The Landmine Classic race was a very unique course for the Root 66 circuit. It consisted of one lap that was 25.4 miles long. There were multiple feed zones on the course so water should not have been a big issue. I decided to use a camel back with a small bladder and a water bottle just so I did not have to worry about running out of water. This way I could concentrate on the race at hand instead of worrying about staying hydrated. The course was very fast and dry and seemed to get more technical as the race progressed.
The start was a little different than in races past, since the juniors went off the line with my group along with the 30-39 men. I tried to stay in the front of the huge group at the start and it payed off. I had a feeling I would be pretty strong and very motivated because this was the last race of the series and I had just come off a decent break after the Windham World Cup. The guys at the front of the 30-39 class were holding a blistering pace and I just tried to keep up. Eventually we caught the pro women's field and passed most of them. Mary Mcconneloug was a bit further up the trail and I tried to stay with her for a bit. I passed her at one point and took off. I was really excited about that since she is a top notch cyclist who I look up to. After my excitment subsided she caught back up to me and dropped me like I was standing on the side of the trail like a spectator, but at least I got to mix it up a little bit.
The second half of the race did not go as well as I planned. A calf cramp stopped me dead in my tracks after a very steep and short climb. I knew I had to stay on my bike and keep my cadence up and I would be fine. At that point forward I played a game of damage control. There were signs on the trees for mile markers which were a double edged sword. It was nice to know how far into the race I was, but when you expect two or three miles to have passed and only one mile has gone, it makes you realize how much more you have to go.
Overall I was very happy with my performance, coming in first in the race by less than a couple of minutes. The series also had podiums for the overall leaders for the season. I was very happy to step on the podium in third place overall. Minus all of the mechanical issues, and flat tires this was a very successful mountain bike season. Now it is time to see what will happen in the upcoming cyclocross season.
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