Men 50+ report by Ted Brooks
Mako/Galaxy Granola Cycling Team
MAKO/GALAXY GRANOLA STRIKES GOLD
This season has been a bit frustrating for me, partially because of a certain four-letter word (work), and results that just don't seem as good as I can do. The Masters open-cat races are very tough these days, or at least it feels that way to me.
Anyway, my wife, Carolyn and I spent about 8 (yes, eight) hours driving from the Bay Area to Minden on Friday, due to getting stuck behind two accidents, stop-and-go traffic, and getting rear-ended in an accident of our own. By the time we hit Minden, I was dead-tired. Oh, Carolyn and I enjoyed a nice dinner on Lake Tahoe, which later reared its ugly head on Carolyn. She got a very bad case of food poisoning. This made the first part of our little trip quite memorable.
Saturday, Lloyd Rath and I warm up for the RR together, and then we're off. Lloyd dumped his chain the first climb, which shelled him from the front group, but he stuck with the main pack. At the end of the first climb, I realized I was with the lead group. Second climb, I'm there. Third climb, they haven't dropped me. Fourth climb, near the very last part, I'm hurting bad (you try to tow 185 pounds up those hills), and I fall back by about 2 bike lengths. I thought to myself, after this comes the headwind in the flats, and if I'm there all alone, I'll finish all alone. So I buried myself (hit my highest heart rate all season) and caught them before the top of the hill. I was damaged, but not destroyed. Several were dropped on that final climb, including JD Gilford, so I know it WAS hard. As we rolled to the finish, I first cramped in my quads, but got that worked out, and then my calves. It felt like I had two cantaloupes attached to my legs. I got it worked out as the pace eased just a bit before the final sprint, and as I tried to push harder they locked up again. All I could do was to spin and maintain my position. For me, at 5500', in a climber's race, I'm happy to say I finished 12th in the lead group with Mark Caldwell and crew. Mickey Caldwell (55-59) was also with us, getting help from Mark and some Morgan Stanley 50-54 teammates, and the rest of us.
Saturday evening, we had dinner together and shared war stories with some teammates. You just can't find better team bonding than dinner after the races.
Continued
Ted Brooks
Il Presidente, Mako/Galaxy Granola Cycling Team
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