Cody Race Series #2 - 2010

I entered the second Cody Race on Saturday, April 10th.  This wasn't a large race by any means, however, a spirited 10-lap/25 mile circuit combined with famliliar 'rivals' always makes for a great racing opportunity.  Pictured above is a three-man breakway group comprised of Bryan Moritz(B2U/WOB), Dan Galles (Atlas), and myself.

Lee Venteicher and Bryan were the only Cat 1/2's who entered, so we let them join in our Cat 3 group (which wasn't much bigger).  The pace wasn't fast initially, however slightly geared toward merging with the Master's group that had started just ahead of us, which we did early on in the race.

Bryan Moritz attacked and mentioned that he didn't necessarily intend to break away so soon, as this first move was brought back.  However the group felt soft, so me and Bryan popped out in front of the group shortly thereafter.  Of note, in a rare situation, I had teammates entered in the same race as me (specifically Bill Ford, thanks) who I could count on to defend any moves that I may be apart of.  This made for a somewhat secure feeling once me and Bryan got a gap.

Dan Galles recognized the importance of this move and bridged up.  The majority of the remaining laps were spent with the three of us rotating through fairly equally.

I've been studying theories of intelligence for one of my classess this semester... Oddly, I have been able to understand the various definitions easier when I relate them to bike racing.  For example, one defintion explains intelligence as "your skill in achieving whatever it is you want to attain in life (or a bike race) by capitalizing on your strengths and compensating for, or correcting, your weaknesses (Sternberg, 2004)".  Also, "to act purposefully, to think rationally, and deal effectively with your environment" (Weschler, 1953). 

I contemplated these definitions as I pedalled through Scott County Park's rolling terrain, and even reminded myself of another noteworthy cycling specific intelligence theory that suggests "you shouldn't ever do any 'work' in a bike race unless it has a determined purpose that will faciliate your potential for success" (Bishop, 2010).  This helped keep my mind off of Moritz's socks that had the words "Bitch" stiched into them... were his socks talking to me?  I wish I hadn't noticed his socks... I also wish that I owned a pair of them... Fortunately, as you can see from the image below, he was just as transfixed by the overwhelming size of my rear wheel as I was by his offensive footwear...

I was feeling good and had competed 'intelligently' the entire race.  So, as we headed up the hill just before the finish line I had some decisions to make.  I really had no idea how the other two were feeling, but was interested in at least gapping Dan, as Bryan wasn't technically in my race (and probably strong as hell considering he outspinted the field at Kent Park a couple of weeks earlier).  So, I attacked half way up the hill and the pictures below tell the rest of the story...

Ok, so I didn't win the sprint... but I won the Cat 3 division... so that counts as a victory in my book (and I do mean 'book',... "Chasing Life" is soon to be available at amazon.com).  Teammate Bill Ford also won the Master's division.  Fellow teammates Jon Sulzberger, Josh Long, and Bob Hayes raced strong today as well.