself into the inside line of the right hander onto the grass. How handy that I was already on the inside thanks to going the long way around on the outside in the first bend, and moving up at speed in the process!
Here is a helmet cam of lap 1. You can just see me in my grey ghost outfit blast up the right hand gutter at the top of the hill, going like stink.
I sat in 7th wheel and tried to catch a breather thru the twisties. I was on Ronnie Steers wheel. He opened up a gap which I encouraged him to close. He did not so I passed him and was 6th into the corn.
The lead group gapped me at the top of the run and I let them go, waiting for help. I was having a hard time with the run and with the reclipping. Just can’t get into these damn pedals without being in a hard gear and stomping the shit out of them. Going to try shimming the cleat.
A little group developed. I let it. People came and went. I hung out. I sized up the competition. I formulated a plan.
2 to go I made sure to sit in and rest. Last lap I was up to 2nd wheel in my group and and on the wheel of a guy who was riding this tight little line on the right hand side of the log steps. I had not done it in warm up so had not done it in the race. That is risky and usually not wise. But I had watched him every lap, and even gone so far as to let my bike roll up it as I dismounted and rode the top tube, basically riding it but unclipped, and taking one step at the top and remounting. So I was ready for it. The reclipping was costing me HUGE and I had to chase back on thru the whoops as a result, wasting gas. So last lap I let that guy go first, gave him some space, and rode the line like he did. Man it was fast and easy. The speed from that brought us right back up to Ben Koons (Linnea’s fast skier brother) who had come off of the front group. We were on him by the whoops, and we had dropped a tall skinny roadie fellow who was VERY fast on the flat straights. Neither Ben nor the Penguin Racing dude who was riding the logs was very good on the flats. Perfect. Last lap advantage me.
I planned to pass them both LIKE I MEANT IT on the bumpy grass trail between the downhill and the cornfield, and try to solo it in at least to the run, so I could block THE SHIT out of Ben who was gaining 5 seconds up that run every time. I had wanted to chop him leading into the run so bad all day, but this was not a Verge race and it was his first CX race and Linnea and Colin were there, probably on the run up, and I don’t need the bad blood. So instead I let him own me on it. Ugh. But last lap I was gonna dump all the bike blocking tricks on him and be first over the top, which should ensure me 2nd in the sprint of 3 just cause its so short.
Well, I made my pass on the bumpy grass, and I had Ben too, but not quite cleanly, and I was on his right and could have just stuffed it in the inside lane for the right hander onto the corn field road and push him wide, but again, I could not bring myself to do it and I braked. He exited the corner first, I had been flying and just braked all my speed off, but I was still in the plan, rather than reevaluating the plan. PASS BEN! So I lit it up hard down the road and passed him. I had a little gap but not much. Not enough. Not like if I had opened the gap out of the corner then punched it giving myself several bike lengths and them no draft.
Well, I figured I was better in the corners so I kept the pressure on and railed them, all the way to the barriers. I had trouble reclipping so I figured hit it hard all the way thru the barriers. Then of course, the reclip and all my advantage evaporated. So now I switched to rest mode and rode slow thru the chicane and sprinted hard onto the road. I did not get a gap so I sat up and watched their shadows for the jump. What I should have done was ANTICIPATED the jump and jumped hard before them, but instead the split me on both sides and they both just made it around me to the run, again as I did not want to be douchey.
They flew up the run, and I know third wheel up the run at Putney is 3rd in the sprint, especially with my poor reclip. What I forgot was that we had roadie boy hauling our ass in all this time and he appeared like magic on my right shoulder as we crested the run. I was totally taken by surprise. CRAP! I ran and tried to get clipped in but lost 2 or 3 pressure pedal strokes doing it, and only was able to launch late, drop one gear, relaunch. Meanwhile he smoothly carried a head of steam and just pipped me at the line, going way faster than I was. Crap.
So I went from 6th to 9th in about 15 seconds. Nice. More lessons learned. I bet this is good for me. It sure doesn’t feel like it. I had much better legs than previous years and thus my mind was engaged, rather than getting dropped off the group and groveling in I felt like I was among the strongest of the group I was with. Aaaand, I blew it. Again.
Maybe next year.
Posted in race reports on November 15, 2010 |
Went down to Paradise CX on Saturday because it was only 1.5 hours away, and it is at the Harpoon Brewery. Free beer is surely to follow, no?
Had never done this race oddly. Got there and was confronted with a SEA OF TAPE. Not like, a taped course running thru a field with identifiable lanes, but a field striped out with tape like white lines in a parking lot. It was ALL COURSE. Wow. I was sure that was going to be a sucky brake jam fest. I got out on the course, we were the first group to go at 10, oddly. So it was bumpy frozen grass, melting to greasy in a few spots. At low speed yah it felt icky. My legs also felt icky. Stiff and sore like at New Gloucester. And we know how that went…
I did two or three laps, realized I did not have my trainer, got pinned, and did 2 more laps with some sprints. I felt like I had the course figured out but the legs felt like shit everywhere except the two straights you could pedal, and they were short.
