masters worlds part1

hello from Austria!

This has been quite a trip already. I flew into Munich overnight friday...arriving saturday morning....then a nice 2.5 hour drive into the alps. After a nice ride on the awesome TT course it was time to catch up on sleep.

Sunday I did a masters world cup road race on the course where the world champs road race will be next friday. The course is sooooo cool. Lots of twisting beautiful roads. A couple of climbs , but nothing too long. We had about 100 riders in my age group. We did 3 laps of a 23 mile circuit. The weather was cool and cloudy....

The first lap was extremely scary. I knew I should be at the front, but was too scared to move up...these guys have no problem pushing you off the road. Then it started to rain....not just rain...but POUR....now I was scared AND I couldn´t see anything. The second time up the first climb I started to come around....but not soon enough as the movewent over the top of the climb, just as I was gettting my confidence. Now, after 35 miles of racing I was able to stay in good position...and wait for a chance to attack. My goals for the race were 1) don`t fall down, 2) learn the course and 3 get in a few good attacking or covering moves efforts. On the last 15kms of the 2nd lap I put in a couple of attcks and got nowhere...but I was coming around. On the third lap I rode the front on the downhill...then put in a buch of good attacks....even getting clear for a km or 2....and then covering some moves as well...of course this was all behind the break that was never coming back. As we hit the last 5 km in the hard rain and narrow roads, I sat up , went to the back and coasted in for 77th place....mission accomplished.

There were several other americans in the race....one from our group, unfortunately went down on the first lap and broke his collarbone....

Now it is all about the TT on wednesday...the event I came here for. The course is 20km, mostly flat through a valley, with a nice little hill just before the turnaround. It is a course I can do well on.....but will it be good enough?

a2