Tiger Lane Crits: Rawwwr.

More like Liger Lane.  I love racing, and doing it close to home on a weeknight is even better.  Davis and I went up to Memphis for the after-work Tiger Lane Crits yesterday, put on by 901 racing...it was a lot of fun and super-well-organized.  The competition was strong and it ended early enough we could grab a bite in Cooper-Young and still get back at a reasonable hour.  Yep.  I love racing.  Still love it.

All pics pilfered via facebook from awesome photographer Bob Bayne

The course was a windy (and every once in a while, lightningy) seven-tenths of a mile, counterclockwise loop through the parking lots and access roads of the Liberty Bowl, with most races seeming pretty paced in the wind.  The attacks in my race came right after the headwindy home stretch and the back half (in the shadow of the stadium and in parts with a serious tailwind) being the place to launch 40mph  attacks while trying to make it to the sharp left-hand corner up front.  Yep...still love racing.

It was my first 1/2/3 race; to be fair, it was more of a 2/3 race with one cat 1 making it to the final sprint, 2 cat 2s in the top ten, and cat 3s taking home the lion's share of the laurels.  I was a tad cocky/needed a workout and joined nearly every attack in the first half, pulling on some, until I realized that one of the teams there seemed to be attacking their own riders.  I set near-personal bests in 20 and 30-minute power--not the best way to do well in a race, but hey...I still love racing!  Eventually the strong men held the pace up until the field splintered, letting the winning pair get away.

At that point, I had worked so hard that I seriously entertained thoughts of dropping out...of racing altogether.

I'm still trying to work on reading races and being patient, but yeah...did I mention?  I still love racing.  But at that point I hadn't just missed the break; I was so blown that it was more like I had missed 3 or 4 breaks, ending up with a trailing group of riders who seemed to be just pedaling casually, but which still threatened to drop me at times.  The wind was vicious.  I tried to suck wheel, but riders in front of me would let gaps open, and I had to jump around them to keep from boarding the autobus.  The leading 6-8 riders eventually came back together into a lead group, from which the winners launched or had already launched their break.  After that, the two-pack field came back together (M&B finally began to manage the race at the end, putting their guy on the top step), and the pace eased in the last couple laps as we prepared to sprint for 3rd. I managed to hold on for 8th, 6th in the field sprint.  I still don't have that much top-end wattage, but I felt like I held my own or gained a few spots against a bunch of big dudes going fast into the wind.  And I was there at the end, albeit not with any real weaponry.

1/2/3 on the back stretch.

In the 5 race, the merciless first-season domination continued.  Davis got tired of sitting around and did a little work in the last couple laps to shred the field, then settled in and sprinted for 3rd.  He also won a prime, maybe without knowing it, so I think we're having post-race tacos next week.  He's going to have to upgrade soon...

Davis in romantic soft focus on his way to 3rd.