I headed up to Oregon for the last weekend of the GrandPrix in Portland and nationals in Bend. After being sick and off the bike for a good portion of the season, I didn't have high goals... but I wanted to get a little more cross racing in (it is a long wait until next year!), experience the Portland scene (I heard it was crazy!), and see all the great racing in Bend.
Portland was a little disappointing because we got COLD instead of mud. I was hoping to see first hand the epic mud conditions that usually define the Portland GP. The promoters still provided a fun course despite a lack of mud puddles, there were still great fans at the races (though I suspect the crowd was smaller than usual due to the cold), and the frites were delicious (mmm)! The actual racing was a bit of a bummer for me. Day 1 resulted in a flat and a lot of running. I think I was last at one point, but was able to bring back a few spots. Day 2 started off well until my lack of fitness caused me to drift back throughout the race. But it was fun to be out on the cross course again. It was also great to see a bunch of familiar faces from the midwest -- I've been missing my cross family since moving to CA!
After Portland, I enjoyed a fun week in Oregon. First, Aspen and I visited friends in Corvalis -- it was a brief visit, but we had fun times and great food. Then Aspen and I trekked across beautiful Oregon to Bend. The drive was spectacular! I was really hoping to see a bear fishing in the river along the road, but I guess they are sleeping now. I did see an enormous elk though -- at first I thought it was a mutant deer until Aspen pointed out that it was in fact an elk. Not quite as cool as a bear, but I was happy to see some wildlife along with the beautiful scenery.
In Bend, we met up with Aspen's dad and bro who came to race the masters and juniors nationals races. We spent pretty much the rest of the week at the races cheering on friends and family. I also rode the course a bunch in all sorts of conditions -- snow (my favorite), ice (not my favorite), mud -- fun fun fun!
My race finally came around on Sunday. Since I didn't get many UCI points this year, I was starting pretty far back and a bit nervous about moving up in the slick conditions. But I managed to get off to a good start and the first two laps, I was consistently moving up. I was also starting to feel a bit stronger on the bike again (good timing). Then I came to the off camber slip 'n slide section and took my turn at slipping and sliding. It wasn't a bad fall, but when i tried to stand up, my feet slipped out and this time I slid into the tape and got all wrapped up. After getting unwrapped, I had to get my chain untangled as well and this was not an easy task. It was a bit sad watching everyone go by as I wrestled with my chain.... but i finally got free and was back on the bike (now nicely decorated with course tape!). I was slowly picking off lost spots until another couple slips led to mechanicals and lots of running. Ugh! So it goes sometimes. Hopefully I got all my bad luck out of the way this year -- I am looking forward to better luck next year!
