Spring has sprung. And my legs are coming around a little.

Well, it finally happened. After a struggling through the first few races and wondering if all the obstacles to getting fit and fast again - my age, my illness, just generally having been out of the sport for so long – I finally made it happen last week

And it wasn’t without difficulty. To be honest, my legs felt terrible as I was warming up, and in the initial stages of the race. And, as such, I was making every excuse I could:

- Ok, my legs feel bad, just try for the pack finish. After all, I have cancer!

- I don’t like this course. It’s too open and not technical enough.

- I had one too many cocktails with my brother last night.

-  It’s too windy, I’m not fit enough to race in these conditions yet.

But, my wife and my boys were at the race. And I wanted them to see me working hard and not quitting. And my brother was announcing the race and I didn’t want to let him down. And, most of all, I’m fighting back here and I was just gonna tough it out!

So, the race began and I used my experience to stay out of the wind and conserve. There were a lot of attacks but guys seemed hesitant to gamble so riders kept getting away solo. Due to the wind, they inevitably came back within a lap. My experience told me that a breakaway of 4 or more guys could go. I even attacked about halfway through the race at a tactically good moment hoping to draw out a few riders. I got a good gap right away (alone) and, like everyone else, held it for a lap before going back to the pack.

Surprisingly, the effort didn’t blow up my legs and, after recovering in the field for a few laps, I went back to the front of the race. It was obvious that it was going to come to a sprint.

I was still feeling negative about the race and still feeling bad. The race was coming down to its final laps and my legs still felt bad, and I didn’t have a plan. With 5 to go I finally got my head screwed on straight and started working the field sprint. Despite my legs not feeling great, it was easy to stay near the front and maintain position. When the bell was rung for the last lap, I was in the top 5 and feeling good about my position. I fought for  wheels and saw one team’s attempt at a lead-out coming together so I made sure I was on what seemed like the right wheel. As we came into the finishing stretch the sprint began, I had to dodge a few riders going backwards, and then stepped on the gas and started sprinting. It was ugly and not my best sprint ever but, I coasted across the line in 4^th. And honestly very surprised.

And after a spring filled with doubt about my health, my fitness, and the wisdom of trying to race again, I felt like I was finally getting somewhere.

I have to bear in mind that I’m not in remission yet. And there are days where I still feel pretty lousy due to the meds I’m taking, or tired due to being a middle aged dad trying to train and hold down a job. My wife often reminds me to give myself a little grace. I’ll admit I’m not good at taking it easy on myself when it comes to training and racing.

But, I’m coming along now. And, after going top 5 in a race, I’m already thinking about what it’d take to win one of those. It’s worth noting that I decided to do the 40+ cat. 4 race so I’d be done earlier and could ride home from the race and arrive before dinner. I’ve been doing the cat. 4 races which I’m pretty sure have more young competitors and is probably faster than the old dude’s race.

Thanks for reading!

-Hugh