So the Tour is over and Carlos Sastre held on in the TT for the win. Cadel got 2nd and Vandevelde got 5th. With the way Sastre and Evans finished, I won the little bet amongst the boys. Some brew should be headed my way...maybe...one day... Anyhow, I was totally impressed with Vandevelde and expect him to podium next year. Garmin-Chipotle needs to add another strong climber to help him in the mountains though. It always kinda sucks when things like March Madness, the NFL Playoffs and the Tour end....
Saturday I saddled up for another solo century on the road bike. I felt pretty good for the first 3-1/2 hours but started feeling kinda rough around hour 4 and then hit killer cramps as I got close to 5 hours. I'm pretty sure I went into this ride not fully hydrated and not fully recovered. Another lesson learned. I managed to ride through the cramps and finished a bit slower than last week, at 5 hours and 30 minutes. I'm still not sure why I enjoy these rides and why look forward to them when they come up...
Sunday was the First Coast XTERRA at Hanna Park. The race was a half mile swim in the ocean, a 13 mile mountain bike ride on the trails and then a 5K trail run. We had lots of friends doing the race this year so it was pretty exciting for me as a spectator. Char did very well, holding 2nd though the swim and bike but a wrong turn in the woods during the run lost her a spot, so she finished 3rd overall and first in age group. She busted her a$$ and made me very proud none the less. She also secured her spot in Nationals at Lake Tahoe so the worry over us booking the flight and hotel is now over. The guys race was super competitive for the top 3 overall. After chasing down the top swimmer on the bike in the woods, local XTERRA phenom sbc knocked out some ultra fast bike laps and held off pro mtber (my coach) Drew. Sean had a good lead over 2nd and 3rd going into the run but unfortunately the out-of-town-swim-stud ran like a gazelle, as did Drew. Drew took the overall win in his first XTERRA and sbc took 3rd. Damn awesome race fellas!
Next weekend I have the Trail 2 Trail race in Lakeland FL held by Red Trail Racing. This race is really cool because it is a hybrid mtn bike race/road race. The race starts in the trail on the mtn bike, transitions into a road race on the road bike and then goes back into the trails. I am super excited and super motivated to do this race and to do well. I did it a few years back as a sport rider with no road race experience and managed a top 10. I plan to top that this year....
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