Ronde Von Evergreen

Yesterday had me headed to Evergreen park in Carbondale IL. I was stoked to ride this course. I remember it being fast and mostly grass. The course was the opposite direction of last year, with some added features. It was slightly more technical in the parts of the course that changed terrain conditions from tarmac to gravel. These were slick, and need some attention when passing through. The rest of the course was tight turns, a short steep ramp, and a gravel pile that was a momentum sucker. The corners were dragging on me toward the end, I think a smaller chainring will do the trick, something like a 44 o 46. The start of the race was fast and aggressive, with MJ, Russ and Christopher off in the front pack. I found my self separated from it, and chasing to catch the train. There were others in that group, Mark Shae and Casy. It took me two laps to get into a nice rhythm, I was feeling strong, and my HR had come back from the stratosphere. I made a quick stop at the pit for a rear wheel change. I lost many positions before this as I soft pedaled back to the pit. HUGE THANKS to Boz for loaning me a sweet pro mavic cosmic wheel. That was the difference between a DNF and a finish. I buried myself trying to catch back up to the pack, but could not get back in the groove. I was taxed pretty bad with one to go, and could only see Boz several turns infront of me. I had no gas to try and attack, so cruised in. Not sure where I ended up, 15th or so I am guessing. A finish is always better for the ego and confidence than a DNF. Mesa had a good showing for the day. Christopher and Matt took 3/4 respectively, I wish I could have been up front for the party. Ill have to wait two weeks for another chance.

This was a well promoted event. The A race was super fast, with some drama, and mechanicals. Scott P stepped up and did the first series race in the A's. I had a total blast cheering the A race on.