3 years ago I toed or should I say wheeled the line at my first ever bicycle race. As with the beginning of every collegiate season, it was a cold February morning at the season opener outside of Raleigh, North Carolina. As we rolled away from the starting line I was immediately filled with excitement and energy. Straight to the front of the pack I went and there I stayed for the entire race, all 30 miles of it. As I pulled around the collegiate C field I thought to myself "Dang, this bike racing this is easier than I thought!" 1k to go and still I found myself on the front. Picking up the pace I saw the 200 meter sign just ahead of me, on the right side of the road in the grass. All of a sudden out of nowhere a whirlwind of riders came sprinting around me. Standing up to try to follow suit I spun as fast as my legs could go. To no avail, I cross the finish line in the middle ring of my triple, 28th place, almost dead last in the field sprint.
The experience was humbling to say the least. Watching as my teammates and other racers in the A's went off i was amazed at how fluid they could spin the pedals and how comfortable they were on the bike. Someday, I wanted to be one of the riders. For the past three years of my life I have dedicated myself to watch, learn and listen to these better, faster riders. Bike racing, unlike running or the triathlon, is not simply a sport you can jump into and excel at. It requires many things to be a "good" bike racer, among them, strategy, patience, dedication and guts. Over the past three years, I have gotten to learn from some of the best, and although I am far from where I want to be, tonight I will toe the line against some of the better domestic professional racers in the country. Maybe it is only a local Tuesday night crit with nothing on the line, but I am more than excited to have the opportunity to test myself against some of the best AND prove that I can hang.
