Xterra West & Southeast Championships

It is a blogging moment I feel, OK, so I'm not the best at this newest form of self-promotion, but it is kind of cool to have it at my disposal.......first off, my prayers go out in multitudes to Chris Storie, our own Cahaba Cyclist who is currently at UAB with some serious injuries after crashing hard at the Oak! I know I speak for all of us on the C C Team, WE SEND OUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS.....Well better late than never I always say.....The Xterra West Championships were held out in Temecula California on May 18th........very hot, and very hilly are the best words to describe the West course, here's a link to the profile of the bike course : http://i25.tinypic.com/o9pzfa.jpg Hope it works! I was quite nervous as race day approached. I felt completely unready, and not fit enough to take on this first major race of the season. I knew the competition would be tough. Race morning brought high temps, and lots of nervousness. I had no way of training for this type of climbing, and I knew it would be steep, and the pre-ride confirmed my steep fears, as well as my heat fears.
Race morning arrived with the temps expected to be in the upper ninety's, it actually made it to 104 heat index, but it was a very dry heat. : ) Swim start was a wave start, so the Pros went off first followed by the 39 and under guys, and all us older gents and ladies went off last. It was a non-wetsuit swim and it felt very slow...I had to pick my way through most of the 39 and under folks as well as a few Pros. I was out of the water in good time and proceeded to get out of transition on my bike and ride the few miles out to where the loop started. I felt pretty good on the bike, but I was afraid to push too much going up the climbs, so I took it pretty easy when the steep parts came, and when I had a chance to punch it, I did! I was having a good ride and no one caught me on the bike........weird, I kept looking over my shoulder for Tom Lyons who is the 6X World Champ as well as the 6X National Champ, and I have never been able to get around this guy....he is a fierce competitor, as well as a great guy, but Tom never past me? I kept pushing and finally I was heading out of the bike course with a 1:42 bike Split, not too bad for a Southern boy in the Western dessert. Now, it was time for the 5.5 mile run straight up out of the transition area, and I mean straight up! Most Pros walked the first hill out of transition, and did I ever say there were no trees out in the dessert, I mean not a lick of shade..it was an Xterra Bake sale, and the bodies were getting well done! : ) It was HOT man! The run was a lap out and then 2 laps on this crazy fricking hilly spine of a course that was just nuts..you could look down from the top of the spines and see little ants of people running down on the bottom of the course.......way down there! Anyway, I felt pretty good on the run, and Tom had still not caught me. I kept thinking he would show up any minute, and I was not looking back. On my second loop I started feeling pretty confident that no one was going to catch me, so I really picked up the pace as fast as I could, and no one ever passed me......I came in across the line as the 4th amateur and had won the West Championship in the 45-49 AG....pretty fricking sweet. I qualified for the World Championship in Maui, and that was a huge relief for me also. In 9 years of Xterra racing I have never been able to get around Tom Lyons, but I was a little faster on this day, and when Tom came across the line I gave him a huge hug, and we just laughed about it! I know he was stoked that I had a great day, and I was too....it's good to be a competitor, but it's better to enjoy the process of becoming one, and I felt blessed to be a part of it all..........http://www.xterraplanet.com/races/view_results.cfm?race_id=626 here's the results from the West Championship

Now, as most of you know Sunday was the Xterra Southeast Championship here at Oak Mountain.........it was a great event, but a very unforgiving day in the woods out at the park. It was a very Hot day, with very humid conditions. Most people think that having home court advantage would give you confidence, but for me it puts more pressure on the situation, because you really don't want to disappoint the locals cheering for you. Every one is watching, and you don't want to let them down...so I was nervous before the start, and leading up to the race I just wish it was over. I had been working on my swim with a little more fervor after a crappy swim at the West Championships, and I felt a little bit of an advantage with the swim feeling a little better, but I still have plenty of work to do.....when the cannon went off I was right in with most of the women pros and I knew that was a safe place for me to be. I got out of the water with the 3X Women's World Champion Melanie McQuaid, so I knew I was in good position for entry in the woods.....I was out onto the bike with a couple of Pro guys and Pro women, and I was rolling pretty good for feeling flat most of the week on the bike. I have not been riding this trail with great results lately, and it had me a bit worried. I made some technical mistakes, but was able to roll OK for the most part......only several Pro men passed me, and that gave me some confidence that my bike split was going to be OK....I rolled out of the woods in about 1:12 and some change, so I was pretty stoked that I was able to hold that pace.....Now, it was time for a run that was only about 5.6 miles long.........OH, with about 1400 feet of climbing, OH, and 100% humidity I think! At least that's what it felt like! It was HOT man! My legs were not too happy! Faris rode down the road with me a little bit before I got into the woods, and it helped to take my mind off the heat, and the pain for a few moments...the pain soon returned as I worked my way through the woods, and up the steep sections on the Yellow trail. I kept thinking that anyone could run me down, but really only one Pro ran pass me that I can remember..so it was slow run, but I did get through it to come across the line in the 3rd amateur spot, and for the Southeast Championship 45-49 AG win.....a good day at the office, as well as a good win in my backyard! http://www.jtltiming.com/results/x-pel.html Heres the results page.....
It really was a Great Weekend for the Cahaba Cycle Team as we dominated the podium across the board......Tony Hearndon won the 21k on Saturday, Faris won the Duathlon on Sunday morning, Omar was second amateur as well as the 25-29 Southeast Champion, and Jonathan, Jason, and Dewayne won the Team Relay, I might be missing some other Team members, so if I am I apologize Great Job!.........Overall I think we kicked some serious butt.....but that's what happens when you've got the best Bike Shop in Town behind your efforts.
A great BIG THANKS to Cahaba for the great service, as well as the great bikes to ride, and just the feeling of home when ever I walk into the shop...I really feel like family, and that goes a long way to making great Race Results.
Next up: I have the Beaches Fine Art Series #2 this weekend, and after that 2 more Xterra Point series races in July...and the Alabama State Championship at Mt. Lakes, then it's time for some serious training for the National Championship and the World Championship in October..........That's all from Team Cahaba right now, but stay tuned for more exciting news from the race circuit as we continue to chase our dreams and try to stay fit in this wonderful lifestyle we all love........ that's all for now.

Casey