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Team Bikeman -
Race Reports
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Written by Josh West
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Friday, 10 November 2006 |
Lower Allen Classic
Mid Atlantic Cross Series #4
Camp Hill, PA
Another beautiful day in PA. We have had a really mild Fall so far. It was about 60F with lots of sun. Line up for the B's was the usual 11 AM slot and as usual I was lined up at the very back of the grid. Fifty-four of us fired up the gravel/macadam start. The start is uphill and burns the legs on every lap. I usually look forward to the hardpacked sections of a cx course - not this one.
After a quick prolog the pack was nicely strung out. I was probably 2/3 of the way back. The high speed barriers came early in the course. High speed because they were banked by flat ground on both sides. A few riders opt to hop them, I say the cost/benefit isn't there. (Although the one dollar payout from the announcer's pocket is tempting.) Following the barriers is the typical twisty/windy cx course that is definitely a bit more off-camber than most. Besides the start, there was one other power section which was a long stretch of grass that followed the treeline boundary of a baseball field and was a bit soggy - and very tiresome if you missed the line. Then it was a sharp right onto a packed mud straightaway to a kind of hairpin turn back down the same straightaway onto a quick technical descent that dumps off at the start. I pretty much stayed where I was for the whole race and finished 37th.
Josh West
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