No More Cat Five Racing for Me?

ALTOONA RR -

On the drive up to Altoona this weekend, me and team mate Bill Ford had time to talk about race strategies and possible scenarios. I wasn't aware how large of a race this was, however, and my visions of crossing the line in the top positions were fading as I stepped up to the start with 57 other racers (pre-race jitters).

The altoona race was lots of fun and a great group, it was a good satisfaction to finish well in a 54 mile race. A lot of people (including myself) had crusty salt on their faces and arms, a good sign that we pushed our hydration systems to the max (and that we were overdressed, oh well).

This race was a great fitness test and a competitive field. However, I guess I am finally ready to upgrade, because I just don't feel like I should be racing with beginners/citizens(cat fives) as I head into my 4th year of racing. I am not 100% sure about racing with Cat 3's, but I know I am not interested in anymore 4/5 races, so upgrading is the only way to avoid that.

I finished 6th (unofficially), which isn't great, but not bad either because this was a strong lead group and a blistering fast last quarter mile. The racers ahead of me are planning to upgrade soon (actually bill ford applied for an upgrade today, and jimmy c. and carson c. mentioned they are upgrading soon), so it was essentially some of the same people I will be racing against in the future, if my upgrade is approved.

Teammate Bill Ford finished 2nd overall, finally earning the result that he deserves (well first would have been even more accurate) because he is the current Tuesday Night World Champion in Muscatine.

There are new guidelines for upgrading, I encourage everyone to check them out:
http://www.usacycling.org/news/user/story.php?id=580
The new point tables are much better and include some races that didn't score previously.

So, after doing all the math, I had 27 points. You only need 20 to upgrade and 30 is an automatic upgrade, so I decided to go for it (results still pending),before being called a sandbagger too many more times, ,or asked 'are you going to upgrade?' everytime I finish well or win an event.

Assuming Ric P. gives me the green light, I will be racing the cat 3 race this weekend at finchford instead of the Cat 4. I know a lot of the current cat 3 racers, because I raced/trained with them last year, so I have an idea what to expect. I hope for strong races and anticipate getting dropped from time to time. I am going to thoroughly enjoy this time of racing when I don't have any pressure to succeed because I will be one of the newbies in the race.

Even if I finish last in the next few races, it is within this even more respected racing category, so I will take it all in stride and enjoy the journey.

Upgrading has been my main goal ever since I started winning and placing well in cat four races last summer. A lot of sacrifice and dedication goes into 'making the grade', so I am excited to be this close to making it a reality.

Our racing team will now have a Cat 2 racer and two Cat 3 racers along with some strong Cat 4 competitors. Good times ahead.