Back on track
Being off the bike and on injured reserve is tough. In June I tore my Posterior Cruciate Ligament and have been lying low for a while. With much motivation and a recovered knee, I set out on a cycling adventure in Europe. I bike toured through 5 countries in 3 weeks. It was the first real test on my knee in 4 months. Everything went well and I'm back on the bike full-time. I've been doing some solid tempo rides with a bit of intensity mixed in, and am feeling faster by the day. My first race effort since June was this past weekend. It was called the 50/50, a 50 mile mtb race followed up by 50 miles on the road. I opted out of the solo category and did the duo team because 5hrs of burly mtb racing is plenty for me right now. The course was 50 miles long with almost 9,000ft of climbing. We started at 6am and raced for about an hour in the dark! I felt strong the entire time and finished in 4:22 minutes--nearly and hour and a half faster than the 2nd place rider! It was a good test on my knee, and a good test of fitness. I'm working toward getting in decent shape for some of the later USGP Cross races and Cross Nationals. Next weekend I'll be riding in the
Boulder Cup UCI cross races. It'll be the first cross racing I've ever really done. Wish me luck!!