Bike Racing Gets Underway in Brooklyn
Saturday morning, my teammate Ben Brown challenged me to a "throwdown" ride…. I couldn't resist. We had a blast, but the repeats of Alpine Hill had me feeling a little groggy for my third race in Prospect Park come Sunday morning.
Despite the heavy legs and minimal hours of sleep (due to a heated Settlers of Catan match), I lined up in the 40-degree chill and watched as the sun rose over the park. This was the second Castelli race series and I was in the 4/5 category, along with my teammate Tom Matheson. The vibes were elevated this AM with the TBD crew in partial force. Tom and I watched as Lucia, Daghan, Matt, Ben, and Scott kicked the morning off in the 2/3 field.
My strategy for this race was simple: be calm. I tend to get a little antsy in races, which usually leads to a quick burnout. The race started and I turned to Tom exclaiming, “We need to pick it up or I’m going to freeze”. A few small surges kicked off here and there, but nothing too crazy and any break attempt was easily pulled back with the gnarly winds. I stuck to my strategy and conserved those watts…
Tom and I moved through the field smoothly, as my anxieties set I hear Lawrence from ROR shout “Baker! When are you going to do it?!”. I looked at Tom and gave him “the look”. At the base of the hill on our second to last lap, someone sent it off the front. I felt a surge of adrenaline and decided to go for a breakaway attempt halfway up. It didn't last long, though - I quickly felt the burn from yesterday's throwdown sinking into my thighs. At that moment I heard the clicking of cassettes behind me and settled back into the pack, focusing on recovery.
We settled into our final lap, and I found a sweet line off the freshly paved east side of Prospect Park. Just as we reached the hill, someone unleashed and quickly burned out. Another attempt went, and I felt like I had the legs to kick it all the way up. I rose up out of the saddle and continued to push it. At the stop light, I heard one remaining cassette behind me and felt I could shake it. As a novice road racer, I overestimated my capabilities and rode this man all the way to the finish line…
I didn't take the top spot, but I was stoked to finish second! Primarily a gravel boy, my weekends are consisting of more and more tarmac and I am not mad about it. Road racing is fun and requires so much more thought and strategy than I had anticipated.
While the racing was fun, I really come for the vibes. A Paris Roubaix / Easter Sunday full of friends, coffee, race reports and recovery almond croissants made for an immaculate finish to the morning.
