Last race of the year...

Tonight was the last race of the year on our velodrome- or as some call it, the "ghettodrome", due to its overall need for some sprucing up. This year, I think I have managed 3-4 races on the track, with the last being in June or July. After a month off the bike altogether thanks to all the recent travels, riding for a week did not exactly give me the freshest legs imaginable. Still, it was a great night and I really did enjoy being out on the oval with all my racing friends again.


Tonight was another little milestone; my daughter's first time watching me race since the terrible crash last year. Nearly since the minute I got back on a bike and began to ride again, she's been asking when we were going to the track so she could see me race again. All summer, she's been asking and has been really bummed out when I have gone to race without her. So tonight, after I picked her up from school, we headed to the track.

I won't lie- I was a little nervous about having her there and it certainly brought out the much more cautious side of me. I kept thinking, "not in front of her again". Luckily, there were no crashes at all tonight and she had another young girl to run around and play with all night as well. Needless to say, she was a happy 8 year old girl.


It would be easy, as a total starry-eyed dreamer Pisces, to sit here and try to analyze this desire of hers to see me race again; she needed to have closure, she needed to see her daddy get back and complete the journey of recovery, she needed to get over her own fear of what might happen. I don't know the answer and maybe I never will, but I know one thing- she had fun at the track again.



As for the racing... well, it would be a great story to say that I was able to get back on the bike after a month on the road with travels and kick ass. Well, this ain't Hollywood and I'm not Leonardo DiCaprio... sadly. BUT... I did have a great time with some really crappy legs.

1st race was 5 lap Scratch to "seed" for second event- I got second place and advanced.

2nd race with a Miss and Out... and I was out on the first lap. I've never liked the event!

3rd race was a 20 lap Points race and I scored points on the first and second laps... then dropped WAY back to second chase group. Not sure where I finally finished.

In the end, I had fun and I got to share it with my daughter; sometimes life is very good.


Tim
PS- Those Reynolds wheels were awesome! More in-depth report to follow... eventually.