Sterling Masters 45+

60 degrees overcast with drizzle, 95% humidity at the start. 6 × 8 mile laps. There is a Small finishing steep short climb. I see Bill Holms before the race.

I get there early and talk to a bunch of guys I know and set up and only spin lightly on the trainer for 10 minutes. This may have been a mistake.

I line up middle of the pack, a mellow 2 mile neutral start and the race begins going up the short shoot in sterling center. The pace starts fast and I find myself in the back with a hairy legged guy, a guy with knee socks and another guy on some experimental bike that has no rear triangle. I make a note to stay clear of this threesome. Its not by choice but the pace seems extremely fast and I am suffering both on the up hills and on the damp desents. I stay in contact as 5 or so are spit out the back on the 90 degree going onto 112.

Lap 2 is much the same.

Lap 3 I figure I will try the right side for a change and on the uphill on the back side of the course I get my wheels stuck in a groove and feel myself going down, I go to unclip and prepare for the fall just as I somehow recover. That’s when my heart rate must have jumped to over 180.

Towards the end of that lap the pace slows to a crawl on 112 for the first time. This is when a 5 man break gets away and teams block.

Lap four the break has a minute and a half on us. I just finish my gu at the back of the pak and I see Mr. Bobby socks go down and take out experimental and another guy. The peloton slows and weaves through the debris and the front guys take off at the sound of the crash. Everyone is back together less those caught up in the carnage.

Lap 5 we get to within a minute of the break and 2 fall off it and are absorbed.

On the last lap coming to the rising finish on 112 I start to move up. We get to the top of the rise and I am maybe 15th it flattens before the right hander up the 200 meter 15 degree finishing hill. I am on the left and see a pick up TRUCK being waved onto the course in front of us. The driver stops right in front of us barreling in at 25 mph. 3 guys collect the back of the truck I hit the brakes swerve to avoid the cop walking over to see what was going on ?3?@?%^. I lose all momentum but so did everyone else so we dig up the hill as best as we can. I think I come in between 14 of the sprinters. I believe 1 of the original break makes it in.

This was a crazy race with too many close calls but 14th is closer to the top 10 I am looking for.