Firsts

Blog traffic doesn't amount to much on Fridays, but I'm writing anyway. We'll start with this follow up to the post from the other day: Just as being nice is its own reward, being a hater is its own punishment. You won't need to click to many times from here to find out what I mean. If you find yourself angry and miserable all the time, try not being so angry and miserable...

Tomorrow we're heading out to Jiminy Peak. This was the site of a few firsts for me. In only my second licensed race ever, JP was the site of my first crash. I overlapped wheels with someone and bailed into a ditch at the side of route 7. Briefly knocked senseless, I remember few details of the incident. I got up and finished though.

A few years later JP was the site of my first win, in the MA/RI districts 30+ race. Tyler Munroe drilled it from the bottom of the finish climb. I clung to his wheel. Near the top my chain started making noise like it was going to skip (this was in the friction shifters days). I sat down and knocked it up a gear and started the sprint. I had no choice. I could not believe that nobody came around me. It paid $125. Was probably $10 to enter. Tomorrow I think our race is $55 to win, a few bucks more than the entry. That's ok though, as I know their other expenses have gone up. JP registration is the best in the business too. Prereg only. Single line system, everyones packet is alphabetized and you just go to your letter and you're done in 10 seconds. Not sure why everyone else does not do it this way. The BCA (host club) also sent out a rider info email. There was a note at the bottom about littering and gel packets. I could not believe the number of clowns at Battenkill, Sturbridge, and Palmer who were just throwing shit on the ground. WTF?

This wasn't where I was going with this, but here it is. There is also a race at Blue Hills Sunday morning, right out front here. I don't think I'm going to do it though. May seem weird, but the race is only four laps of a seven mile circuit around the hill, and the hill is not severe enough to make a selection, so I don't see the point. Back in the day (here he goes again...), actually, before I even raced, the old Dedham Stage race went around this loop 11 or 12 times before the race finished at the summit. In fact, I think it was an extended version of the loop that went up Hartland and Forest Road. Then a few years later, when I was racing, we did the present loop, but even then it was about 10 laps. That day was the fastest I've ever ridden a bicycle. I flatted at the bottom of the hill. I got a change, and of course I had no hope of getting back on. The race motos in those days weren't like they are today. This dude had a BMW R75 with the attache-style saddlebags. He comes up next to me and says "hang on." I got the handle of the saddlebag and he guns it. Almost tore my arm off. We're going up the hill at close to 70 mph, and I'm holding my bars with one freaking hand when the Rossin starts the death wobble, so of course I let go of the moto. I had so much momentum I had to go out over the yellow line and rocketed past the entire pack, going right off the front. Jack Davies said to me later "that attack was unbelievable!" Yes it was. Thanks for reading.

PS - Trackrich, not sure if you're doing Blue Hills, but it's a morning race, so you can still do it and easily make the Weston Westford 10k start at 2:20.