Portland USGP: Day 2

Today was the final race in the USGP series. The points raced was tight in my 45+ category. I was sitting in 2nd place and 1st place was really out of reach. The battle was really for 2nd place between myself and Tim Butler of Portland. After yesterdays race the points spread had closed to just 7 points due to Tim's win and my 4th place.

Today the weather was even better than yesterday with sunny Sky's and warm temps. With just a bit of wind the course had dried out quite a bit and it was going to be fast. The organizers had made some changes to the course and added some turns which is an advantage for me. The long pavement stretches were still in the course so it still favored guys with power but it made it a little better.

Off the start I took the lead and soon there was a group of 5 off the front. I was leading and trying to put pressure on Butler hoping he would make a mistake or blow. For the first 2 laps I tried to pile on the pressure but every time I would get a gap in the turns they would pull me back on the paved straights. On the 3rd lap I had a few bobbles that allowed 3 of the guys past me. For the rest of the race I was hurting and Butler was just in front of me. I knew that if he finished 3rd and I finished 4th I could hold onto 2nd overall so I just focused on riding smooth and not falling. That's just how we ended up with Mike McShane in 5th place he wrapped up the overall series prize with me 2nd, and Butler 3rd.

It was quite a battle the whole series but friendly rivalries made for a fun time. Second overall for the series just missed the goal of a win but with all of the injuries and illnesses I'll take it.

In the pro race it was a battle between Johnson and Powers of the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld team.

Check out this berm in the turn. By the end of the day there were berms in most of the turns.

Sitting of the line with 1 minute before the start for the 35+ race. Do they look nervous........

So now we have a few days before we make the trip over the mountains to Bend and Cross Nationals. Tomorrow it looks like we will be riding in Portland before making the trip to Bend on Tuesday. Wednesday is the first day of Nationals with time trials and the B races and most of our riders and doing one or the other.

Time for bed