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This weekend marked the “make it or break it” point of the season. The weather has been getting colder and wetter and many racers find that this is the time of year that they are either improving their racing or getting tired. I was excited for a rainy weekend in New Jersey with high hopes to get in the top 5 and maybe win the award for the most aggressive rider.

We arrived at the course on Friday afternoon to preview it and check out the conditions. It was drizzling rain with forecasted downpours, so I was looking forward to a mud bath for the weekend. On Friday it appeared as though the sand pit would be the place to make a move during the race, however, it ended up being one of the only places to rest a bit come race time on Saturday.

We have found that race weekend mornings are the most relaxing that we have all year. After waking up after 8am, we made coffee and breakfast, turned on the TV, watched a movie and relaxed until about 1030. The overnight rain had made everything a soggy mess and the temps were in the 60’s making the wet conditions much more bearable.

When we arrived at the course, the rain had stopped, but the damage was done. Thick, deep mud lined the course making many sections running sections rather than riding.

My race went off in a mad dash to get from the pavement to the mud in the lead to avoid any crashes and tangles with other riders. I was sitting in 5th position for the beginning of the first lap and then was able to move ahead to 3rd place pushing through the mud. I kept the pressure on and tried to limit the number of possible mistakes I could make by running when it was too slow to ride. Heading into the last lap, I had a strong enough lead to hold onto a 3rd place finish! I had also earned the “SRAM Most Aggressive Rider” award for the day as well.

The forecast had predicted the temperatures would drop about 20 degrees for Sunday with high winds. It had rained again overnight, so the race course was sure to be another muddy mess.

It was another mad dash at the start to claim a top spot heading into the mud and again I was with the leaders in the top 5. As we rode through the course, the wind had dried out the mud enough to make it heavy and sticky like peanut butter and there was a lot more running involved. I was able to make up some time on the running sections but was literally blown over into the course tape on the back side of the course. I dropped into 5th position and had to chase back to the leaders. Unfortunately, the race was cut one lap short for some unknown reason. I really needed the extra lap to gain back the time I had lost crashing. I ended up sprinting for 4th place and took home 5th for the day.

Don’t forget Matt’s cyclocross mechanics clinic tonight, Thursday November 20, at Wheelworks Too! Go to www.wheelworks.com for more information and to RSVP. There’s still time to sign up!

Also, I was recently interviewed by Theresa Carr for her blog Two Wheel Lovin’ Ladies. You can find the interview here. Next up, racing in the Hamptons! Whitmore's Landscaping Super Cross Cup on Saturday and Sunday in Southampton, NY.

Check out the news links online each week:

Cyclingnews - Day1

Velonews - Day1

Cyclingnews - Day2

Velonews - Day2

Velonews - Cyclocross Standings

Thanks again for your support,
The team at MM Racing

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Photo by Matt Roy