Halloween Cross

Getting an early jump on the cross season, I raced for the first time yesterday at Washington Park in Milwaukee.  I love this race primarily because the start line is less than a mile from my front door.  If only every race were so convenient.  The race went well for me and I ended up with a sixth place finish in the Masters 35+ Cat. 4 despite some on-course gaffes.  The weather turned out to be beautiful as well which made the race even more fun ('fun' being a word I can now use to describe the experience because I no longer feel like my lungs are going to explode out of my chest Alien-style).

I have to mention the wisdom of cross guru Greg Ferguson, which I unfortunately did not follow and which in turn led to the on-course gaffes.  As the cross season approached, I asked Greg for some advice about training for cross races.  He mentioned doing shorter intervals and getting used to the sprint being at the beginning of the race instead of the end.  In addition, Greg advised me in perfectly clear and understandable terms that practicing cross skills is critical to cross success (genius, right?).  This was the part I did not hear so well.  As a result, I spent a lot of time on the cross bike but never practiced dismounting, running over barriers, and mounting.  My training, or lack thereof, came shining through yesterday:

• I failed to completely unclip on one dismount and became acquainted with the ground
• One attempt at a mount resulted in a gash to back of my left leg (smooth performance and only slightly less embarrassing than a chain ring tattoo because it is not obvious what caused the laceration from its appearance)
• At least two attempts to mount that resulted in both feet not being able to click in right away requiring me to ride for a bit on my heels, which had to look ridiculous.

Overall, the race was great despite my lack of barrier skills.  Unfortunately I could not stick around to see the other team members race.  I hope everyone who raced did well.  I have to say that I am hooked on cross and will remember Greg's sage (and what should have been obvious) advice to practice the skills you use in the race when I am out training this week.  

-Patrick Callahan