We lined up and I missed it again. Paul Weiss made a hole for me in the third row. I didn’t really know anyone as it was a lot of 45 plus guys, and Paul Curley and Carl CCR Ring. Actually he has stayed upright much of this year, so now he needs a new name. Maybe Carl “Ow my knee” Ring? I dunno, hit me with some ideas. Chris “I am too big for pins” Milliman was also there. He had blown a pin pre race and I corrected it. He lined up in front of me, another pin blown open. So not PRO.
Anyhoo, off we go and I slice my way right up to maybe 5th. Fellow from the local team, Penguin Racing was blasted off the front. Paul Curley was 2nd wheel and let the gap open. I figured Paul knew what he was doing, duh, so I sat tight. Think it was John Buser up there. End of lap one and Paul has closed it down and we are a group of maybe 5 or 6 with no gap to the field. It was so tight it was hard to get a gap and hard to close one once it was there. Another Penguin guy kept chipping his way up to 2nd wheel and blocking, or something. He was clearly dieing and it was pretty dicey over the barriers (two sets) cause it was so narrow and tight. This made me very nervous.
2nd lap and Paul gets around Buser. I follow. I am sitting on Paul’s wheel the whole second lap. So far this feels slower than my damned warm up. Like, EASY. I felt I had the tire selection and pressure sort of nailed (34 fangos at about 22psi). I felt quick thru several tricky corners. I was HANGING OUT ON PAUL CURLEY’S WHEEL, making him my bitch!
This sounded ideal. Third lap and more of the same. We are not opening up any gaps though and there are a line of people behind us. Erik Carlson was on my wheel, I was on Curley. Normally if I can get thru the first two laps, my legs are settled and nothing dramatic is going to happen to them. I had spent the first two laps chilling out, and here we were, looking at 3 of 6 laps and I am thinking, this is way to easy. If I feel like its easy sitting on wheel in a Verge race, it means you are about to lose 5 spots when the train goes by your soft pedaling ass, you chump, get out there and RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!
I think this is true, when you are 30th in a Verge event. If you are 2nd in a local event, on the wheel of the top favorite, I think it means you are winning this fucking bike race with an armchair ride. Aside from Paul Curley being the smartest, oldest, fastest dude in the race. Rocking the stars and bars. Yah…about that.
So Paul is chilling, riding along, sort of bad in the corners in my opinion, and I cracked. I couldn’t stand the pressure from behind and so I checked out. I said, lets GO Paul! and I went around lifted the pace. I didn’t attack, I just lifted the pace. I was gapping him a bit here and there but I was not trying to get away, just get rid of the baggage.
I actually thought to myself, in the moments before I went off the front, “Jerry, that is Paul Curley right there, pulling you around this race course. Paul Curley already knows how this race is going to end. You really really really (three really’s) don’t be needing to go around Paul Curley right now. Just fucking sit here and ride wide.” Then I went around him. Then I thought to myself, I may even have said it out loud “Jerry, you just put Paul Curley on your wheel. Do you think that was a smart play?”
Then I accelerated.
I did that for a lap, with the (foolish, youthfully exuberant) mindset that he and Erik (45, been racing 30 years), who had also hung around, would just roll thru with me. I can hardly believe I did not hear them smacking their lips and congratulating each other on their good fortune. But I didn’t.
Thru the start finish for 3 to go Erik goes around me, which I was hoping for. Only he went around HARD. Like he MEANT IT. I did not expect that. I can honestly say I have never led a lap of a cross race _in my life_, so its uncharted territory here. Little gap opened and Paul jumped across it. I gave chase, but I guess I was feeling my hard lap, though I had held back some, only going maybe 90%. Also, it had been so easy so far that I was sort of lulled into complacency. Erik went by and I thought oh I will just roll them up in these next corners like I had been doing cause this racing shit is so easy.
Turns out not so much. Erik drilled it HARD for the whole lap 4, Paul on his wheel. I dangled. I had about 20 seconds on Carl in 4th, and he was pain facing it. When he was on my wheel on lap 2 as I surfed Curley, he was breathing so hard I almost stopped to pass him an inhaler. So I sort of figured Carl was not going to be a problem. It was right around the end of lap 4, after chasing and not closing, that I sort of got pretty happy with the idea of being third. I decided to dial it back, be safe, and feather the gap to Carl lest I fall or have a bad patch, cause getting 4th would suck. I pretty much did that and rode comfortably to the line in 3rd. Hmm. Needless to say, Paul jumped away from Erik to win.
I felt pretty stupid afterwards cause I certainly feel like I was the best “driver” out there that day, and had the measure of them on the other parts. But at racing age of 40, I was the young punk out there and surrounded by age and cunning. I think Paul played me like a fiddle and knew exactly what Erik was going to do, and how long he could do it for, etc. He said as much to us after the race, over the free beers at the fire pit. So while I think I could have made it happen if the stars had aligned, instead I got 3rd and a lesson in Racing 101 from the man himself.
On the bright side, I was the winner of the 35 plus category and got 50 bucks! First money I have ever won in a bike race, except for that 2 dollar mercy prize one time at Claremont speedway in highschool for 3rd of 3 in a training race. Some girl beat me. True story.
Of course, there was no podium, no medal, no photo of me next to the national champ, and my kid chose to stay home and read Harry fucking Potter. Story of my life.
