photo © Cyclocross Magazine

Man, I was ready. I spent all last week kicking butt at work, training was going well and I was rested. Matt and I got to the course a few hours early, did a few recon laps and then just hung out until it was time to roll to the staging area…. good mood, no problems and no stress (other than the usual pre-race jitters). I got to the starting chute extra early and was rewarded with a fifth-row spot behind the call-ups.

The start chute wasn’t actually a part of the course loop; it went up the side of the hill and (for the lack of a more descriptive word) injected us into the Northern part of the course and through the finish line chicanes in the parking lot on top, and from there we went over top of the hill to the far side, then back and forth a few more times and through the “Hecklers’ Corner” sand pit. The course was excellent and very technical and I overheard many people describing it as similar to a short track XC course. Skills are usually more important than speed at this venue, and this race was no different.

The ref blew the whistle and we were off. I was good on the asphalt and into the woodchips – I held my spot pretty well, wasn’t getting pinched or pushed by other riders and the speed was low because we were climbing, which made me feel marginally safer. Then…

PPPPPPPPPSSSSSSSSSSSSssssssssss

Not sure what I ran over, but it must have been sharp as hell because I immediately lost all pressure in the rear tire. I stopped and threw the bike on my shoulder and ran through the chicanes to the neutral pit at the finish line where Zipp Greg threw a new wheel in and I took off again, working my way back up through the pack from DFL and ended up finishing 46th/72.

An honest day’s work, but man…. I had good legs and really wonder how I would have done without that flat. Flats suck, but they build character. I’ve also got to thank all the guys who showed a bit of sympathy as they rode past me – I heard about a dozen “bummer, dude”s as they all went by and another dozen people yelling that the neutral pit was right around the corner… you all rock, seriously.

If this video is any indication, I may be better at carrying my bike than actually riding it. Head on over to the NCNCA Racing blog for more pics and videos.

-Nick in SF