The Primevera, Lago Vista, TX Cat 4
(3/11/2006)

"Merciless Russian Juicer"
Nick Nichols

I chose to include a reference to the merciless Russian juicer from Rocky IV to add proper tone to my Cat IV race report from Lago Vista.  I love it when the numbers and my references match up.  This course was, as people have mentioned, brutal.  Much like Ivan Drago to Apollo Creed, this course handled me with an "if he dies, he dies" attitude that was evident from lap one.  I only raced on Saturday, and even the 10am start time came early given that I searched the previous night until 2am for a hotel room.  We finally found one in Manor, back down 290, but this is what I get for assuming Austin, of all places, would have hotels on a Friday night.  So after a late night/early wakeup, we headed to the course.  By the time I got my number and got ready, it was almost 9:30, so I hopped on the trainer only to notice a huge bulge in my front tire.  I says to myself, "either that's where you left your golf ball, or you need to grab a new wheel quickly."  Lucky for me, Scott "I do a race for each meal of the day" came through for me with his extra front wheel.  Thanks again, bro.
 
New wheel in locked in, we lined it up, and let me say that it felt good to have the entire field looking at the back of about 8 GCCA-Bikesport jerseys.  Whether or not when held together throughout the entire race, I think we let a lot of people know that they are going to have some work to do in Cat IV this year, especially in H-Town races.  I came away form the race feeling good, even though I finished nowhere near the front.  My goals changed throughout the day.  I didn't know what to expect from the start considering I haven't raced since I ate the "Street & 3" lunch special in July.  Knowing that I am not in great shape yet, I needed a race to get me back in the racing mode.  Saturday was great for that.  I help on for 1.5 laps and got dropped soon thereafter.  Goal 1: Stay with the pack...6 laps to go, at least I have time to rethink things.  From then on out, it was more of a personal thing, and I didn't want to quit.  Catching up to some friendly Capt. America suits was helpful.  Doug and I ended up working together for the rest of the day, and that was immensely uplifting for me.  Thanks, Doug.  Goal 2: Finish the Race...achieved.  In the last lap, my goal became to drop the pesky Northwest guy who kept hanging around me.  Goal 3: Drop the hammer on NW guy...check it off the list, baby.
 
Riding with Doug, I heard my four favorite quotes of the weekend:  Quote 1: At the start, Doug says, "I just hope I don't get passed by my wife."  Quote 2) We had 3 laps to go, and we hear Joyce say, "Do you hear me comin', Doug?"  Quote 3: Doug responds, "I was kidding about you passing me" as she passes us.  That was funny stuff.  Congrats Joyce on a killer race!  My favorite quote of the day came after a nasty last-lap spill in the lead break.  As the leaders lapped us, someone screwed up and took about, what I estimate was about 8 people, including Euan.  Doug and I got around it, and a minute later, Euan blew by us and proved why accents make for the best profanity.  If you want to hear the quote, ask me at the meeting.   Congrats to Euan as well for a great race. 
 
All in all, I considered the day a success.  My first Cat IV race, I was glad to finish, and I felt good about my riding and the season to come. The hills were awful, but the descents were a blast.  I wished my fat would have just waited for me at the top of the hills, jumped on for the ride down, and then jumped off before we started to ascend again.  Oh well.  Ashley (who enjoyed meeting all of you and is excited about coming to Fayetteville- she said something about margaritas on the sideline for anyone who is interested) got some great shots of us at the start which, to me, sum up the weekend, the hopes for the season, and the team.  I felt like we represented despite results, which I am sure are good anyway.  We come out strong on the start, and everyone noticed, but more than that, it just felt good to have teammates out there to work with or cheer on, whatever.  If we ever need to question "what the team is" again in the future, I am going to think about Saturday, and remember that no matter how we place (we are going to have winners, losers, and all between) what matters is that we are there and we have a team that enjoys getting out there and working together.