Iowa City Road Race

Contributed by Travis Jass...
The conditions just weren't conducive of good racing Saturday. I don't remember ever really getting rained on, however it had moved through earlier in the morning making the horse manure covered roads really slick. When the whistle blew at 9:05, we were kinda caught in the back chatting it up with old friends we hadn't seen in a while. The pack stayed together pretty well all throughout the first lap that included a short section where the right lane of the very narrow road was covered in mud. We witnessed one rider make an amazing save when he hit the mud unexpectedly. His bike went every which direction before recovering and getting right back in the mix. I tried moving up on the right side a few times and as I would get up there, it seemed as if there would be either and acceleration or the pack merged over and squeezed me back a bit. Just past the start/finish into the second lap, a few of us kinda faded a bit and a small gap formed. I ended up chasing hard only to watch them get further and further away. I had no help at first until a DMOS rider fell out the back and was chasing as well. We worked well together through several rotations, then as I was ending my turn on front, he wasn't there anymore. I continued chasing hard solo again when a Bike Tech rider drifted back. Same thing worked well together and seemed like we were making a dent in the gap until he dropped off my wheel. Ended up the last hour of an 1:50 min race averaged just shy of threshold power and heart rate +/-5 bpm. A few more riders here and there popped out the back and threw in the towel and I just treated them as if they were minute men, and motivated myself with the promise of a better finishing position with each one. After Tuesday's hammerfest and seeing Eric in great shape I felt bad for not being able to be there at the end to help lead him out. Bottom line is I need to get more comfortable in close quarters and even more comfortable in wet conditions. Thanks again for the leg treatment as well. They felt good and fresh going in and they gave me everything I asked of them on the day with never a flinch of cramping up....Travis