I feel like racing at
T-Town is what racing is supposed to be like. Its way more formal and organized. Track announcer and everything. The Cat 2/3 field is plenty fast. Hectic to boot. I got pushed off the track, off the cote d'azur onto the asphalt apron during the first heat of an 2k scratch race. I would have won that event. Oh well, that's racing. There was a miss and out that I had some fun in but only lasted halfway through. Don't care.
The feature was a 50 lap (10 mi) scratch. Survival was the theme of that race. If you know my racing style you would be suprised to hear I finished 7th out of a 35 man field (give or take). I was so focused on staying out of the wind that I actually had a shot at the win. I am certainly no endurance rider so finishing was a major accomplishment for me, and the top ten finish was a major confidence boost. It was a hectic mash; a totally unorganized field. I had to be on my toes the whole time. I actually skidded out of reflex twice. I have never done that before in a race. I think it saved me from crashing, but I feel for whoever was behind me. I got pushed onto the blue band twice but just went with it and got back on the track. The cat and mouse was intense. I clawed up to a chase group on an early two man break. Tony from Adler was in the break so I just pulled up. No work, just getting dragged through. Shitty sprinter move, whatever. I made it through the pace line three times without working before it broke up and was brought back into the pack. Tony was caught, but attacked again, almost lapping the field. But not.
This was about halfway through and I still felt good. I was surprised to see the 20 lap card when I first checked. I told myself I had to stay in, recover and finish the race. There was a six man break with about five to go, but I was nowhere close in proximity or recovery to make a move to respond. So I stayed with the pack. There was a big acceleration with two to go and I started to make moves up to the front. I got there halfway through the bell lap and almost caught the last guy in the break since they had shut down on the straight. A better focus on position would have gotten me a position on the podium. Better luck next time!
