Hood River Double Cross: Day 1

If I had to pick a phrase that most accurately described my performance this weekend I would be hard pressed to beat "missing the train."  Actually, "A.D.D. emotions" would come pretty close to describing Day 1.

running the sand; so much faster than riding it
photo courtesy of Dave Roth

Driving out to the race I wasn't really psyched about this race for a number of reasons but nothing I haven't dealt with before.  This race is typically the same weekend as the UCI Starcrossed weekend in Seattle but since that isn't UCI C1/C2 this year I'm keeping it local.  I will now continue this post with my train of thoughts for the rest of the day as that's probably the most descriptive.

give me a 45 minute cyclocross race over a 5k run any day!

Just to give you a little background, my last run was on May 2nd when I ran a timed mile just for kicks before starting , the run before that was a 5k fun run in Eugene on January 3rd. So, when I got a call from Bowe (a high school friend I ran cross country with) last night just as I rolled into town asking me if I wanted to do the 5k Turkey Trot this morning I will admit I was a little hesitant. After some thought I decided, "why not, what's the worst that can happen?" My cyclocross season is probably over (more on that later, I'm still working that out) so what do I have to lose? I was planning on doing some running in the off season to work on my cardio and endurance levels so I figured a fun run was a good way to start that.

WRONG.

Me being a cyclist much more so than a runner decided to use embrocation for this race so I showed up in actual running shorts and everyone looked at me like I was crazy. On the other hand, I was warmer than those pansies in their fancy running tights and thermal layers.

Anyway, the race went alright. I don't know how I did as far as time but I was in the top 12 for sure so considering my running past I feel like I did pretty well. Then again I kind of forgot that running doesn't really hurt during the race, it kicks you in the a** afterwards.

That's where I am right now. Walking isn't going so well and I doubt it's going to get better as the day progresses. So much for a ride today...

I guess it just goes to reinforce that I should be thankful that I have the ability and resources to race bikes.

Alright, enough about my legs, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone and enjoy the few days rest. I know the MEs need it, these coming weeks are going to be hell.