This past weekend was the running of Milan-San Remo, the longest single-day race in the Pro calendar. Just under 300km, this race makes for a brutally long day on the bikes, and can play out in a multitude of ways. Every year, as with most Classics, there are the riders that are favored to win - usually due to recent success, past performances at the race, or just canny nature and skill. This year, everyone had eyes set on Peter Sagan and Fabian Cancellara - strongmen who excel in these situations. Cancellara has won here before, and came so close last year before being nipped in the sprint.
The conditions this year were quite terrible - cold rain and wind turned into icy slush. The weather got so bad that the event was actually shortened - cutting out some of the snowy and treacherous sections to protect the riders. In the end, a small group escaped over the final climb and powered into the finish. This group just happened to include BOTH Cancellara and Sagan. Sagan launched a little early and ended up getting overtaken right before the line, ending up 2nd with Cancellara right behind him. Great racing from both riders and incredible effort by everyone who managed to finish the brutal race.
My recent race held a similar effect. The Tour de Dung in Sequim, WA - a staple of the early-season racing in Washington, is usually a decent weather affair due to the rain shadow from the mountains. This running however was anything but. Temperature dropped to a low 44 degrees and featured a chilling rain for the majority of the race. To make this even more challenging, a strong wind off the Sound ripped across the area, with gusts up to 45mph! Racers huddled in the cars after quickly getting changed, and hastily warmed up before the race began. The layout of the 12 mile circuit meant that you had a long section where the wind pushed us to about 40mph, spinning out the gearing, two sections where the crosswind had you riding at a slant, and another long section with a BRUTAL headwind limiting you to around 14mph.
As with last week, I felt great at the start of the race. I knew that the big thing would be to try to conserve a bit more energy compared to last week, so that I would be able to hang in for the finish. The strong winds were a constant fight, as they tried to whip the wheels around whenever you hit those parts of the course. It was pretty crazy to spin out the gearing on a flat section, but quite demoralizing fighting the headwind on the other side. As we started lap 5, I was definitely feeling exhausted. Moving up the early climb I sat on the wrong wheel and soon found myself off the back. I worked to chase back, but the gap was already expanding, and once they hit the fast section, I was never going to make it back. I powered along solo, passing a few other riders who had peeled off (many of which were turning around) and then fought along the headwind to try to catch the main grupetto that had formed. I was only about 200m back as we made the corner to start the final lap, and wisely followed them into the parking lot, once again calling it a day. As we changed out of our soaking clothes and tried to warm up, we saw the leaders of the race come around for the win. Dave had managed to attach from the group and almost catch a small group of riders who had broken away. He ended up with a great top-10 finish, and Joe was 2nd in the group sprint from the remaining pack that arrived shortly after. The final tally - only 28 finishers - over 50% abandoned!
I was once again a little disappointed that I was unable to finish the race, but definitely did better than last week, so my fitness is getting there. Tour de Dung #2 is this weekend, and the weather should be better. Lets see if I can make my mark.
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