Bloomer XC

The third installment of the MMBA CPS was on Saturday at Bloomer Park in Rochester Hills. As a west sider we had a long drive ahead of us for this race. Zack and I loaded up and picked up my friend Chris for the trip. Chris was taking pictures and corralling Zack after his race was done. When we got to Bloomer Park I was surprised by the amount of people.....or lack of people. I guess he holiday weekend chased off a few people and I have only raced where the turnouts are huge. It was nice to see that only a few people would be racing so I wouldn't get passed as much...lol. We got a parking spot right by the start area so we were not walking a mile to the car when we needed something. It was a sunny mid 80 degree day. My plan....hydrate and ride fast to get done faster! This would be the first time we have ridden here....and the intel we gathered from the locals and finishers was 'relative' to their beliefs.....No offense Jesse....but you weight half of what I weigh......so your perspective is slightly different than mine!!!

I lined up with seven other clydes for the start. We took off and right away I knew the podium was gone. The first four places were out of sight on the first flat. I just smiled and told myself to ride my race and just keep going. There is an interesting sledding hill that we bombed down, then turned around and rode right back up. I stalled on the way back up and walked up the hill...hoping things would get better. Not so much. As a big guy I need a little bit of recovery between climbs to get my heart rate under control. Bloomer offers an uphill/downhill combo in the first few miles that was fun, but pushed my heart to the max. The first lap was decent. My goal time was a realistic 1:30:00 for the race so a first lap of 43:46 put me about 3 minutes behind third. Not too bad!!! The problem is that we had another lap....and I pushed myself to the point where I thought I was going to puke. I had to back off and just enjoy the ride from that point on. I figured I was in last because I had slowed down so much, but the trail was a blast and I was starting to have fun and forget about the race. I finished with a time of 1:33:29 and ZERO crashes or injuries.



That kid with the orange shorts is a terror!!! He has only done three races and he barely rides his bike....yet there he stands on the podium in the 2 slot. His time was 51:39 which was only 8 minutes slower than my first lap!!!! He was super excited about his finish and he barely talked about the course....just that it was fun! WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOU ZACK!!!!!


So....we drove 3 hours each way for me to ride for an hour an a half and Zack to ride about an hour.....we might be crazy....but we have fun! I learned a few things at this race. They are as follows:

1. Try to preride the course so you know exactly what you are in for.
2. Bring more fluids in a BIG cooler!
3. Eat correctly so you don't feel like you are going to puke 8 miles in.
4. that kid will pass you if you don't lose more weight!!!

As far as I can tell Zack and I are both in second place in the CPS standings. With his 2nd place finish he jumped ahead of me by 1 point....but I haven't told him that yet.....


On a side note....I had a guy introduce himself after my finish. He asked if I was Sean....that writes this blog!!! I am really sorry that I cannot remember your name!!!! You caught me right after I finished and I was still foggy!!! Anyway, thanks for introducing yourself because it was nice to know that someone actually reads this!!!!!