The year is over: 2 of 3

New Year’s was followed by a super restful week and really only enough intensity to keep the body from going stale. I felt tired during the week, but the power was big and the enthusiasm was big too. As a newer rider, I still am learning how to peak, so I had to rely on coach Gordy to get it right.. From what I could tell i was peaking right on time. I was able to make it out to the course a few times to watch some of the races, but as the week progressed and the forecast became clearer, I began to realize that things were going to be completely different than the current conditions at the time. The sloppy mud would thicken, and as temperatures dropped, it would completely freeze over. So pre-riding was limited. I did my openers and packed up the night before, and tried to get a good night’s sleep.

That morning the temperatures were low, but so was the wind. The course had a sense of wasteland to it. Hearing about the cold temperatures always makes you think a little, and with everyone else expressing their worry, it was easy to forget what I could handle. In reality, 15 degrees is nothing tough to handle for me. I’ll be honest that the CycleOps Warm Up tent did help a ton, but I came into it pretty worried. I got a couple laps in and dialed in the tire pressure. I ran a similar average pressure to what I normally do, but had a huge pressure difference between the front and rear. While this made the back end slide a lot, I was able to count on it in the rough stuff and not have to worry about flatting. The low pressure in the front allowed me to still get decent traction in the corners where there were not ruts. After a good warm up, it was off to the start line.

I need to take a moment to thank those who helped me. On Wednesday before the race I picked up a second set of mud wheels from Trek, the Bontrager Aeolus D3 wheels with Challenge Limus tires on them. I was honestly blown away. They are such a stiff and strong wheel set, spoiler alert, they held up in the race like a champ which is no small feat. Beyond the sponsor love, the KS Energy/Team Wisconsin crew was there helping out and cheering me on, even though I wasn’t in a KS kit, that’s team support. The whole UW crew was there too. We had a good group of people racing, and about as many there just helping out. Nick Frye and Andrew Rosch were in the pits and taking care of equipment. My parents were there helping keep me warm and well fed (thanks for the cookies) and of course Margy, my girlfriend was making sure those little details were all set. I think I had like 4 people willing to take my warm up jacket at the start. I think between Tom, Dino and Tyson, someone could have though I had a body guard squad at the start. haha! Thanks guys!

Conclusion will be up soon!