I'm still trying to catch up our blog - still have a ways to go, however. The below entry chronicles SCPS #12 held on Nov. 22 at Lake Casitas in Ojai...oh yeah, it was the District Championships too.
The 1000 mile stare. Photo by Richard Murphy.
I'm not as talented as Taberly, I have to carry my bike over the barriers.
The burnout that set in at Bakersfield and got worse at SLO hit its peak at the District Championships at Lake Casitas outside of Ventura, CA. I had no motivation to train during the previous week and getting everything together for the races was becoming a chore. On top of everything else, because this was Districts, the A and B masters would be combined making for a much faster race. Plus it was the longest one day there-and-back drive that we'd be making for a SoCalCross race this season. At least it was a pretty venue.
The course was similar to last year's: well balanced, good flow, a standard double barrier, a stair section, and a hoppable log. There was also a ~300 m paved headwind section that really favored sitting in a draft (if you could find one). Not much to report here about the race itself. The 35-39 and 40-44 groups started together with the series Masters 35+ 3/4 points to be picked out of the final results (thanks to Chris B. for sorting through that headache). I raced as hard as I could and ended up in 13th out of 17 for the district 40-44 race and 7th out of 13 for the Masters 35+ 3/4. Not one of my better results of the season. The burn out was showing...time to pick it up or pack it in.
Dinorah had a good race finishing with a 3rd place medal in her age group. O had a great time - she had a blast riding S's balance bike from the top of a berm, down the slope, and making an off-camber U-turn around a tree....a cyclocross racer in the making if I ever saw one.
The Elite Men's race was a dramatic affair, with the suspense going down to the last few hundred meters. Although the course was more than selective enough for the other fields, a large group of leaders stayed intact until the Elite's final lap when Sid Taberlay bunny hopped the barriers and threw down a viscous attack opening a large gap on Gary Douville, Brandon Gritters, and Ned Overend (yes, that Ned Overend), while defending SoCal champion, Brent Prenzlow was chasing back after a tangle with Mark Noble. In the end, Taberlay stayed away for the win with Douville claiming second, and Prenzlow making a huge effort to move up into third place. Since Sid is an Australian national (and Australian national champion) he's not eligible for the district jersey so Douville got the gold and the Bear, Prenzlow got silver, and Gritters got the bronze.
Time for me to climb up on my soapbox...I was really happy to see the expansion of championship categories for the Masters Women fields. I think this is really beneficial to growing the sport despite the small number of women in some of the fields. However, I really think that championship medals and jerseys should NOT be awarded to non-elite or non-age group categories. That is: Elite Men, Elite Women, Jr. Boys 10-14, Women 55+, etc. are appropriate championship categories. Men CX 4, Women CX 3/4, Masters Men 35+ 3/4, etc. should not be eligible for a championship. Furthermore, I think we should consider holding the District Championships separate from any series. Trying to juxtapose regular series racing on top of all the age group categories leads to confusion for the organizers and racers alike.
Make sure to check out our photos from the day on Flickr. I especially like the below shots of Sid Taberlay bunny hopping the barriers:Time for me to climb up on my soapbox...I was really happy to see the expansion of championship categories for the Masters Women fields. I think this is really beneficial to growing the sport despite the small number of women in some of the fields. However, I really think that championship medals and jerseys should NOT be awarded to non-elite or non-age group categories. That is: Elite Men, Elite Women, Jr. Boys 10-14, Women 55+, etc. are appropriate championship categories. Men CX 4, Women CX 3/4, Masters Men 35+ 3/4, etc. should not be eligible for a championship. Furthermore, I think we should consider holding the District Championships separate from any series. Trying to juxtapose regular series racing on top of all the age group categories leads to confusion for the organizers and racers alike.























