A whole new level of competition at the Elite Canada Cup

This past weekend I had the privilege of racing with some truly dedicated riders in what I am told is always the most aggressive Canada Cup race of the year. I actually got to stand on the starting line with Olympians, who apparently keep 5-7 YEAR training plans (I train for a peak every couple of months).
The Elite Men field was stacked with the world cup racing crowd, including former Olympian who will be representing us this year in London Geoff Kabush, as well other hopefuls. Conditions were dismal for the race, including a constant rain, which got pretty serious at points. There were 71 of us at the start line; all elite men who have fitness, years of racing experience, and an aggressive desire to win. Within the first 100m of the course there were already two pile ups, which is apparently expected with Hardwood Hills as the venue, because of wood chips flying up from the trail and getting into riders' drivetrains.

CREDITS: TITLE: COPYRIGHT: Rob Jones/www.canadiancyclist.com 2012

CREDITS: TITLE: COPYRIGHT: Rob Jones/www.canadiancyclist.com 2012

Coach Eric Batty avoids the chaos calmly, a couple panicked faces in the crowd, and you can see my red shoulder right no top of Eric's helmet!
CREDITS: TITLE: COPYRIGHT: Rob Jones/www.canadiancyclist.com 2012

Luckily, I did not get tangled up in this chaos, but the next kilometer of the race was a staged climb with gradual and steep sections, and much jostling for position. When we finally reached the first piece of singletrack (tight, technical trail), I had to get off my bike and wait my turn to get into the trail. . . An absolute traffic jam! I could just feel the womens category closing in on us, and the guys who were in and moving on their bikes were just getting time on us, and there was simply nothing that I could do about it. This was also the first time that I noticed an unusual amount of aggression. There was some swearing (mostly in french), and pushing, which turned me off a little bit. 

Race photos from Canadian Cyclist

Once clear of the first traffic jam, I was riding among the constant train of riders, unable to govern my speed, and each of us having trouble controlling our bikes; this was possibly the most rain affected course that I have ever been on. It was as though the trails had a trench dug through them, and that trench was filled with gumballs, roots, and peanut butter. Except there were definitely not pleasant things like gumballs and peanut butter on that course. At one point as I was passing one of the women elite riders, she was on the brink of tears, and I got off my bike and showed her that it made sense to just walk some sections, because it could be faster, and less risky. There were men all over the side of the course, just sitting down, with a look of resignation on their faces. 

Coming through one of the spectators favorite sections, thanks Meagan Broughton for the photo!

Personally, I found it to be an eye opening experience. My bike was working acceptably well for the first couple of laps (the race is 6 laps of 6km, and for the elite men we were either climbing a hill, or navigating through an insanely technical and ripped trail). By the third lap, I had blood flowing down my knees, elbow, and wrist; I also had a bike that couldn't stay in gear and wasn't pedalling properly due to the mud (I found out later that guys were spraying their drivetrains in the feed zone to keep them working - this caused me to miss a feed). I had begun to let people by, because I couldn't handle the out of control and aggressive racers that were all over the course. I decided at that point that I should keep riding, and observe the way that the others were handling the race style, and trails.

A collection of photos of me going through the "boneshaker", you can see on my face how impressed I am in some of these.

I am embarrassed and a bit ashamed that I was outdone this race, and that I really only kept my race pace together for two laps. I have realized that I am not some fearless aggressive racer, and that I need to work on racing in large groups in the trails. This was nothing like any race I had ever experienced, and I need an other shot. I'll be trying my best to get out to nationals on the 16th in St. Felicien, Quebec. Just because I wasn't great once, doesn't mean that I'll be giving up, it just gives me another area to improve!