Belgium... Boulder Style

Yesterday was the super fun local race called The Koppenburg. Yes, "The" is capitalized in my mind because it is a Boulder classic. 5+ mile loop and 2.5 miles of it are on dirt.

The conditions yesterday weren't ideal but it is spring time in Colorado... it could have been worse. Bright sun (good), no snow/rain (good), and 50 mph wind gusts (not good). Last year this race was postponed 3 times I think because of snow. So, count us lucky we got to race. Unfortunately the wind scared a couple people away and the fields weren't packed like normal. Even some of our favorite Ft. Collins friends drove all the way down to race but turned around when they saw the port-a-john blow over. I won't call them out by name but I will tell them that they missed a good time.

Yes, hills are for cars. I agree. I have been working on my endurance and sustained power for longer periods vs. max power for short periods. This kind of work makes for better climbing.

Here is a shot of The Koppenburg. No race photos yet.

A video at The Koppenburg during the Men's Pro/1 race. http://www.twitvid.com/LRFYI

The race... 5 of us girls made the split after the first brutal climb up the Koppenburg. I was only thinking "1 climb down, 4 to go." After the 4th climb up, Anne Samplonius attacked and it blew our group apart. She and Alison Powers made it off together and left the three of us to battle it out. I actually got dropped for over 1/2 a lap and had to chase the two other girls. I never let them out of sight and knew I would catch them if I could keep a constant pace. Being in the wind alone was not fun but I got into that TT zone (the one I have been working on.) I caught them before the last climb and knew from that point that it was my sprint. I did indeed win the sprint!

Alison Powers 1st

Anne Samplonius 2nd

Me 3rd

I was happy with the effort. Although I always want to win, taking 3rd to these two climber girls was not a huge disappointment. (P.S. The last and only other time I did this race was 2006 and I was a Cat4. I quit after 1 lap. Ha!)

With the ride before and the ride after, it ended up being a long day out in the wind. I was exhausted but glad to spend the rest of the day having girl time with my friend Vera... shopping, dinner, good times!