Cyclocross - USGP: Better than I thought

I was fully prepared for a humbling butt whoopin' on Sunday. Turns out I had a semi-respectable ride instead. Out of 115 starters, I came in 25th. That's not as bad as it looks, because there were a lot of out-of-towners in this race, some of them even pro riders. And if I really stretch it, I was the 9th place Oregon rider, so I finally got my top 10 local finish I was hoping for. Okay, that really is stretching it...but so what. I pre-rode the course on Saturday to check things out. It was muddy, but not that bad. That all changed overnight, as the rain came in. By morning, the course was looking very swamp-like. By my race in the afternoon, it was looking like a swamp in a war zone. I was pleased, because I don't mind riding in nasty stuff like that. As long as the course is flat, the worse the conditions, the better. Huge mud bogs with hidden holes underneath the surface made things a little tricky. Some parts of the course were so thick in mud, we were riding at near walking pace. It was just a huge grind all the way through. And finally...FINALLY, I had a mechanical free day! No tire problems, nothing. Everything worked great. The atmosphere was fantastic. They brought out a drum band just like they did at the National race in Portland a couple years ago. That, coupled with the big crowds, the epic weather and mud, and me feeling good made this an extremely memorable race. I don't think I'll ever NOT smile when remembering it. This was fun! I have a long way to go in terms of improvement, but this was definitely an encouraging race. The cyclocross season is coming to an end now. The national championships take place in about a month, but it doesn't make much sense to attend unless I'm going to be competitive. There's one more local race left, and then it's time to hang up the knobby tires and get back out on the road for winter training. It's been a fun season, and I'm glad I was able to get in so many races. In closing, I'll leave you with a shot of the action:

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